standiann

The family, two adults and 4 teens 13-17 will be vacationing in LA area at the end of Dec. Any insight on what to see and do. We have a room booked at the Homewood Suites and insight on the hotel? Also ending the vacation in San Diego at the Days Inn Hotel Circle. Looking for a nice beach to surf and plans for New Years Eve in SD. Any ideas or suggestions are welcome.

Thanks

carbogilligan

Where are you staying? Which town? There are numerous Homewood Suites.
With teens, I would definitely go to Venice Beach and Santa Monica Pier.
Perhaps a studio tour like Warner Bros. or Universal would be of interest. Regarding San Diego, the water may be too cold to surf unless you have wet suits.

ltt

you will definitly need wet suits to surf in december. the water will be very cold. ocean beach or south of la jolla are popular spots for surfing.

rjw_lgb_ca

I have to ask: Have you done any preliminary research on the LA and SD areas? Fodors has pretty extensive information on this very website, first of all. The LA metro area is vast, and there are literally thousands of things to do and see. Maybe if you list your family's interests, that can give us some guidance on recommendations.

Second of all, are you staying at the Homewood Suites in Garden Grove (actually, that's the ONLY Homewood Suites in the LA area)? That's not in LA city-- it's not even in LA county; Garden Grove is in Orange County, some 18 miles inland (as is Anaheim), and not one of the OC's more charming cities (it's just blah, suburban Generica). I assume you picked it for its proximity to Disneyland, but if you're doing anything else in the LA metro area, it's not a good location. Lots of mediocre chain restaurants in the area (a couple of fair eateries in the Downtown Disney area, however), but everything else you'll want to see (other than Disneyland) will be a freeway drive away. Tripadvisor users give this property fair reviews, but it's a suite motel, not the Ritz-Carlton (and there's a doozy of a Ritz-Carlton on the coast in Dana Point-- gorgeous place!). Personally I would think about what other things you want to do in the LA metro area, post them here, and get suggestions for other places to stay. If you're ONLY doing Disney, you're fine.

Pacific Ocean water is cool on the best of hot summer days, and it will be downright nippy in December. Wetsuits will be essential for surfing. I don't know how good the surfing is at Mission Beach-- I live closer to Huntington Beach (up in Long Beach), and the surfing in HB is outstanding (and HB is fun for teens). San Diego is a great town, and I'm sure there will be fun things to do for New Year's Eve (maybe something in Old Town?). Locals can comment.

kristeng

In San Diego, I would recommend Mission Beach and Pacific Beach (known to locals as PB). Both are fun spots, and I have seen many of the most well known professional surfers there, so I would recommend this area as the perfect place for a typical California surfing experience. Ocean Beach is also a fun beach. It has a long pier, and lots of little shops and bars. It has a sort of hippie vibe, with lots of vegetarian and vegan places to eat- which is very cool if you're a vegetarian like me. Have fun!