anneofingleside

What is the best beach to visit us a family with two kids in the L.A. area? We are also planning to go to Universal, La Brea Tar Pits, Hollywood, etc.

rjw_lgb_ca

Boy, your requests go all over the map (literally)!

(The Tar Pits...?!)

Your best bet is simply to head west to Santa Monica Beach. That way you can also check out the city of Santa Monica itself.

That's not my favorite beach in LA County, however. I'd rather do my serious hanging-out in Hermosa Beach or Manhattan Beach (slight preference for the former)-- these are real slices of southern California beach life. For that matter, you could saddle up the rental car and check out the stunning beaches of Malibu-- or the even better ones of coastal Orange County (Laguna Beach's Crystal Cove is jaw-droppingly beautiful IMHO). Lots of great choices.

If you're just looking for sand and no waves, there's always lame ol' Mother's Beach, a man-made area of Marina del Rey; we have a Mother's Beach South on a lagoon in Long Beach at Naples Island, but it's really not worth the detour (believe me, I live in Long Beach).

rjw_lgb_ca

Let's consolidate your other requests, shall we?

There are literally thousands of things we could suggest for you and your family to do in the greater LA area. Thousands. We can definitely expand, and improve on, the list of well-known stuff. Universal Studios is fine-- a bit smaller than the Orlando park, but this one has one novelty: An actual working motion picture and television studio dating back to 1914, with Carl Laemmle himself initiating backstage tours soon after (this stopped in the late 20s, but revived in 1964). For an even better tour, Warner Brothers is tops-- but they have age limitations; check their website.

American Girl Place (if your girls are into that cult) is in the Grove. Next to the historic, world-famous LA Farmer's Market. And CBS Television City. Neat stuff.

Hollywood is cool for a couple of hours (and who knows? You might time it to attend a new Walk of Fame star dedication). How about heading up to the newly-renovated Griffith Park Observatory (tour by reservation only) to check out where James Dean shot key exteriors for Rebel Without a Cause? Make sure you float into Guitar Center on Sunset-- you might see famous musicians shopping for new instruments. The Virgin Megastore on Sunset is usually good for a "star" sighting, as is the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf at Sunset and Fairfax, or the Urth Caffé on Melrose.

If you feel like doing anything out-of-the-way, how about the lovely Huntington Library in San Marino? Gorgeous gardens and a few notable objets d'art (Gainsborough's "Blue Boy"). Then swing into lovely Pasadena, home of the Rose Bowl and Rose Parade, the fantastic Norton Simon Museum, one of the best collections of Arts & Crafts style large houses in the US (you'll find Arts & Crafts-style bungalows in southern CA beach cities), and some great dining and shopping in Old Town.

The Getty Center in Brentwood is another great place for gardens, incredible views of the LA basin and good rotating exhibitions of notable art (NOTE: the permanent collections at the Getty are pretty spotty, so focus on the special presentations). They just re-opened the lovely Getty Villa up in Malibu, so if you're so inclined....

Santa Monica has beach and good restaurants and good shopping to recommend it. There are three main shopping/eating areas: Montana Avenue to the north, the Third Street Promenade and other parts of downtown SM, and Main Street to the south, heading into Venice. The genteel locals and Ladies Who Lunch frequent Montana Ave. (think Shabby Chic/Rachel Ashwell fans), tourists and businesspeople on lunch break hang out on Third Street (people who wear Gap, Abercrombie & Fitch or French Connection UK, and some who think Famima! is a Taste of Home), and the cooler/edgier artsy types walk Main Street (lots of black clothing, dyed hair, actors and playwrights heading to Meetings of all kinds).

Downtown LA is unjustly a No Man's Land for many a tourist. You could take a day trip there to check out the historic center of LA (founded as El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Angeles del Río de Porciúncula) at la Placita Olvera (aka Olvera Street or Calle Olvera). There are walking tours of the incredible old Art Déco movie palaces (most now converted to other uses) found throughout Downtown. There are other architectural gems-- Disney Concert Hall being the latest, the Bradbury Building the most celebrated in film, City Hall, the US Bank Tower, etc., etc., etc.

