My bf is staying in Thousand Oaks for business in early June. Myself & his 8-yr old boy are tagging along.

Any suggestions for moderate-inexpensively priced activities to keep a young boy entertained?

I figured we could spend 1 day on kid only entertainment. Might try a second attempt at visiting the beach--he didn't like the beach in Mexico, too rocky & waters too rough.

1 day shopping for me. Unfortunately for him, he'll be dragged along with me to Chinatown, Little Tokyo & Koreatown when I go shopping in LA. What kind of activities in those areas could we do in between shopping?

Anyone know of some relaxing evening family activities we could do (that doesn't require too long a drive) after the bf is done with work? 4pm-8/9pm.

Would love to get a picture in of Hollywood sign (best view?). No other must see sites other than my BF wants to go to the nearby naval base for his dad(retired SeaBee).

Tips on navigation/driving would be great too. St. Louisan here not really used to freeway driving.

Thanks!
Annie

There's a place called Troutdale that's only about a 15 minute drive from Thousand Oaks. They rent you a fishing pole bait etc....basically just a place that you pay to fish....an 8 year old will love it.

Just to continue from another thread: Just WHAT will you be shopping for while in Chinatown, Little Tokyo or Koreatown?

Try to do your driving/excursions between 9:45am and 3:45pm whenever possible as the traffic will be much easier to deal with. Hollywood area back to Thousand Oaks is deadly after 4pm weeknights, until about 8pm.

The L.A. Zoo would be a good excursion, not far from Hollywood. For Chinatown and Little Tokyo you'd probably just want to park at Universal Station in North Hollywood and ride the subway the rest of the way. Universal Studios Tour would be fun for an 8 year old too, and there's a smaller zoo in Moorpark which is quite close to Thousand Oaks.

The Gardens of the World in Thousand Oaks is a very pleasant place to go for a picnic.

Joesource: Troutdale sounds perfect, Sean loves to fish(just doesn't eat it)! I was trying to decide between disney & universal studios for the kids only fun day (will we have a better chance getting on rides/attractions @ universal?). Will look for more info on Moorpark & Gardens of the world.

RJW: I'll mainly be shopping for bentos (japanese lunch boxes) & cooking supplies, stationary, variety of foods to take home (only a few asian grocers in stl & they usually have similar stuff).

Thank you all for your input! =)

If you do decide to try the beach again a good option might be Zuma Beach in Malibu. Malibu is an easy drive from Thousand Oaks with not much freeway driving. Sorry I can't tell you which canyon road to take to get you close to Zuma but you can't miss the beach if you drive along Pacific Coast Highway.

My guess is that a lot of schools will be out by early June so both Universal and Disneyland will be crowded. Universal is closer to Thousand Oaks.

tons of asian grocers in hollywood and koreatown. little toyko is terrific for plates, dishes, etc.

have fun!

lynnejoel is right about what you can find in those LA neighborhoods. But there are Asian markets throughout southern California now (I'd think one would find a few in Thousand Oaks nowadays!).

Thanks to Honda, Nissan and Toyota, there are some huge Japanese supermarkets throughout Torrance. Hyundai has their North American operations headquartered in Fountain Valley (Orange County), so I imagine you can find a Korean grocer or two. The San Gabriel Valley and eastern LA County are becoming famous for the best, most authentic Chinese restaurants in the area, so I'd look for grocers there as well (although I seriously doubt the OP will get over there). Cerritos for Filipino specialties, Artesia for Indian, Westminster for Vietnamese, central Long Beach for Cambodian, Hollywood for Thai.... It goes on and on. And Mexican and other Latin American markets are found just about everywhere.