Travel Answers

Just found out I will be going to LA for a couple of days. I don't have time to do my usual exhaustive research and need help fast. We get there Monday night (29th) and return Wed (30) at 1:30pm. I plan on renting a car as soon as we get there. Trying to cram as much fun as we can in these few hours, our plan looks like this: Monday - arrive late, get car, go to our hotel which is located at the airport. Tuesday - shop in Beverly Hills in the morning ( there is a Goodwill there I want to see), have lunch, attend show for which we have tickets until 7:15 ( the reason we are there and the biggest time commitment), try to make the Lakers/Mavericks game which begins at 7:30 but we don't mind being late. Wednesday - early morning to Santa Monica. My questions are: About how long to drive from LAX to Beverly Hills in the morning (9ish)? What about the drive from BH to the Staples Center? What should i expect to pay for parking at the Center? Do you think that tickets will be any cheaper at the door if the game is underway? If not, any ideas of a way to get them cheaper? (They are still available online at a variety of prices) How far is Santa Monica from LAX? Doable in the morning? What about parking there? Car rental drop off is at the airport so we would drive straight there when we are done. Lastly, any eating recommendations for either of those places? I am a bit of a foodie, but not a food snob. No chains but a local hole in the wall would be great. Thank you in advance VTers. You never fail to add interest and information to my trips! I never take a trip without coming here first.

I am coming to LA for 2 nights arriving by plane to see a lakers game and and looking for ideas for what else to see in 2 days as well as ideas for where to book a cheap safe hotel for 2- 20 year olds , that also has good transportation options for airport and staples center

Hi Everyone, I fly into LAX on Tuesday 14th Aug and staying until the 26th Aug. I need to hire a car and not sure who to go with. So many to choose from. I've also been told to hire just outside the airport cos it will be much cheaper - but again, I don't know who to choose. Who would you recommend and why? Many thanks, Thao

I have a bunch of questions 'cause I'm planning to visit in near future and stay for a while. My first one is the arrival itself. I'm flying from Europe and I plan to start my trip in NYC and end it in LA. Which is the best travelling option across the USA? I would like to see as much as I can, so I was thinking about renting a car in NY. I presume it would take me 7-10 days to cover the distance in a relaxed atmosphere, taking photos and enjoying the nature. I really look forward to long drives across the deserts. I really don't know much about pros & cons of this idea so locals, feel free to advise me about everything :) Second question would be LA accomodation. I was thinking about renting a room or an apartment, considring I plan to stay for almost a month and travel a lot. I need my base camp for that, so what would you suggest?

We have booked a guided tour which covers San Francisco, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. We plan to extend another 5 days after Los Angeles. Can someone kindly recommend another city nearest to LA. We do not drive, kindly recommend somewhere that is easy to travel to and we fly back from there. We are thinking of Hawaii, is this too far from LA or not convenient. I appreciate your advice/recommendations. Cheers!

I will travel to the u.s. as a tourist and would like to use my smartphone(Samsung 1510 that uses the 3G) in USA , with a data package (100MB) --would be enough for 2 months). Please note that international roaming is too expensive in this case. I need these data packages,for example, to be able to use Skype. Guess the best in the sates are AT&T and T_Mobile? Can I, as a tourist use this service? I need to have an American address, not the address of the hotel? Can I make and receive local calls and SMS?How can I buy this service from Brazil? Need to change the cell chip? What is the cost? Which are the best companies to ask for? Thank you very much

When we first arrive in LA I was wondering about getting the big blue bus from the airport to the end of the line to UCLA and back again to Santa Monica. I thought this might be a good way to get a look at LA on first arrival. Is this a silly idea and are you allowed to stay on the bus at the turnaround for the return journey?

Hi All, Looking for a good hotel and area to stay in Los Angeles City. We have done Beverley Hills etc last year and have two nights in LA that we'd like to see some cool stuff in. Any recommendations? Cheers, Ben.

Can anyone please recommend a good sightseeing tour in LA? Not interested in celeb gossip or watching !!!!!

