Socalnons I need your help. I'm going to LA/OC area next week and I need to beef up my itinerary. Most of the stuff I've found online just talks about the beaches, hikes, themeparks and food. I have a good list of food places I'm gonna hit but I need more time fillers and activities to do.
So far my non food list is:
Ernest Debs regional park
Griffith Observatory
The Getty
Irvine Spectrum
Newport Beach/Balboa Beach
Santa Ana zoo
Echo Park
Hunting Gardens/Descanso Garden
Is there anything you guys like to do for fun in your area?
>Ernest Debs regional park
maybe
>Griffith Observatory
skip unless you want to go for the view
>The Getty
worth, also
>Irvine Spectrum
skip, it's a fricking shopping mall
>Newport Beach/Balboa Beach
maybe worth
Santa Ana zoo
>skip, it's just a zoo
>Echo Park
maybe
Hunting Gardens/Descanso Garden
maybe
You seem to like parks and might want to try Will Rogers state park.
Maybe add japantown, the Queen Mary (it's actually really interesting), the Petersen if you're into cars and La Brea tar pits since they're close and Laguna Beach in OC.
I can vouch for the queen mary just even having drinks on her deck is fun good views too
I probably should've mentioned that we weren't gonna be too close to the coastal areas and the farthest south we were planning on going is around irvine/newport.
Thanks for the suggestions I forgot about Lil Tokyo. I initially wasn't planning on long beach but didn't know about the boat, might add that to the list. It ended up with quite a few parks but it wasn't intended, I was having trouble coming up with things to do.
I've seen things about catalina but we probably aren't gonna be going over there, a bit too pricey..
Niland looks pretty interesting but these areas are too far off the main area for us, thanks though.
Some good stuff it really depends on where you are at as LA is a big area have you thought about visiting Catalina Island that’s one cool thing you haven’t listed you take a ferry over from Long Beach it’s pretty neat especially if you haven’t been to an island
If your not American I highly advise you NOT to underestimate the distances involved or the desert itself.
Frick LA these are the
>reeeeeeeall
places you want to go
>Barstow: Your gonna wanna pick the first motel you see and check in right before closing. Don't mind your neighbors in fact don't interact with them AT ALL
>Niland: Beautiful small town full of vibrant economic activity and stunning architecture
>29 Palms: See a piece of American military history and visit the pride of The Inland Empire!
>Slab City: The people here are unique souls eeking out a honest living through social security and unorthodox means of capitalistic enterprise
>Remember if your car does break down make sure to eat as much salt as you can right away to absorb the extra water inside you so you can move more effeciently. The first thing you wanna do is abandon your vehicle. Any water or foodstuffs will only slow you down
As far as food you can't go wrong with Denny's. Everyday 3 times a day!
I have lived in LA/OC for 25 years.
>Ernest Debs regional park
Nice little area.
>Griffith Observatory
Do it, especially at night.
>The Getty
Do it.
>Irvine Spectrum
Skip, it's just a big mall. Nothing is unique about it - just about every store is a chain.
>Newport Beach/Balboa Beach
Go a little further south to Laguna Beach.
>Santa Ana zoo
I cannot emphasize how much you should skip the Santa Ana zoo. If you want to do a zoo, do San Diego. It is worth the trip.
>Echo Park
Do it for an afternoon. I like Silver Lake and Los Feliz more. Los Feliz has a great flea market every Saturday at a high school that is worth checking out.
>Huntington Gardens/Descanso Garden
A girl broke up with me there once. The place itself was cool.
The Queen Mary is cool, La Brea Tar Pits are interesting. The Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach is great too. I personally like Beverley Hills and parts of Hollywood, but they aren't for everyone and I like them more for the atmosphere than anything specific. If you want to try some great food, I recommend "Toi on Sunset" and "Canters" over on Fairfax. There are film screenings in Hollywood Forever Cemetary weekly during the summer. You may want to see what is showing. Film studio tours can be really interesting and aren't that expensive. Each of the majors offers tours I think. If you want to do some shopping, Melrose is your best bet. It's gone downhill a little in recent years, but they have all sorts of unique boutiques and mini galleries that are worth checking out. If you go to Laguna, seek out Top of the World. It's a big hill that gives you a great view up to Los Angeles in the north, out towards the mountains and desert in the east, down towards South OC, and then a giant blue wall of the Pacific Ocean.
OP, I know you're saying Newport is as south as you wanna go, but Laguna is like 10 miles further down the coast from there. It takes like 15 - 20 minutes down PCH and it's beautiful this time of year.
Alright I guess we can add Laguna then, I thought it was gonna be much farther. I think mary might be closed right now so we can do that aquarium instead, there's korean friendship bell that looked nice nearby so I think we will be doing long beach. I've heard suspect things about hollywood but I did want to try out the muholland drive which seems to have great views into the city. Thanks for the suggestions.
Huntington seems close enough to newport, we can try to double up when we head there. Mount Baldy is a bit too far away from the looks of it, thank you though.
I went and saw the space shuttle that was a nice visit near downtown cool museum
yes to balboa peninsula, the getty and Griffith park.
Hard No to the spectrum and the santa ana zoo.
I'd also add,
Huntington Beach Pier (go eat dinner at Tsuruhashi afterwards)
Laguna Beach
If you want to do some epic hiking, drive up to Mount Baldy and take the lift to the ski hut. Then hike up the rest of the way on the backbone trail.
I live in LA, but all I do is sit in my room and browse SighSee(nel)
Hit Laguna Beach nice walk on the bluffs also check out the sawdust festival, there are free shuttles running around town as well. For Huntington Beach next weekend starts the US Open of Surfing, also there is a bar called the bungalow it's pretty chill spot.