Itinerary help needed

Hi,

Sorry if this sounds like a stupid request but we could really do with some help itinerary planning for our first trip to LA. Being based in the UK we are keen to see as much as possible.

We arrive late on the 23rd November (staying at the Hollywood Renaissance) and leave first thing on the 28th November so in effect we have 4 full days to see everything. We are planning on getting a cab from the airport and then picking up a car on the morning of the 24th. Ideally we would like to see most or all of the following but don鈥檛 know if it鈥檚 possible and which things we could do on the same day. Our list comprises of:

Hollywood Walk of Fame

Sunset Strip/Boulevard

Rodeo Drive

Melrose Avenue

Farmers Market and the grove

Universal Studios

Warner Bros Studio Tour

Mulholland Drive

Santa Monica

Malibu?

Griffith Observatory

Disney Concert Hall

Cathedral of our Lady of the Angels

Grauman鈥檚 Chinese Theatre

Venice Beach

Kodak Theatre

La Brea Tar Pits

Any help would be fantastic

Itinerary help needed

Day 1: Walk of Fame, Chinese Theater, Kodak Theater, Sunset Strip, Farmer%26#39;s Market/Grove, Tar Pits, Melrose Ave, Griffith Observatory.

The first 3 there are on the same block, practically, and take about an hour in total. You%26#39;ll drive Sunset to get to Farmer%26#39;s Market/Grove, and can visit Melrose either going there, or coming back, on your way to the Griffith Observatory. Tar Pits are just down the street from Farmer%26#39;s Market. If you%26#39;re feeling really energetic, you could also do the Warners Tour that morning.

Day 2: Universal, Mulholland Drive. That night, go to Malibu for dinner, taking Mullholland there, cut over on Topanga, drive through the canyon to Pacific Coast Highway and turn right, toward Malibu. Take Sunset Blvd home, so that you get the full feel of Sunset.

Day 3: Rodeo Drive, Santa Monica and Venice. Spend the morning in Beverly Hills, head to SM or Venice for lunch, spend the day. You could have dinner in Malibu this night, instead of Day 2, if too tired after Universal.

Day 4: Cathedral and Disney Hall. If you haven%26#39;t been to the Tar Pits or Melrose yet, you could do it on this day.

Itinerary help needed

I%26#39;ll make a tiny change to Yoga%26#39;s recommendations. Move the Sunset Strip to Day #3 since although you can drive on Sunset to get to the Grove on Day 1, you%26#39;ll be turning off of Sunset onto Fairfax Avenue to get to the Grove. Fairfax is three bliocks BEFORE the Sunset Strip begins. So, you could either drive the Sunset Strip on Day 1 and then back track to Fairfax or, put the Sunset Strip drive on Day 3 on the way to Beverly Hills. This is the better option since Sunset Bl beyond the Sunset Strip is a very nice drive. Turn left off of Sunset onto Beverly Drive to reach Rodeo as follows: Drive south on Beverly Drive from Sunset, turn right onto Santa Monica Bl and then left onto Rodeo Drive.

Get acquainted with mapquest.com for routes around L.A. Here%26#39;s an example of a route from the corner of Hollywood Bl %26amp; Highland Av to the Farmers Market.

http://tinyurl.com/35r5yg

Note: There are turn-by-turn directions at the top of the page and then a map of the route at the bottom. The route (highlighted in red) is different from the one that Yoga recommended but is no better. You can zoom in and out on the map (zoom out to see neighboring areas, like Beverly HIlls) and you can click and drag the map to look at areas that are off the map.

If you click gently on any point on the map, mapquest will bring that point to the center of the window. NOTE: Do not click on the START or END tags to move them to the center since doing so will only create an informational window. Click on a point adjacent to the tag to move it to the center.

Good luck

Have fun!

It looks like you%26#39;re missing one of the highlights of LA, the Getty. You should fit that in if you didn%26#39;t leave it out on purpose. Try to make it there for lunch if you can too.