Hey! I am going to stay from June 14th, 2012 till Juni 23th, 2012 in Los Angeles. Due to the fact that I am interested in visiting LA together with other people, I am looking for a travel companion. Information about myself: My name is Markus, I am 23 years old and I am from Germany. I am going to study at University of California, Riverside after June 23, 2012. For more information just ask here or contact me via email: myvisual1337@web.de

Im going on a camping west trip organised though sta travel... who's going? After that ive got a week before i flight out to NZ, and thinking about staying in San fran for a couple of days and then going back to la (where im fying out from ) and im not sure where to start. Ive heard the beaches are lovely but you would want to paddle in the sea!! so where can i can i get my feet wet to cool off? or should i do the touist thing and look around. I know most of LA is very spread out and i wont want to get a car, so what is the best form of transport? and how can i make sure im not being ripped off? plus are there many tourist help spots, to get info from ?

Hi Everyone As part of our holiday we will be travelling from the Grand Canyon to LA, I have had a look on map quest and aware it is a long drive. We are after the best route to take to LA and also if there are any interesting stops we see on the way, any advice would be greatly received. Many thanks in Advance.

Hi Everyone, I'll be staying Downtown LA and going to a Dodgers game in a few months. I plan to take the Amtrak out of Union Station down to San Diego as well. I plan to avoid a car rental in LA because I'll only be there a day and I'd rather just walk, bus, or cab it than deal with the hassle. Questions... a) Is it easy to get cabs in downtown LA? Can you flag them off the street? or will hotels down there have them readily available? or will I have to plan ahead and call one? b) Looks like I might be able to walk from downtown LA to Union Station. Is that a possibility? Are the neighborhoods ok and is it an easy walk? Thanks for any insight you can provide. Lucien

We are moving across the country and we're travelling through the LA area (I-5/I-205/I-10). We will have a UHaul and would like to stay close to the highway, north of the city to avoid the traffic and congestion. There are SO many hotels in the area. My biggest concern is along the I-205 corridor which cities are going to be the better places for a family to stay 1 night. I just don't want to end up in a bad part of the area without knowing it. Should we look in Azusa? Glendora? Rancho Cucamonga? Or should we head further south and stay somewhere else like Santa Ana or Irvine. Also our budget for hotels will be in the100-$150 range, so we don't want anything outrageously expensive. Looking for advice from someone in that area who might know the lay of the land. Looking to avoid the seedier side of town. Thanks in advance!

Hi, I'll do a two-week tour of west America in late June. I'll arrive at LA first and I'm planning to stay there for 3 nights. My question is, do you suggest that I rent a car from my first day in LA or the day when I leave LA. My hotel asks me for a USD 18 parking fee each day. Is LA do-able with public transport? Many thanks advance for your advice.

Hi Guys, We are two french student and we will do a road trip on the west coast. We will stay from the 18th of july to the 24th of july in Los Angeles. We would like to find a good and cheap hotel in a good neighborhood because we will visit all the city by walking!!!if you have any informations let us know!!thank you so much and Merci!!!! estelle

Is anyone familiar this hotel and area please ? Any feed back mostly welcome, thinking about booking it for 2 nights in July. Thanks.

Hi from Scotland We have three weeks on the West Coast this summer doing Vegas,LA,Hawaii and San Francisco. We will not have a car in LA and I have been thinking of staying in a central location such as Hollywood so it will be easy to do the tourist stuff. Is this a good or bad idea and can anyone recommend somewhere from their experiences ?

