Weather & attractions in LA, San Fran and Vegas

[foodguy]

Originally Posted by Tano

Thanks for the replys. This is my rough itinerary

LA:
1.\tUniversal Studios
2.\tHollywood/Kodak Theatre/Rodeo Drive/Graumann's Chinese Theatre <- 1/2 day max
3.\tDisneyland:
4.\tGetty Institute:
5.\tGriffith Observatory
6.\tBuena Park, the wax museum, Ana Santa shopping centre
7.\tBrea Mall ?, Century city ?
8.\tKnotsberry Farm

Is it worth checking out Venice Beach, santa monica or farmers market?


honestly, unless you HAVE to do these things with the kids, I'd skip almost all of them. Disneyland, maybe. Getty is good. I really like Norton Simon in Pasadena. Or you could go to la county art museum, which has a really nice collection and is convenient to lots of good shopping and other things (fairfax ave.; the original farmers market (great place for coffee and doughnuts); Melrose, Beverly, Beverly Center, Third Street, La Brea ... you get hte idea. you could do 2 days in that neighborhood alone). I cannot imagine why someone would want to go to the brea or century city malls; they are basic and utilitarian. hit south coast plaza on the way to or from disneyland ... it's a monster so allow several hours. you probably want to at least drive through hollywood and maybe circuit up into the hills and beverly hills. venice beach is very cool and there are good shopping districts there now, too. santa monica is more upscale, which is both good and bad. heck, you might even want to spend a day downtown (can't believe i'm saying that, after having worked there for 20 years, but it's really come around). contemporary art museum, disney hall, japan-america museum, chinatown, little tokyo and koreatown are all within 20 minutes of each other. so is staples/nokia live, which tourists seem to like.
any specifics, feel free to ask.

 

[foodguy]

Originally Posted by NaTionS

Gilroy outlets is not worth a visit if you're going to the Vegas outlets, actually Gilroy outlets is not worth a visit period. Also I've heard that the premium outlets in LA is better than the one in Vegas, not sure though.
haven't been in a while, but it was my impression that the cabezon outlets out by palm springs were pretty clearly the best in the area. anyone have a more recent take?

 

[itsstillmatt]

Originally Posted by foodguy

haven't been in a while, but it was my impression that the cabezon outlets out by palm springs were pretty clearly the best in the area. anyone have a more recent take?
They are the only outlet I've been to which are worth even a fifteen minute drive.

 

[foodguy]

Originally Posted by iammatt

They are the only outlet I've been to which are worth even a fifteen minute drive.
i KNOW i've seen you checking out the sunglass hut. don't deny it!

 

[itsstillmatt]

Originally Posted by foodguy

i KNOW i've seen you checking out the sunglass hut. don't deny it!
Only to disguise myself from the Red Chasers.

 

[mordecai]

I feel like no visit to LA is complete without Griffith

 

[Tano]

Its good to get the real opinions from locals instead of been force fed crap from travel agency's and websites. Basically i want a list of "Must Do's" and "Maybe if time permits". Thanks for your opinions guys. If anyone else can suggest any hidden gems (or tourist traps) then let me know.

Thanks

 

[acidboy]

vegas: the stratosphere isn't worth your time imo.

 

[mordecai]

Natural History Museum is a hidden gem.

 

[foodguy]

Originally Posted by Tano

Its good to get the real opinions from locals instead of been force fed crap from travel agency's and websites. Basically i want a list of "Must Do's" and "Maybe if time permits". Thanks for your opinions guys. If anyone else can suggest any hidden gems (or tourist traps) then let me know.
that's especially true with southern california, which can appear to the uninitiated to be one big tourist trap. you can find just about anything you want here, so many a better place to start would be telling us what it is you're looking for.

 

[venessian]

As foodguy (all his suggestions are good, post #16) has already stated, we don't know if you are travelling with children and family, which makes an enormous difference, especially regarding the amusement parks, etc. For this post, I'll assume that you are not. I haven't been to SF recently enough to comment, and haven't been to Las Vegas in decades, so I can't advise you there. Also, my suggestions are biased towards seeing various parts of LA, museums, and National Parks/landscape.

I have listed my suggestions as DEFINITELY; MAYBE; PROBABLY NOT; NO.