How about strolling in Beverly Hills? A leisurely walk around the beautiful campus of UCLA? A drive down PCH/Coast Highway through Orange County from Seal Beach to San Clemente will lead you to gorgeous ocean views, nice beaches, great surfing, some killer shoppings, awesome art galleries, etc., etc., etc.

Just too much to list.

Where to stay? Near the ocean is nice, but you pay for the privilege. What's your budget?

vegasnative

Another vote for Santa Monica Beach. We went last summer for a few days, took our 3 boys and they loved it! I also like Huntington Beach, but I think with the pier at Santa Monica it is more appealing to kids.

LucieV

Santa Monica beach. No contest.

anneofingleside

Thanks, both of you, for your replies. rjw, thanks for all the info--very helpful. I appreciate you detailing the neighborhoods--I like Shabby Chic, so now I know where to go, LOL, and what to avoid (artsy black clothing places--there's plenty of that here in the Bay Area already, he, he).

As far as narrowing down sightseeing, it will be more kid-friendly stuff. So many choices, and I guess I need to read up on these sights to see which the kids would enjoy. Beach, Universal, Tar Pits (dino-dig museum I hear that's big with kids), Hollywood, American Girl, Beverly Hills, Sunset, Getty Center sound good for kids--don't know much about the others yet.

As far as beaches go, they'll want to play in the water, so it has to have calm waves, no riptides. We went to a beach years back that had a pier with an amusement park--don't want to go back there because we want to try a new beach. However, I don't remember the name. It wasn't in OC, but further north.

Would rather stay at the beach, but don't want to pay more than $150 a night--is that unrealistic? If we don't stay at the beach, what's a good base for LA?

I have all these threads because we're deciding on a destination for our summer road trip--frequent flyer miles were all used up for our Christmas Disney World trip, so it has to be a place we can drive to! And that's either south (LA), north (Oregon/Wash) or east (Colorado). Not doing Nevada with kids.

rjw_lgb_ca

The pier with the amusement park is Santa Monica Pier.

OK, scratch that one. Head south to Hermosa Beach then; I don't think the waves are that big there (although, as you know, the water will be a bit cool for much water frolic).

anneofingleside

Thanks for clearing up that mystery! So I guess Santa Monica is the only beach with an amusement park, then? Are any of the beaches in LA warm enough to swim in during the summer?

ribeyefan

LA beaches are not Caribbean warm but hundreds of thousands of people swim in them every year so I think you'll be okay.

MonicaRichards

The Tar Pits are about Ice Age animals, not dinosaurs, just so you get your kids excited about the right thing! :0)

rjw_lgb_ca

Well, if you really want a beachfront amusement park, there's Belmont Park in San Diego.

Many, many years ago there was a great park of that kind in downtown Long Beach (the Pike), but it was torn down in 1979; a new entertainment complex stands in roughly the same place, but trust me, it's not the same.

Bikom

To be specific, I would park in the lot on Ocean Park Ave., the beach there is very nice, there is a playground right there, a nice pizza slice place called Perry's, and you can rent bikes and rollerblades etc.

the closer you get to the pier, the dirtier the water is, but down by Ocean Park is usually cleaner.

dgg

I used to live in the Hollywood Hills and Manhattan Beach. In a few weeks, I'm taking four teenagers and two elementary kids to LA for college visits/ fun in the sun. We're splitting our time between LA and San Diego, and I struggled with where to stay near the beach in LA. We were torn between the Loews in SM and two options in Hermosa Beach. In HB, I narrowed it down to the Beach House right on the strand and the Hampton Inn, several blocks away. The Hampton Inn is obviously the budget choice, but I think a good one. Since I have teens and we're going in March, we're most likely going with the Loews in SM. If it were summer, I would pick HB. Santa Monica's reputation for tolerance to street people is well-deserved. While I empathisize (and sympathize) with them, it's still our vacation. You'll find more characters there. HB and nearby Manhattan Beach is as close as you're going to get in LA for the "hometown USA plopped on the beach feel. HB is farther away than SM from the sites you want to see. Last year we stayed in the Marriott at Marina Del Rey and the Hilton near Universal Studios. That worked out fine. Both the Sheraton Universal and Hilton Universal are great for families. You could split your time, particularly if you opt for HB. The rates at the Universal hotels are generally much cheaper than on the other side of the hill.