Hello: I will be travelling (with my wife & 2 year old daughter) from Yosemite to L.A Union station by Amtrack - leaving Yosemite by 6pm and reaching L.A Union station by 2.20am next day. I will be looking to take a cab from the station to my hotel (as i'm not sure if my hotel will arrange for a pickup shuttle by that time). Is it safe to reach L.A Union station by 2.20am or anytime after midnight? Is it safe to take a cab around 2.20am from Union station or anytime after midnight to reach my hotel? Appreciate your response as i need to plan my itenary accordingly. Many Thanks.

how much will it cost me if i were to take a cab from downtown to disneyland? how long will it takes? another thing is, is the hollywood sign visible from everywhere in hollywood? how do i get to the hollywood or universal studio from i stay near chinatown?

i will be travelling to north america by 25th apr. however, i can only squeeze 2 days in los angelas... yeah... i know... wat a shame... i will be spending 28th in disney and 29th following a tour to hollywood, berverly hilss and universal studio from tours4fun. i will be travelling with my husband and of course my 2 yr old daughter. can anyone recomend to me where to stay? how do i get to disneyland? is there any train or tram available? the pick up location for the tour will be ard anaheim, buena park, orange and garden grove. please advise as i have no idea how to travel around and how is the town like... thanks

I will be arriving in LAX on 29th May & thinking of heading to Camarillo outlets. Staying overnight & heading for Gilroy outlets on 30 May. Since it is immediately after the Memorial Day weekend sales, would there be likely less stock & sizes avail in the outlet stores? Will it be crowded on those days? My other concern is highway traffic. We will be driving from Gilroy outlets to San Francisco on 31st. Should we expect the highway to be jammed?

I am coming to LA area next weekend. I have some friends visiting from Denmark. They asked if I could fly out and join them for the weekend, so I am coming out. My friend is interested in being taken to a restaurant where he can get a great American steak. So, I want to take my buddy to where he can get the best steak. The restaurant can be anywhere, LA, Santa Barbara, anywhere. Though I would appreciate a variety of suggestions. If they were coming to Ohio, the best steak in Dayton is the Pine Club, if I were to take them to Cincinnati, it would be the Jeff Ruby Steakhouse. But, in California, I have no idea. I would appreciate your suggestions. He also mentioned an interest in some "trendy restaurants." Any thoughts/suggestions. Thanks for all help and suggestions

Hey!! Im a 21 year old guy from Sweden whos traveling around the world atm. (Oz, Asia, USA, South America). Comming to The States the 21st of april and staying for 10 days. Really keen on renting a car and do a road trip to the three cities. Anyone with the same thoughts? Or anyone know where I can find people to do it with? Would also be great with tips of good hostels, things to do etc.. Take care! /Martin

Hi I am in Los Angeles in the second week of June for 8 days.Can you please suggest places to visit in and around LA with 2 children ages 10 & 14.I want to go to Las Vegas and Grand canyon (2-3 days)also and was wondering if bus/ flight would be better. I am on an economic budget also looking for places to stay and best travel options in LA and around.Thank you in advance for your kind advice. Regards

Hi, I am plan to come to LA in July with my wife and two kids (17,15). We are visiting a number of cities so will be in LA for about 4/5 days. We have never been to the area before so will no doubt what do to the hollywood thing and visit many of the well known attractions. Is it best to to stay in that area or base ourselves out towards the coast and travel in. Thanks in advance, Tony

Hi all !!! I am a french student. I am for a long time fascinated by Los Angeles. It's for this reason, I would like to go to L.A. next year. However, What's the best period to organise my trip there? And, do you know special events wich happens in Los Angeles during the year ? It will be grateful if you could answer me quickly. Thank you in anticipation. =)

Would be travelling to Yosemite National Park thru & fro from Los Angeles. Would be staying at Yosemite overnight and would like to know the best way to travel there. We would be hiring a car in LA but since we would be driving first time on left-hand side, is it safe to drive to Yosemite from LA. Also how are the roads & how much actual time does it take to reach Yosemite from Anaheim. In case other more viable options are available could anyone pls. suggest one. Thanks in advance for all the replies.

Hotels in Santa Barbara are very pricey. Can anyone recommend a clean and safe hotelthat is close both to the beach and State Street that won't cost me and arm and a leg. We will be driving there. Appreciate the help

As a part of my summer trip to the west coast of the US I am planning on spending about 3-4 days in Los Angeles. Knowing that the LA area is very big I would be delighted if someone could help me plan my 3-4 day LA visit so I can make the most of it. Thank you very much