hellokittygeorgia

Hi. My hubby and I are taking a vacay to Maui and stopping in LA for two days in October. We are in our 30's. He has never been, and is interested in the typical touristy things. No theme parks though since we live close to Orlando. He has dreamed of going to Venice since high school since he is big into working out. I want a little input from the pros. Should we stay in Santa Monica or Beverly Hills? I was thinking the day we arrive to go to Venice Beach and Santa Monica (Friday). Can we rent bikes here? Then Saturday the Chinese Theatre and Rodeo Drive. Sunday before the flight take a tour of the stars homes (don;t ask he really wants to do it). Will we have more time on Sat to do something else. If so what are your recommendations? Has anyone taken one of those tours? Are they any good? Thanks.

PeaceOut

There are bike rental locations at Venice Beach and in Santa Monica.

What is your hotel budget?

Cali

I would stay in Santa Monica or Beverly Hills area since all the things you want to see are over that way. Hope the weather is great and you have a fun time.

mlgb

Beverly Hills probably not so much, too much hassle getting to and from the airport. I'd stick with Santa Monica and Venice, or perhaps Marina del Rey. What about Hotel Erwin in Venice?

tracys2cents

Your plan sounds good, stick closer to the hotel on Friday and then branch out on Saturday and Sunday when traffic should be lighter. You can do a lot more than Rodeo and Walk of Fame?Chinese on Saturday. Consider going to the Getty Center including having either lunch or dinner there. Griffith Observatory is nice but overcrowded and time consuming, not sure if you can do it with your limited time. I think a map and a car is much more fun than an organized van-tour of Beverly Hills and Bel Air. The Bel Air Hotel re-opens in October and would be a fun place to check out the bar/lounge....with the place just re-opening a lot of the famous will be checking it out.

PeaceOut

The Jamaica Bay Inn is in Marina del Rey, a Pacifica property. It has recently been completely renovated and upgraded. We were there in May, with a marina view room that also looked at the mountains. Very good value, with breakfast included. I think it was $220, with free parking. We also snagged a last-minute queen room (overlooking the parking lot) for $189, when we added our DD for a two-night stay.

A cheaper Pacifica property, which is cute and quirky, is the Inn at Venice Beach. I have sayed there a couple of times, and liked it. Continental breakfast is included, parking is covered and only about $8/day. It is about two blocks to the beach.

Both hotels have very good front desk service.

Have also liked the Ritz Marina del Rey, and the Sheraton Delfina in Santa Monica.

leslieq

Visit the Getty Museum.

SeaUrchin

When some out of town guests were here we all went on the Dearly Departed Tours of Hollywood.
http://www.dearlydepartedtours.com/

It is a low key van which is nice. The guide was funny and knowledgeable.

On your Saturday I would suggest having lunch or dinner in Beverly Hills.

hellokittygeorgia

Thanks for all your suggestions. I am still debating between staying in Santa Monica or in Beverly Hills. We will be at a Marriott property and we will have a car. Has anyone taken the Warner Brothers Studio tour?

shanek

I took the WB Studio tour in March.

We really enjoyed it,being TV and Movie buffs, but we didn't see anyone famous,

The best parts were exploring the "Friends" set and walking through the various sound stages, including the one where Ellen is filmed.

If we went back, we would time it for when there was something actually being filmed and try for a spot in the audience. Something like 'Mike and Molly" or "The Big Bang Theory" would be fun.

We went mid week in the afternoon and the drive from Santa Monica to Burbank was HELL.