Going to LA in late May. Will only be there 3 days. Travelling with DH, MIL, FIL, and our 8 month old baby. We'll be staying near Los Alamitos as we will be there to visit friends. But I'd like to see some of LA while we are there. With such a short amount of time, where should we focus on?

MIL loves shopping, fine dining (although not insanely expensive), and celebrities. DH and I are more into casual stuff and enjoying a good meal...could care less about the Hollywood tarts.

Thanks for the help!

Beverly Hills would be nice for shopping and there are restaurants where you may see a star or two and some are not expensive at all. Have fun.

MIL has decided she wants to stay in Long Beach. Any hotel recs? She's also interested in driving to San Diego one day. It looks to me like it's 2 hours with no traffic...am I correct?

Thank heaven somebody thought better of staying near Los Alamitos!!!


San Diego is great, and worth a day... but you better be darn sure you're going to beat traffic in every way.

Once it slows to a crawl, you're done for!

For SD leave at 6AM and start the return after 8PM, so you might be driving more than stopping.
From LB make sure you go to Catalina island for a day, and do the drive around Palos Verdes and up along the beach towns, stop for the piers etc., some of them are cute.

Depending on where you stay in Long Beach it might not be a step up from Los Al.

The Westin in Long Beach is nice. Take DalaiLlama's advice and go to Catalina.

Skip San Diego.

We like the Hyatt in Long Beach. Beautiful views from the rooms, and can see the Queen Mary lit up at night and fireworks.
Shoreline Village and the Aquarium of the Pacific are across from the hotel. Safe area.

If shopping is still on the agenda, I'd suggest South Coast Plaza adjacent to the 405 freeway in Costa Mesa.

Cut in Beverly Hills for dinner. It's a tough reservation but well worth the money.

http://www.wolfgangpuck.com/restaura.../beverlyhills/

The Grove in L.A. is a great place to shop with good restaurants.

Where is Los Alamitos and why are you staying in Long Beach?

Never mind - found it on the map. Why not stay in L.A.?

If you are visiting friends in Los Alamitos then you can stay in Seal Beach or Huntington Beach.

The Ayres Hotel in Seal Beach is just two miles from Los Alamitos. Also, it is on Seal Beach Blvd next to the 405 freeway. Nice rooms with microwave, breakfast buffet. The furnishings are not my style but they are comfortable.

About a mile south on Seal Beach Blvd, at Westminster Blvd, in Seal Beach is a brand new Hampton Inn.

The hotels in Long Beach add on a parking fee that these places in Seal Beach don't have. Also, staying in Long Beach, downtown, is not all that convenient for driving to Los Al or if you wanted to go sightseeing in L.A. or anywhere.