vacation to Los Angeles area
 

We will be visiting some relatives for a bit, but want to find some fun things to do in the LA area, preferably northern areas. Looking for some wineries that are not too far away from that area. We don't need to do the tourist stuff, more interested in some scenery, culture, and relaxing on a budget! Thanks

Where in LA will you be staying? The best wineries, IMO, (somewhat) near LA are in Santa Ynez valley, but that is about an hour north of Santa Barbara, or a good 3 hours north of LAX.

A few suggestions for culture:
Spend a day in Pasadena - You can see a performance at the Civic Center or Pasadena Playhouse, visit Norton Simon Museum, Asia Pacific Museum, visit the Huntington Gardens and Library, see a movie at Gold Class Cinemas (leather seats), tour Gamble House (Greene and Greene architecture), shop in Old Town (Distant Travels travel bookstore, Sur la Table cooking supplies, Container Store, Apple store and Pasadena Antique mall at El Paseo are a few favorites), and eat at any number of good restaurants (Akbar - for Indian; Cafe Bizou; Chado - good tea; Johnny Rockets - for burgers). Ok, the last two may not be culture exactly but fun anyway.
Downtown LA can also fill a day - you can visit China Town, Olvera Street, museums, see a concert at Disney Music Hall, go to Union Station and admire its art deco style and grab lunch, take an architectural tour, go to LA Live and the Grammy Museum, take the Angel's Flight funicular (does this still run?). Phillips original french dip, El Cholo, Ciudad, Water Grill, Patina or Pinot Bistro and other terrific or otherwise interesting downtown restaurants can supply the day's meals.
In Hollywood you can see the Chinese Theater, El Capitan theater, Egyptian Theater, Hollywood walk of fame, get a good view of Hollywood Sign from Hollywood & Highland mall, go bowling at Lucky Strike. See a movie. I don't usually eat in Hollywood but there are several good restaurants on or nearby at the Grove/LA Farmer's Market, on or near La Brea, or Melrose. Love Angelini Osteria, AOC, Campanile, Pizzaria Mozza.
Lots more to do and visit on the westside including the Getty and the Getty Villa, Paley Center, Greystone Manor, LACMA and La Brea tar pits, Peterson Automotive Museum, Hammer Museum at UCLA. Also see what is playing at the Hollywood Bowl or the Greek, the Ahmanson theater or any number of smaller playhouses, clubs etc.

As for wine tasting, the Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez, Paso Robles areas are generally where we go when we want to go wine tasting but it is not exactly LA. In town, there are several wine bars and winestores that have wine tastings. We have gone to wine tasting events at Vendome and have enjoyed dinner at Vertical (a wine bar/restaurant in Pasadena). There are probably several other good choices on the westside - Wally's wine shop, maybe.

For scenery - you have the ocean (drive the coast, hang out at the beach, hike in Malibu), the mountains (hike Mt. Hollywood, visit Griffith Observatory, several terrific trails in the Hollywood Hills such as Fryman) and the forest (Angeles National Forest - but do a little research as much is still closed from the fires a few years ago). There are also several terrific gardens - Huntington, Descanso and the Arboretum. For people watching scenery consider Montana Ave., 3rd Street, Melrose Ave. and the beaches - Venice, Manhattan, Huntington, Santa Monica to name a few.

A little further afield will take you east to hike Mt. Baldy or San Gorgonio, visit Mission Inn and shop in Riverside, all the way to Palm Springs (take the tram up San Jacinto) or drive south to Temecula (wine region) and San Diego or wander north to Ojai, Santa Barbara, Ventura.

I suggest adding the Getty Museum to your itinerary. The vista from Getty is one of the best in southern California. Location is north LA. Admission is free. Parking is $15. Getty has several restaurant choices, all good. Even if you only have a walk around the grounds, take in the view, have lunch and leave with minimal time in the galleries, it's a worthy visit.

What time of year? Early May is a great time to head north to the Santa Ynez wine country. Solvang nearby has inexpensive lodging (especially weekdays) since you're watching the budget.
Ojai is a nice relaxing spot if you don't want to go too far.

Thanks for all lthe good info! There is so much good stuff to do, we have to find the limit! We will be there in early July, when it is warmer! Which is okay, because it is snowing in no. Illinois right now!

If you wanted to go to Santa Barbara without a car you can get a 20% discount on Amtrak. http://www.santabarbaracarfree.org/
Our son is starting UCSB in the fall. I plan to use the linked offer sometime before the end of the year.

The Getty Center and the Getty Villa are both great places for culture and scenery. Both free admission, with on-line reservations. The Villa is full of antiquities, the Center has the contemporary collections. Both are gorgeous.

It looks like we will be staying up in Cambria for 2 nights. Are there any reasonably priced, in decent shape, places to stay? We will stay during the week to avoid the weekend crowds.