[GeeJay]

Going over to LA in April with my girlfriend for the Coachella festival, looking to spend as much time as possible not booked flights yet but hopefully 10 days at least.

Need advice from anyone's who's been on what to do, where to go, things to avoid etc. it's my first time out if Europe so no doubt everything will just look amazing to me.

[alexp]

go on one of the celebrity home van/bus tours. it's very touristy of course, however it is a good time. unreal seeing where all of them live. i would say it's a must do activity actually.

[JohnJohn]

Don't let your girlfriend anywhere near a man called Hank Moody!

[kiwififer]

Do not crack a joke, smile or even yawn when going through customs. I have been through a lot of customs throughout the years and they are by far the worst.

[pub car king]

It really us hit and miss with us customs
Vegas nice
Boston I think the guy was on medication
New York do not f**k with us was the vibe
La had an attitude
San Francisco nice guy told us a few good places to go

[kiwififer]

The thing was, I wasnt actually entering the USA, I was wandering from the plane, entering a transit room, waiting for a hour while they refuelled and then reboarding the same plane. We were not allowed to go anywhere including the airport, so Christ knows what he thought we could do.

He actually asked me 'where will you be during your stay in the united states?' and was not amused when I replied 'on an armchair in the transit lounge' and gave a chuckle.

I never knew he was actually being serious, I thought he was taking he piss as thre was nowhere to go!

This post has been edited by kiwififer: 09 February 2012 - 11:14

[doulikefish]

Hire a car,public transport is shite

[yoda]

Take a long time in deciding whether you are a "Crip" or a "Blood".

[Hipster Dufus]

Side trip to Vegas is a must (270 miles away) if you are going to be there for 10 days.
You do have a passport, right?

[fanny paddery]

Get to vegas, 45 min flight from orange county airport for about £80.
Also get down to orange county, la isnt that nice but orange county is just like the oc!

[doulikefish]

fanny paddery, on 09 February 2012 - 13:15, said:

Get to vegas, 45 min flight from orange county airport for about £80.
Also get down to orange county, la isnt that nice but orange county is just like the oc!

ill be in vegas on the 21st

[GeeJay]

Thanks for the replies so far. I've heard the city of LA itself has quite a few dives and choosing location to spend your time is important. Also that's got to be the fourth or fifth time I've seen someone say the public transport is shit - one of the biggest cities in the world how bad can it be?!

Keen to do as much as possible as there is little chance I'll be out that way again anytime soon. Vegas is a big possibility, especially as the Coachella festival is halfway between the two.

[Kejan]

Agree about customs, it's almost pot luck you get.
Last time I went was 05 and went in 2010 and the customs (maybe it was the staff?) but they seemed to be a A LOT more easy going in nature. In 05, I was asked about illegal activities, my middle name of all things, where I had been, a lot of why, where's and what's, but last year the 2 customs staff I met were superb.
It was LAX too, and they were giving me advice on what to do ''Go to Venice Beach. My wife and I always go there and we get a good laugh'' and I told him I had tickets for a few shows and he was agreeing saying it's a great insight into the 'business' and it's free if you are on tight budget etc.

As for LA.

Only there for 3 days but was a pleasant surprise. I'd been to San Francisco before and loved it so wasn't expecting much from LA but had a pleasant surprise. Public transport is do-able but it takes ages and many places don't link up. I didn't have much cash so went with public transport but it near enough took all day getting from area to area. I'd recommend hiring a car to see as much as you can.
I stayed in West Hollywood which is quite artsy-gay-liberal (insert whatever) a lot of nice cafes and seemed like every night there was either something going on from stand up, concerts to poetry, book readings. A lot of cool shops and 'interesting' people to see here too.

Downtown is a bit of a dive. Many homeless people and feels like there is no body there. I think they are trying to renovate it and attract people to the area to live in but it felt a bit run down in areas. Little Japan and China was nice, touristy but quite cute and Koreatown looked quite lively and plenty of people out partying.

Beverly Hills was just what I expected. Not a Fiat Punto in sight and a lot of fancy shops.

Hollywood is a bit of a dive itself. A lot of nuts walking about and a bit of a tourist trap. Of course you must go here and see it as if you like films, you will see the sign, the Kodak theatre, the walk of fame. A lot of odd people about though. I see a woman with a SLOTH here and at first I thought it was a cat or something, it wasn't until I walked past and heard some guy ask her and she replied 'Sloth' that I noticed it. Check it out for a day and night, I noticed it had a few bars too which looked reasonably ok but I'd recommend staying away.
Venice Beach walk to Santa Monica was nice and interesting. Venice felt like stoner's paradise and lots of people selling home made jewellery, souvenirs on the side walk. Santa Monica more up-market and reasonably 'normal'. Great views of the beach and ocean on this walk on a great day.

I didn't do enough as it was 2-3 days I was there, but go see a show. Tickets to Craig Ferguson, Jay Leno or even cracks like Dr Phil are free and you can put a bid on the website for them. An interesting experience and although it's a good part of the day hanging around, it was good fun and especially if on a budget like I was.
I never did the Hollywood van/car tour but I wanted to although I heard from a Spanish bird I got talking to that it was pretty rubbish and most of the time, you will only see their walls and she even thought many of them didn't live there any more.

As for celeb spotting, I seen Mario 'AC Slater' Lopez at a Farmers Market in West Hollywood. He was filming some segiment for an Entertainment Tonight program.

Get a car though. Your best option for seeing most of the city. It's huge.

It's a bit scatterd this but I was only there for a few days and it was more a spur of the moment type travel thing I did but tha's what I can remember from it.

[T_S_A_R]

driving up the coast road to san francisco is amazing but you need plenty of time to make it worth it. san diego is a good place to visit as well and an easier drive, the zoo is amazing and you can jump over to tiajauna.

in la venice is great and santa monica and malibu are really nice.

[Lambie's Pigeon Feed]

Stay in Santa Monica or Venice Beach, must nicer places than 'downtown' or Hollywood, I stayed in West Hollywood and it's a tacky shithole.

Public transport is baws, there is a small subway which doesn't really go anywhere of use, a bus from West Hollywood to Santa Monica involved an erratic bus schedule, a massively long trip, a change of buses and another lengthy wait/journey.

It's feckin massive as well, got recommended a nightclub to go to 4 blocks away, each block must have been a mile long, getting around is a pain in the arse and there doesn't seem to be any taxis driving around that you can flag down.

I never went but I wish I had gone to Magic Mountain, looks the biz if you like rollercoasters and shit.

Depending how much time you have San Diego and Vegas are much better places in my opinion so you could spend some time in either of those. Tip to Tijuana not recommended if you're going with your bird.