I would also rent a car at the airport when you get in. I don%26#39;t see the point of paying at least $50 (more with traffic) to get to your hotel from the airport and then again to get to the airport when you will pay less for a car rental for each of those days and will use it for that entire day. Of course parking at the Renaissance is $29 per day, however this is one of the many reasons I wouldn%26#39;t stay there if I had a car. To me, staying somewhere like Chamberlain or Elan Modern or Le Parc Suites is more convenient in that sense if you have a car, for the same price or less, with lower parking rates. Traffic around Hollywood and Highland is not fun.

here%26#39;s my recommendation for combining things - slightly different from above:

1.Universal Studios/Mulholland Drive/Hollywood Blvd/Chinese Theater/Kodak Theater and dinner around there near your hotel

*(I wouldn%26#39;t do both Universal and Warner Bros. Not enough time and one studio is enough in my opinion)

2. The Getty with lunch/Venice Beach/Santa Monica for dinner

3. Beverly Hills/Rodeo Drive/Maybe shopping around Beverly Center/Drive down Sunset Blvd/Dinner in Malibu

4. Griffith Observatory/Disney Concert Hall/Cathedral of our Lady of the Angels/ La Brea Tarpits/Melrose Ave/Dinner at the Grove

Thanks for all the help so far :-)

Just to clarify the reason we weren%26#39;t going to get a car from the airport is because we have a 2+ hour drive to LHR then a 11 odd hour flight so by the time we land and clear customs in the US we%26#39;re looking at being up for about 18 hours so we didn%26#39;t think driving would be best.

So I suppose my question is apart from a cab or rental car is there any other way to get from LAX to the hotel? Are there shuttles or something similar? Also can we not pick a hire car up away from the airport?

We%26#39;re planning on leaving LA on an 8.30 flight to vegas with United does anyone know how long before we should check in and also what the baggage allowance is as I can%26#39;t seem to find this on their site.

In terms of the Getty whilst I%26#39;ve read good reviews it%26#39;s just not something that%26#39;s a mandatory on this trip. Perhaps next time.

Thanks again in advance.

There are ';shared van'; services but it%26#39;s just a little more expesive to take a taxi and the transfer time will be a lot shorter (since you may have to wait for the next van, wait for the van to ';fill up'; with passengers and there may be others dropped off before the van reaches your hotel). With such a long day of traveling, I%26#39;d go for the taxi.

There are a number of care hire companies in Hollywood. Hertz has a counter in the lobby of your hotel. Budget has an office 1 block south of your hotel on Hollywood Bl. Enterprise%26#39;s office is a few miles away but they will pick you up at your hotel at no extra charge.

Domestic flights require a 1 hour advance check in. Next time, fly southwest airlines (the EasyJet of the U.S.) from Bob Hope Airport in nearby Burbank,(the Gatwick Airport of L.A.)

Have fun!

I would highly recommend for you to check in online, which you can do up to 24 hours before your flight. Also, plan on being at the airport about 1.5 hrs ahead to be safe. Bags need to be checked in 45-60 minutes ahead depending on the airline. Baggage restrictions are basically the same for most airlines. You can have 1 carryon, and 2 bags checked in. Here%26#39;s the info from their site: united.com/page/article/0,6722,51146,00.html

Btw, not sure if you were looking at the Getty as a museum, but you don%26#39;t have to go inside the museum itself. Most people go for the spectacular views of the city, have lunch there and check out the architecture of the building by one of the top architects in the US. Up to you of course.

For an 8:30am flight, you should be at the airport around 7am, which means you need to leave your hotel around 6-6:15am. If you%26#39;re going to be taking a shuttle, they will tell you what time they will pick you up, as it will depend on other passengers as well. I agree with HopSkip%26#39;s suggestion to just take a cab. It won%26#39;t be much more expensive, but you won%26#39;t have to make stops to pick up and drop off others.