Tips on LA Itinerary
 

Heading to LA for a week with 2 adults and 2 teens (14 & 17) for a sports tournament. The teens wanted to do some of the touristy things. Any tips for our itinerary would be appreciated. We will have a rental car. We are not big spenders, but don't mind the occasional splurge.

Los Angeles Itinerary: 6 – 13 July 2011

Wed. 6th
Arrive 10.38a Burbank Arpt
Universal Studios
Hollywood / Sunset Strip
Stay: near San Vincente Blvd. (Olympic Blvd) & Fairfax Ave.

Thurs. 7th
La Brea Tar Pits
Getty Center, off 405
Driving tour of Beverly Hills/movie star homes? Where get map/info?
Rodeo Drive
Farmers Market and The Grove

Fri. 8th
What to do this day?? Hike to Hollywood sign?
Don't want to get stuck in traffic driving south; it will take an hour or more to drive to hotel.
Stay: Marriott, Foothill Ranch (1 hr south. from Hollywood)

Sat. 9th
Sports Tournament near Foothill Ranch

Sun. 10th
Sports Tournament
Visit Mission San Juan Capistrano
Stay: Queen Mary, Laguna Beach or maybe stay on Catalina?

Mon. 11th
Catalina Island
Stay: Ramada Inn, Redondo Beach

Tues. 12th
Venice Beach
Santa Monica Pier

Wed. 13th
Sit on beach?
Fly out 8.30p from LAX

Day 6 you might consider going to Grffith Observatory.

Wed sounds fine, you might want to take in Griffith Observatory around sunset since it's right there above Hollywood, you can get photos of the Hollywood sign from here. (Tell the teens to watch Rebel Without a Cause or Charlies Angels 3 before visiting the Observatory). Wed night depends on how tired you are, if you're flying from the east coast you'll probably be tired by 8 or 9pm.

Thur Farmers Market souvenir shops will have maps of stars homes, or have your kids research it before you visit. seeing-stars .com and other websites have suggested driving routes.

Fri you might visit venice Beach / Santa Monica Beach, drive up the coast road through Malibu. If you don't want to hit mega traffic going to Foothill Ranch you should leave between 11am and 2pm or after 8pm.

Queen Mary rooms are old and small, I would pass on that hotel. Laguna Beach might be sold out however.

If you can find something in Manhattan Beach instead of Redondo you'd be closer to the airport plus not as far from L.A. if you decide to go back and see some of what you missed.
www.discoverlosangeles.com

Thanks for the tips! We're west coast people & shouldn't be having any jet lag so going to Griffiths on Wed. might be fun... Do you know of anything worthy of visit/stop on the way down to Foothills or in that area?

Two other good free visits are to the Getty Villa (art antiquities, gorgeous setting, expansive views, and formal gardens). Also the Greystone (sp?) mansion where lots of shows have been filmed.

Santa Monica might be interesting to your teens-- walking around Third Street, which is usually full of people, or the more quiet Abbott Kinney area and Main Street.

Thanks! Any ideas on what might be fun to do on the Friday we fly out? We have all day since our flight isn't until 8p. would the trek up to the Getty Villa be too risky with Friday traffic? We could get there fine, it's the heading south to LAX that is the worrisome part.

On Wednesday, are you planning on doing the Universal Studios tour or the theme park? They're obviously interrelated, but the theme park could take you all day. I also think your Thursday is a little too busy - traffic can really throw a wrench in plans. I think you should leave a couple of hours for the Tar Pits, and even with teens I'd still leave at least a half day for the Getty, and an hour of driving time between them. Maybe save the driving tour of stars' homes and Rodeo Drive for the day you leave as you can easily cut it short if you get a late start, etc. Or split the Tar Pits and the Getty into two different days.

<i>Do you know of anything worthy of visit/stop on the way down to Foothills or in that area?</i>

You're talking Fri. 8th, right? Here are some options.

You will pass through downtown LA, or close to it.

Take a self guided tour of the Walt Disney Concert Hall.
http://www.laphil.com/visit/tours/

Visit the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), just a couple of blocks south on Grand from the Disney Hall.
http://www.moca.org/museum/visit_home.php

Further on, in Yorba Linda, the Nixon Library and Museum.
http://www.nixonlibrary.gov/themuseum/index.php

You will have to route yourself off the shortest route to your destination, but it will only add about 20 minutes to your drive time. I have always found presidential libraries interesting regardless of political affiliation.

For the Friday you fly out, I suggest a more laid-back location, so you don't have to worry about getting to LAX . We like Manhattan Beach. Or crazy Venice Beach. Or the more quiet south end of Venice. Both are relatively easy drives to LAX.

PS. Your plan for Thurs the 7th is not realistic. Too much driving between locations. The Grove, for instance would not fit into the day.

Thanks! All of these tips are just what I was looking for! I'm never quite sure how long to allow for visiting places and drive times, so it's really helpful. I like the ideas for the Friday and will share them with my crowd to see what interests them the most. Thanks again, it's all appreciated!