Going to LA on Sept15/02 for four days and want to do the Hollywood thing. What can I do in that time. What Hotel is good in that area for under a $100. Dare I rent a car from the airport or just take cabs. I hear that going to TV tapings takes a long wait at the doors even if you have a ticket.
Then we will drive to San Diego (any car bargains) where our business will pick up the tab.

Thanks so much

ttt

I suggest using Priceline to get your car and hotel. As far as areas, it depends on what you are planning to do there.

Santa Monica is a nice beach area.

Hollywood and Downtown are not places to walk at night.

West Hollywood is a nicer area that Hollywood.

Beverly Hills is another good location.

Just returned from LA.: Hot,smoggy,crowded and trashy.OH yeah, expensive too.We stayed in Studio City, Over the mountain from Hollywood. Found it nice and convinent.

Rent a car. Cabs are practically non existent. Parking is cheap almost everywhere. Most streets run east to west or north to south, its easy to learn your way around.

Check the Holiday Inn website for their "50th anniversary special" which is every second night at half price. Then try to book the Holiday Inn Brentwood next to Beverly Hills. Easy to get to from the airport and good headquarters for sightseeing.

Order TV tickets in advance, they sometimes treat out of towners better, especially Jay Leno and Price is Right.

Jay Leno Tickets
3000 W. Alameda Bl
Burbank Ca 91523

Price is Right tickets
CBS
7800 Beverly Blvd
Los Angeles, Ca 90048

www.tvtickets.com

National Car Rental or Avis will have the best price if you are dropping one way in San Diego

Greg, just returned from a trip to CA, which included LA. We stayed at The Standard in West Hollywood. I would not recommend it to anyone. We did the "Hollywood" thing. It wasn't all it was cracked up to be. The Walk of Fame and Mann's Chinese Theater weren't as great as I thought it would be. However, I would recommend Warner Bros Back Lot Tour. It was great. They take tours of about 12 people in golf carts and you get to go to many of the sets and so many things. It was fantastic!! Make reservations before you go. Also, if you are a Drew Carey fan, we ran into him at Bob's Bigger Better Burger. I'm told he eats there every day for lunch and sometimes supper too. The kids loved it. The food wasn't bad either. Have a great time. Warner Bros is a must though!!

Melissa

Melissa, What was wrong with the Standard Hotel? I've heard some pretty good stuff about it. Did you go to the Getty? Huntington Library? La Brea Tar Pits?

I've lived in L.A. for two years now. (I'm from New Orleans.) My advice to you is to stay in the Santa Monica area. If you must stay in Hollywood, and you're looking for something reasonable, I'd recommend The Standard. There's also a brand new Renaissance in Hollywood.

Things to do: Skip the Tar Pits. A visit to The Getty is worth it, but plan on spending about 3 - 5 hours there. I love The Museum of Tolerance, The Farmers Market (3rd and Fairfax), and there's a new shopping area next door called The Grove.

Rent a car! Don't depend on cabs as it could cost an arm and a leg in L.A. traffic. Whatever you do, give yourself ample time to drive anywhere in the city.

TV tapings are fun, but be prepared to spend about 5 hours in a seat in the studio. They tape every scene at least twice, so it gets boring quickly. For a quick day trip, I recommend checking out the wineries in either Temecula (on your way to San Diego) or the Santa Ynez Valley.

Hollywood and Highland (new Oscar theatre and high-end shops) is supposed to be cool. Didn't make it on our last trip.

Melrose/Beverly hip shopping, Beverly is more furniture.

Rodeo Drive is ok for high-end shopping (pretty generic in that these stores are everywhere).

Be sure and visit the Getty Center (don't love the art, but the building and view are amazing).

Have fun. Lots of people love to bash LA, we personally like it. Murakami for sushi on sunset is great and reasonable. Pane e Vino is a nice Italian restaurant with a great outdoor patio.

I happen to have a great time in L every time I go.
I, for one, enjoyed the Tar Pits. The Getty was great, too.
We always go to Santee Alley to shop and get fresh mango slices.
I have stayed at the Regent Beverly Wilshire, the Embassy Suites in El Segundo, Westin Long Beach, Westin LAX, Omni Downtown and many others... depends on where I am working when I visit.
I agree that you should book on hotwire.com or travelocity.com
You can save quite a bit.
I found a great Karaoke place in Burbank. It was a lot of fun. We met a lot of famous wannabes.
I go back on August 1st and can't wait.
Explore... eat at some of the awesome places. I think LA has some of the best restaurants in the world!!!!

I say you rent a car - you can get them pretty cheap. Last time i rented a car for a visitor it was about $100 for a Chevy Malibu for about $120 at Christmas time.

Some of the best and most exotic food in the world is in Los Angeles - it's naturally so, since every counry is represented here. My favorite places are some Armenian dives and Mexican sh*tholes - the food is the best, if the decor is lacking.

I also agree that the Tar Pits is probably my favorite place in Los Angeles. The idea that where I live once had saber-tooth tigers rather than coytes roaming about is staggering.

You CAN see a TV taping without waiting - you'll probably have to see a crappy show, though, just call the studios and ask where they audiences that day. We used to do that for fundraising in high school - the studios would pay school groups $500 to sit there for a few hours! Problem was, that the shows were completely forgettable.

Have a great time!