MBnancy

There is three miles between the Hermosa Beach pier and the Manhattan Beach pier...they are on the same stretch of clean sand, and great cities. MB is closer to get to the freeways for your other touring, and the area is very family friendly, with a small aquarium at the end of the pier. Nice place to stroll around in the evenings, too. Hermosa attracts a young adult bar crowd at their plaza.

A good place to stay is the Marriott Residence Inn, about a mile from the MB pier. They have a breakfast buffet and afternoon snacks. We have all our friends or relatives stay there.

http://marriott.com/hotels/travel/la...d&checked=True

anneofingleside

Thanks, all. So... there are a lot of homeless in Santa Monica? Would it be a good family place to stay? Are Manhattan and Hermosa Beaches better places to stay, or would they be quite a distance from the attractions? What about staying in Malibu? Santa Monica seems to have a lot of strolling around appeal, though, but would it be any worse than the homeless in downtown San Francisco?

As far as just to vist, I think we'd like to go back to SM beach after all, maybe visit some beach in Malibu (Leo Carillo?), and maybe bike at HB or MB.

And thanks for the clarification re: tar pits. Thanks for the hotel, itinerary, beach suggestions.

rjw_lgb_ca

There are quite a few homeless (and wanna-be punks) hanging around Palisades Park and the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica (where my office is located). But they are not usually a bother. SM tolerates them, but there are strict panhandling laws.

Manhattan Beach and Hermosa Beach are great, but the vast majority of the sights you'll want to see will be a major drive from both. Malibu doesn't really have a lot of lodging choices.

If you want to go "central", Westwood and Beverly Hills (which does have quite a few reasonably-priced options) are you best bets; the Angeleno (the first hotel I stayed at when I moved here!) is also great, and the Getty Center's just up Sepúlveda from there.

anneofingleside

Thanks, rjw. Westwood and Beverly Hills (if affordable) sound good. How about Hollywood-too seedy for families?

rjw_lgb_ca

Hollywood is cleaning up its act, little by little. And the Renaissance Hollywood is a very nice hotel; the Hollywood Roosevelt recently went through a renovation, but I don't think they addressed the main issue showing the place's age, namely the small room sizes.

The problem is that after dark, one won't want to stray too far from the main cleaned-up areas (Hollywood/Highland complex, Hollywood Blvd west of Vine, the other main streets in the area) without knowing the neighborhood well. Some parts are a little seedy, others are simply middle-class residential blocks. I like Hollywood, I love going to the small theatres there, I'm comfortable driving and walking around-- but (a) I'm a guy and (b) I've been running around this area for years and know it well.

The other nice thing about Westwood or Beverly Hills: Each has strollable shopping/dining areas where you can walk at a leisurely pace and take a breather from driving places.

andyp67

Still finalising our plans for our first visit from Edinburgh to California this July and stumbled across this thread.

We are trying to decide between staying in Santa Monica (Loews hotel) or the soon to be reopened Hotel Palomar in LA. I should say we are a family with 2 children aged 13 and 10. Can anyone advise on which would be more suitable. From our base here, we plan on seeing The Getty Villa, Griffith Park, Farmers market, Universal Studios, Hollywood/Beverly Hills(13 year old daughter wants to do some star spotting(!) and of course, shopping.

Can anyone tell me what the area immediately around The Palomar is like? Is is suitable to wander around at night and are there many restaurants within walking distance. I have a feeling that Santa Monica would be better in this regard but really don't know.

Thanks.

lvk

Okay, I had to google Hotel Palomar, but it looks great. Westwood Village is where UCLA is located. It is a very walkable neighborhood with lots of shops, restaurants and movie theaters. Also, I like the Kimpton chain of hotels. The other advantage or Westwood is its proximity to the 405 freeway.

Of course, Loew's Santa Monica is at the beach, with beautiful ocean views. There are also great restaurants and shops in the area. You and the kids can rent bikes and ride down to Venice. Being farther west will add more time to your drives into Hollywood, etc.

Both are good choices. You have to decide whether the beach experience is worth the extra $$ and drive time.

Enjoy!