I am going to L.A on jan 1st. for a week. I am taking my 19 year old daughter & her boyfriend & my boyfriend. the kids have never been to california. We are staying at a friends beach house in manhatten beach.... any sugestions for some day trips?? We have access to a car. Should we travel north to Santa Barbara area or south to to O.C /San Diego. or take the ferry to Catalina. Hopefully the weather will be good. we also have 2 tickets to the rose bowl (just 2), so the guys will get those, is pasadena a good place for my daughter & i to hang out for the day while they are at the game? or should we drop them off & go somewhere else?I would love to see a taping of a show..like Ellen or something...any ideas or sugestions would be helpful!

Pattylu, I can't comment on most of your questions, but I can tell you that my hubby and I took the ferry to Catalina a few years ago. We were in Long Beach to tour the Queen Mary, which is docked there. The ferry to Catalina is right next to it, so we got to do both. We enjoyed our day trip very much. We did a jeep eco-tour of the island, which gave us a lot of history and background from a local.

Hope you get some other replies to answer your other questions.

Hi Pattylu,

I wouldn't recommend Catalina this time of year. The seas have been very rough lately, and they are forecasting more storm activity for the next week or so. Even if it is sunny, it is not really sunbathing or swimming weather.

Here are some suggestions for your week:

Bike ride or skate on the Strand. You can head north from Manhattan Beach to get to Venice, or south to visit the beach towns of Hermosa and Redondo Beach.

Warner Brothers Studio tour. This is a tour of a real, working studio. Since there will be lots of people in town for the Rose Bowl game and Tournament of Roses Parade next week, I'm betting the tours will book up early.

www.tvtickets.com for tickets to show tapings.

Rose Parade float viewing. You can see the Rose parade floats up close the afternoon and day after the parade.
http://www.tournamentofroses.com/events/showcase.asp

If you like museums, you can check out the Norton Simon and the Huntington Library and Botanical gardens in the Pasadena area. The Getty is also worth a day trip.

My out-of-town guests also enjoy driving up PCH to Malibu, stopping for lunch at one of the beachside restaurants.

Laguna Beach in Orange County is also a nice day trip. I would save San Diego and Santa Barbara for another vacation.

Have a great time.

I second everything Ivk said, she gave good advice on some activities. We cancelled our trip to Catalina the end of this week on my sister's boat, because the ocean will be too rough.

I would let the guys have the car to go to the Rose Bowl Game. Parking is a mess and you would never find them to pick them up. Take a walk on the Strand in Manhattan Beach or go shopping in the local stores that day that you are without a car.

I love the Norton Simon museum and had a great lunch at a downtown Pasadena Japanese restaurant. There is a fun place to eat in Malibu called Paradise Cove; really just a burger joint but the tables are right on the sand and it was fun people watching.

I think your daughter would love the little shops in Manhattan and Hrmosa Beach. Sketchers headquarters is in MB so they have a very large store there. There is also a Lucky Jeans store and some funky little stores that carry fun clothes.

One of my best days of 05 was a late January day biking north on the strand from MB to Venice. Be sure to have breakfast at the Coffee Kart in MB.

Getting to the Rose Bowl WILL be crazy. Make sure the guys leave well in advance.

If you wanted to see Pasadena while the guys are watching the game, the Old Town area can be entertaining. Paseo Colorado is a small shopping mall with a movie theatre and several restaurants, as well as a few stores. The Norton Simon Museum is within walking distance as well, and these are all within 10 minute drive of the Rose Bowl ON NORMAL DAYS. Probably 45-60 minutes in traffic. The after game celebrations in Old Town are always fun, if the guys wanted to meet you there and continue their partying.

I would suggest the guys take a shuttle to the game if you plan on using the car. I would not try to drop them off and pick them up after the game is over. They turn the streets into one way travel to move the traffic quickly. Not fun!! If you need info on shuttles or buses, let me know and I will get some info for you.

All of you should drive to Pasadena and then ppark near Ralph M. Parson's and they can take the shuttle (or walk) to the game and you and your daughter can wander around the shops uin Old Town Pasadena and also have a great lunch at one of the many restaurants.
I think there is as much for you to do in Pasadena while they are at the game as if you stayed down at the beach all day - it can be very cool by the beach this time of year. Have a great time!!

Cali, that's a great place to park for the shuttle and to visit Old Town. I couldn't think of the name of the building.