Looking for some ideas for a day in LA. Firstly our details.
We arive on Dec 15 at 1030 am, and fly out at 1030 pm. I figure we have about 9-10 hours to kill.
My wife and I are in our 30's and we have 3 kids ages 1, 4 and 9. We are on our way to Australia for Christmas, this will be a 14 hour flight. We are hoping to keep the kids up until we board the flight, then let them sleep for most of the flight.
So I have 2 plans in mind.
Plan A - Theme Park. Would like ideas of which might be the best place to take young kids? Not too crowded, safe and activities to keep the little ones amused. Do we need a rental car, or would a bus or taxi work?
Plan B - Hotel Thought about just laying back in a hotel with a pool and hot tub. Perhaps by a beach so we could take walks and play in the sand. Any one know of a family friendly, wallet friendly hotel, either near the airport or near the beach?
Or does any one else have any ideas. Thanks for any help
Bill

Go directly to Disneyland, the kids will have a ball, everyone will be exhausted and will sleep all the way to Australia!

Hmm...9-10 hours isn't very much time...there's not much to do around LAX and there's always traffic in LA...factoring roundtrip to and from wherever you go, traffic times and airport delays...I'd figure that you'd actually have more like 6-7 hours to actually "play"

If time and traffic permits:
Universal Citywalk may be a good idea since there's lots to do, plenty of chain restaurants (haven't been in awhile but there used to be a restaurant where they put on a magic show while you eat), a little shopping and then there's an arcade so your kids can play and win prizes or catch an IMAX film or something. Only thing is, it tends to get pretty crowded...

Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park...it's cheaper than the other theme parks and if you get bored there, a couple blocks away are some museums (wax museum, ripley's believe it or not) as well as medieval times and wildbill's something or another...Compared to Universal, Knott's will probably be a little less crowded...but it's a little further away from LAX than Universal as well...

Disneyland...I'd pass, it's even further away from Knott's. It's expensive and you won't have nearly enough time to see everything and enjoy it in 6 hours.

Hmm...9-10 hours isn't very much time...there's not much to do around LAX and there's always traffic in LA...factoring roundtrip to and from wherever you go, traffic times and airport delays...I'd figure that you'd actually have more like 6-7 hours to actually "play"

If time and traffic permits:
Universal Citywalk may be a good idea since there's lots to do, plenty of chain restaurants (haven't been in awhile but there used to be a restaurant where they put on a magic show while you eat), a little shopping and then there's an arcade so your kids can play and win prizes or catch an IMAX film or something. Only thing is, it tends to get pretty crowded...

Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park...it's cheaper than the other theme parks and if you get bored there, a couple blocks away are some museums (wax museum, ripley's believe it or not) as well as medieval times and wildbill's something or another...Compared to Universal, Knott's will probably be a little less crowded...but it's a little further away from LAX than Universal as well...

Disneyland...I'd pass, it's even further away from Knott's. It's expensive and you won't have nearly enough time to see everything and enjoy it in 6 hours.

Santa Monica Pier? Not terribly far away, can hang out by the beach (albeit, Santa Monica Beach isn't exactly the cleanest and I would never recommend actually going into the water there) but there are rides and games for the kids. Great restaurants nearby, street performers and shopping at 3rd street promenade. Can get pretty crowded especially since nearing the holiday season.

Olvera Street? Something cultural?Olvera Street is actually really close by. This is known as the "birthplace of los angeles". They have several historic buildings, a traditional Mexican style plaza, you can learn about Mexican culture there, have great Mexican food, buy cheap Mexican souveniers, listen to a mariachi band, sometimes they have dancers...look them up on the internet, they may have a calendar of events and information on guided tours...

Just a few options....let me know if you have any questions

My options would be either Santa Monica or Universal. Santa Monica's 3rd Street Promenade has street performers that might keep the kids entertained, and the pier has rides and such. Really can be quite fun for the kids. Skip going into the water - it'll be too cold anyway that time of year. A variety of restaurants as well, though some can be pricey.

Universal has lots to do as well, and would be interesting. You would have to keep a close eye on the time, though, and that might add up to not so good a time. It depends.

Skip Disneyland. With getting a rental car and traffic (and if your plane is on time), you might have 5 - 6 hours at D-land. I'm also assuming you will want 1, perhaps 2, meals? That really cuts down on the time at D-land. Too far and too much traffic to make it worth your while.

Thanks for the help so far. Any idea what the weather will be Dec 15?
Bill

you blew your credibility, Bill. how would any of us know what the weather will be on dec. 15? my best guess right now is sunny, with a 50% chance of clouds.

December in California can be just about anything weather-wise. Could be clear, sunny, and cool. Might be raining. Santa Anas might pick up and it could be as hot as summer. It's just not that predictable here.

My suggestion would be to dress in layers and keep jackets and umbrellas handy.

Oh, and if it raining, I would forego Santa Monica and Universal. They are mostly outdoor venues, and though that might not be as bad for adults or older children, it can be uncomfortable with an infant. In the event of rain, you might want to consider an indoor venue, such as a children's museum. But, keep in mind, LA traffic during rain is bad.

Sounds like you should have fun!

Thanks for all your help so far. We are excited about our trip to Australia. Thanks too Michelle for the weather report, I was really wondering what we might expect, and if being outdoors would be such a good idea. We are coming from Montana, where by mid Dec, outdoors gets pretty rough.
To further seek some help, my wife does want a back up plan if the weather is bad. She would like to find a nice hotel and just sit around the pool or hot tub. I notice most of the hotels have outdoor pools, does any one know of a hotel with an indoor pool instead. Also I see most allow check in about 3pm, are there any that would allow early check in, say about 11:30 or 12:00.
Thanks