Originally Posted by Tano

LA:
1. Universal Studios
2. Hollywood / Kodak Theatre / Rodeo Drive / Graumann's Chinese Theatre
3. Disneyland
4. Getty Museum Malibu (can do from Santa Monica) AND Getty Center Brentwood
5. Griffith Park and Observatory / Mulholland Drive and/or Sunset Boulevard
6. Buena Park, the Wax Museum, Santa Ana shopping centre
7. Brea Mall?, Century City?
8. Knottsberry Farm
9. Los Angeles County Museum of Art / Page Museum of Natural History / Farmer's Market
9a. (If you like cars the Petersen Automotive Museum is across the street, but I've never been.)
10. Downtown LA / Museum of Contemporary Art, Geffen Contemporary, Japan-America Museum / Walt Disney Concert Hall
11. Pasadena: Norton Simon Museum / Huntington Library (especially the Gardens) / Old Town / Gamble House (Greene and Greene)

Is it worth checking out Venice Beach, Santa Monica (and Pacific Coast Highway to Malibu, Zuma Beach, etc.) or Farmer's Market?

Vegas:
1. Havasu National Wildlife Refuge / Grand Canyon South Rim
1a. You can drive through Zion National Park from the Grand Canyon South Rim to Las Vegas
2. Premium Outlet Stores
3. Fashion Show Mall
4. Hoover Dam
5. Vegas Shows
6. Gun Store
7. Stratosphere
8. Red Rock Canyon (Death Valley is far more interesting)
9. Death Valley
10. Freemont St at night
11. Atomic Testing Museum

SF to LA return:
1. US Highway 1 (Pacific Coast Highway)

As I wrote above, if Tioga Pass Road, etc. in Yosemite are closed in November, you will not be able to go from Las Vegas to SF via Highway 395 North; you will need to exit Death Valley from Highway 190, head south on Highway 395, then west on Highway 178 to the 5 North or 101 North to SF.

 

[Tano]

We are going on our honeymoon and i will be travelling with (soon to be) wife and 3 y/o daugter.

We want the best possible experience so we want to take in all the beautiful sites and attractions, a bit of shopping and sample new foods. Also if time i want to go to some theatre shows and ball games. Not too interested in gambling, or visiting homes of celebrites etc.

 

[foodguy]

Originally Posted by Tano

We are going on our honeymoon and i will be travelling with (soon to be) wife and 3 y/o daugter.

We want the best possible experience so we want to take in all the beautiful sites and attractions, a bit of shopping and sample new foods. Also if time i want to go to some theatre shows and ball games. Not too interested in gambling, or visiting homes of celebrites etc.

3-year-old adds another dimension. at that age, definitely disneyland, but i'm not sure about the other parks. maybe somebody has more up-to-date experience with them and with kids that age (i stopped going when my daughter hit 11 and could go with her friends; she's now 30). Venessian's and mordecai's lists are good.
given your situation, my edited suggestions would be:
Disneyland; Getty Malibu (more compact than the hill; sidetrip to beach); griffith; sunset blvd.; lacma/page (went several months ago for the first time in years, surprised at how great page was ... and great for a kid, if she gets antsy, she can roll down the hills). definitely farmers market. Huntington. depending on whether you want to shop or buy, south coast plaza (buying ... there's also a mall with an SFO/rack/etc. nearby) or rodeo (shopping). not sure what your background is or your interests, but if you want a sense of the real la, you ought to spend at least a couple of hours in an "ethnic" neighborhood. Little Tokyo downtown is very walkable (and hit the disney hall while you're at it ... you can take a walk through the exterior of the building ... mind-bending experience). Ktown is the bomb, but intense. Olvera street is mostly kitschy, but fun (and you could do that in conjunction with chinatown(which is pretty run-down these days since all the money moved east) and little tokyo. Or you could cruise la este and stop at cinco puntos for lunch. on the top floor they have like 4 different mariachi bands playying at the same time. approaches hendrix.

 

[dragon8]

Originally Posted by StephenHero

Instead of Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39, I would hang out around the Embarcadero at the Ferry Building. FW is a bit corny. Lombard Street is nothing special. It's just a postcard. North Beach and Chinatown are a good place to walk through, eat and loiter. They're adjacent so it's a good opportunity to get a more local oriented experience in a couple hours. I would also hike through the Presidio from Sea Cliff along the beach and trail to the Golden Gate Bridge, where you can take the bus back to wherever. That was my favorite part of my vacation.


If you're going to Alcatraz, which is a must see, then you might as well do Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39 since its all in the same place practically.

 

[dragon8]

Originally Posted by Tano

We are going on our honeymoon and i will be travelling with (soon to be) wife and 3 y/o daugter.

We want the best possible experience so we want to take in all the beautiful sites and attractions, a bit of shopping and sample new foods. Also if time i want to go to some theatre shows and ball games. Not too interested in gambling, or visiting homes of celebrites etc.

Congrats on getting married.

Since your daughter is coming alon I'd stop by Circus Circus for her in Vegas. Plenty of rides and games for her.

Since you want to catch a show whne in SF see Beach Blanet Babylon.