Los Angeles

Los Angeles sprawls across Southern California with beaches, mountains, and endless suburbs. It’s huge and spread out with no real center. The weather is sunny most days except when wildfires smoke things up. Traffic is famously terrible at all times. You need a car to get anywhere. A week covers the main areas but you spend half of it driving. It’s expensive and feels very car dependent.

Los Angeles Beaches and Coastal Areas

Santa Monica has the pier with a Ferris wheel and arcade games. The beach is wide and the water is cold. Third Street Promenade is an outdoor mall with street performers. Venice Beach boardwalk is weird and entertaining with bodybuilders at Muscle Beach and street vendors selling everything. The canals nearby are pretty and quiet compared to the boardwalk chaos. Malibu up the coast has nicer beaches and celebrity houses hidden in the hills. The Pacific Coast Highway has ocean views.

Los Angeles Hollywood and Downtown

Hollywood Boulevard has the Walk of Fame stars on the sidewalk. It’s dirty and touristy and kind of disappointing. The Chinese Theatre has handprints in cement. Street performers dressed as characters hassle you for photos. Griffith Observatory up in the hills has views over the whole city sprawl. You can see the Hollywood sign from there. Downtown LA has skyscrapers and the arts district with galleries. Little Tokyo and Olvera Street have ethnic food. Grand Central Market has food stalls and gets crowded.

Los Angeles Neighborhoods and Surrounding Areas

Beverly Hills has Rodeo Drive with shops you can’t afford. The houses are huge and hidden behind gates. West Hollywood has bars and clubs on Sunset Strip. Silver Lake and Echo Park are the hipster areas with cafes and vintage shops. Pasadena has the Rose Bowl and nice old architecture. The Getty Museum has art and gardens on a hilltop. Disneyland is an hour south in Anaheim.

Food is everything. Tacos, Korean BBQ, Thai, sushi, In-N-Out burger, health food.