Los Angeles & Southern California - Andrea Schulte-Peevers [58]
More days
If you can squeeze them in, here are some other favorites: Venice Boardwalk, Huntington Library, Art Collections & Botanical Gardens, Surfrider Beach, Abbot Kinney Blvd and Spaceland.
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DANGERS & ANNOYANCES
Despite what the media would have you believe, LA is no worse than other major metropolitan cities when it comes to crime. Most violence is confined to areas where tourists rarely venture, such as areas with gang and drug activity in East LA, Compton and Watts; avoid these after dark. Homeless folk are prevalent but generally harmless, although medical and psychiatric problems may make them behave bizarrely. The toughest cases usually hang out on Skid Row in Downtown (roughly bounded by 3rd, Alameda, 7th and Los Angeles Sts), but homeless sightings are also quite likely in Santa Monica, Hollywood and along the Venice Boardwalk.
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SIGHTS
Each of LA’s neighborhoods has its own unique appeal and where you concentrate your sightseeing largely depends on your interests in the area. Classic sights such as museums and a whole range of great architecture are in Downtown, Mid-City, Pasadena and Hollywood. West Hollywood has the legendary Sunset Strip, some cool shopping and great bars, while the beach towns are custom-made for travelers looking to soak up the laid-back SoCal vibe. Take your pick.
Hollywood
America loves a comeback, and Hollywood’s is long overdue. For decades, the neighborhood had been riding on the coattails of its Golden Age glamour image, its very name synonymous with the entire movie industry. Never mind that the studios had left long ago for Burbank and Studio City and that the only ‘stars’ left were embedded in the sidewalk. Worse, you had to hopscotch around runaways and druggies to see them. No more.
Like the Terminator, you can’t keep Hollywood down forever. As big bucks are being sunk into the area, shiny new clubs, trendy restaurants and luxe boutiques are supplanting tacky souvenir shops, tattoo parlors and stripper supply stores. It’s all a faux Vegas-type glitz, to be sure, but most people are just happy to see life return to the streets. Even celebs are back, carousing at the hip-again Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel and embarrassing themselves at the clubs on Cahuenga. Box-office results aren’t in, but a possible blockbuster awaits.
If you’re relying on public transport, central Hollywood is a convenient base. The Metro Red Line whisks you to Los Feliz, Downtown and Universal Studios in minutes, and DASH buses provide easy links east along Hollywood Blvd and west to the Sunset Strip and fashionable Melrose Ave. Parking at Hollywood & Highland costs just $2 for four hours with validation from any merchant or the Hollywood visitors center Click here.
HOLLYWOOD SIGN
LA’s most famous landmark first appeared in its hillside perch in 1923 as an advertising gimmick for a real-estate development called Hollywoodland. Each letter is 50ft tall and made of sheet metal. Once aglow with 4000 light bulbs, the sign even had its own caretaker who lived behind the ‘L’ until 1939. In 1932 a struggling young actress named Peggy Entwistle leapt her way into local lore from the letter ‘H’.
The last four letters were lopped off in the ’40s as the sign started to crumble along with the rest of Hollywood. In the late ’70s, Alice Cooper and Hugh Hefner joined forces with fans and other celebs to save the famous symbol.
It’s illegal to hike up to the sign, but good viewing spots are plentiful, including Hollywood & Highland (right), the top of Beachwood Dr and the Griffith Observatory.
HOLLYWOOD WALK OF FAME
Big Bird, Bob Hope, Marilyn Monroe and Sting are among the stars being sought out, worshipped, photographed and stepped on day after day along the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Since 1960 more than 2000 performers – from legends to long-forgotten bit-part players – have been honored