Drive PCH up Central Coast to Big Sur. Monterrey Aquarium is really nice. Channel Islands are great. Visit some farms and pick fruit for the young ones. Legoland is close by I think? The beaches are nice south of LA. Not sure but you can go whale watching depending on the season.
We are planning on going end of Januari and the first 2 weeks of Februari. I heard the weather can be bad at that time of year. Is that true, are there specific area's (like the coast line) that we should avoid as a result of the weather? And when I say avoid I mean as a result of really bad weather, so rainy days is not a problem, but huge stroms and ice can be. Also the game I plan to go to is Clippers-Bulls on 31 of januari at 12:30 PM. I expect that the traffic to the stadium will not be that bad right (since it is a afternooon sunday game)?
It doesn't rain here anymore - worst drought in decades. And we don't get ice on the coast - only in the Sierras.
Plenty of parking available near the Staples Center. I have been there twice and parked right beside the arena
Getty Museum is cool. You take a tram to the top. Interesting architecture and landscaping. Great artwork inside. Tourists go the Hollywood, to Beverly Hills, and to the various beaches. Catalina Island and Balboa Island is OK. Much prefer northern California. Much more to do, much better places to visit.
Occasionally it rains during that time of the year, but even when it does, it isn't that bad. It's just that drivers don't really know how to drive once it does rain. The weather will most likely be cool, but not freezing. Of course any of that can change.
Heading to LA this weekend, keep the recommendations coming. What about restaurant recommendations (specifically Korean/Vietnamese/Persian).
It depends on how much you want to pay. There is an extremely great Vietnamese restaurant that is kind of pricy in Beverly Hills called the District Hannah An. It actually has allowed some other influences to make its way into the food, but it is fantastic. Hannah An is the daughter of another Vietnamese Beverly Hills restaurant owner called Crustacean. When it comes to Korean food it kind of depends on what you like. About 10-15 years ago Korean food both in Korea and the United States starting ramping up their sweetness. There are some that still serve food not as sweet, but I think most people like the sweet stuff these days. One place that is kind of far out in the valley but is really good, not too expensive, and kind of a locals type joint is It's called Evergreen Restaurant. There is another one near there called BCD Tofu house which specializes in this kick-ass Korean soup. They have other dishes too, but stick with their specialty if you go there. Korea town has some great places too. I haven't been in a long time there, but a lot of the places there are too sweet for my taste. As for Persian, I'm sorry to say I don't really know. The closest I can come to recommending something kind of close would be a few great Armenian places. My favorite one of those by far is Raffi's in Glendale. The price is reasonable and the food is sensational. The ambiance is nothing special at all, and you might think it's even kind of sketchy, but the food and service have always been top notch in my many many visits. They also have either a fairly cheap corkage fee, or maybe not at all. We always bring wine with us, and the bill is never too bad. I know there are plenty of Persian places in Los Angeles, but I'm not a real expert. One place that isn't the type of food you mentioned and might be a surprise for folks coming to LA is a pizza place called DeSano's. It's in a sketchy neighborhood, but has a huge parking lot, and quite possibly the best pizza anywhere (I lived in New York for 10 years). They've imported the dough starter from Italy. They actually imported all of their pizza ovens from Italy as well. The pizza is truly amazing. Though if you go also get the meatballs which will come with Focaccia bread. The sauce on that is amazing.
Awesome, thanks! Good call on Raffi's. I went there last time I was in town and it was fantastic. We were a party of 4 and ordered enough food for ~10.
Going to LA next week. 5 days, 4 nights. Staying in Beverly Hills. This will be our first time going and don't have much planned except for spending a day at Disney. What are some fun things to go see for first timers?
Watch out for these jokers ... <img src="https://img.washingtonpost.com/rw/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2015/01/02/Obituaries/Images/Obit-Donna_Douglas-0801a-901.jpg" height="512" />
We went in June and stayed in Santa Monica. We went to Disneyland two days, Universal Studios one, Magic Mountain one, San Diego Zoo one (along with visiting La Jolla Cove to hang with the sea lions), Griffith Observatory and Griffith Park, La Brea Tar Pits and museum, did a Whale Watching Cruise (amazing), drove up and down the coast and checked out the beach towns and scenery. We drove a LOT. Despite the horror stories about traffic, if you've done Houston traffic, LA isn't really worse to me. Of course, you have to be smart. Don't plan to do your driving during rush hour. That would be a bad idea in any city. I found that the HOV lanes were much much more convenient than the ones we have here. Even in heavy traffic times, we zoomed by in the HOV. Also, agree with the person who said if you do Disneyland, get there at the break of dawn. We got there around 6:30am for a 7am opening and it was great. We had almost half the park done by 11am. I'm not sure how different times are in January. I'd think the crowds would be even lower. We were going to drive up to Sequoia National Park and see the General Sherman Tree (tallest tree in the U.S.) and other redwoods, the Moro Rock, etc. It's a solid 3-4 hour drive though. Second any drive up the Pacific Coast Highway. It's arguably the most scenic drive you'll ever see, unless you do that a whole lot.
Just came back... Highlights were: Getty and Getty Villa -- Arno if you're into arts/architecture/gardens-- do this. Bike rental at Santa Monica / Venice. 90+ weather so hooray for swimming in October. Quick stops for a stroll through Hollywood/Rodeo Drive -- they were giving away audience tix at Hollywood but we didn't have time. Broad museum (new) USC tailgate party Pacific Science Centre was good -- but not too different from Science Centres elsewhere -- except for the space shuttle. First time staying inland (wedding in Glendale)-- holy traffic batman! Missed out on FBs western town, topanga and coastal areas other than beaches. I'll be back.
