24 hours in Los Angeles!

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24 Hours in Los Angeles

Whether you’ve got a 24 hour flight stop over, are in LA for a work trip or are simply limited for time and only able to go to LA for the weekend. It is more than possible to see the main touristy things and see a lot of what LA has to offer in 24 hours!

Here’s our guide to the perfect day in LA!

WHERE TO STAY?

First things first, everything in LA is spread out, you need a car! Where you stay doesn’t actually matter too much as you’re going to have to drive every day anyway, but when you’re limited for time we highly recommend staying as central as possible and you can’t get more central than the famous Sunset Strip – Right in the middle of West Hollywood and the iconic Walk of fame, and just a short drive down the road from Santa Monica with it’s famous beaches! We found ourselves in LA for only 24 hours when travelling between Tahiti and London recently and stayed at the Andaz hotel. The Andaz is the perfect base to explore when you’re tight for time and has a pool on the roof if you change your mind on exploring and just want a pool day! There is a huge selection of hotels for all budget down Sunset Strip though, so take a look and you won’t be disappointed on the location.

WALK OF FAME

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Head to the Hollywood Walk of Fame first thing in the morning to get a look at all the famous stars without a ton of people getting in your way. Whilst you’re here, check out Grauman’s Chinese Theatre and put your hands and feet in the footprints of Michael Jackson, George Clooney and many more.

CELEBRITIES HOUSES TOUR & HOLLYWOOD SIGN

Take a 2 hour tour and see how the rich and famous live on a guided tour of celebrities houses through the streets of Beverly Hills. You can pre-book these tours in advance but there are plenty of independent guides on the Walk Of Fame strip so we recommend chatting to a couple of touts and booking a tour there and then so you’re not tied to a set time. Our tour took us past the houses of Kanye West and Kim Kardashian, Tom Cruise, Paris Hilton and many more as well as past the death places of Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson. Make sure your tour guide takes you to Rodeo Drive, the famous filming location of ‘Pretty Woman’ and to the Griffith Observatory where you can get a great view of the famous ‘Hollywood’ sign too! The tour should drop you back to the Walk Of Fame so you can finish taking any pictures you missed in the morning, then jump back in the car ready to move on to your next destination.

SANTA MONICA

We love Santa Monica! Park the car and take a walk onto the Pier. Here you can go on a couple of rides, play some pier games or grab a bit of lunch at Bubba Gumps Shrimp Co inspired by the film Forrest Gump. After you’ve explored the pier, grab a bike from one of the bike hire shops at the start of the pier and head south to explore Venice Beach. The cycle trial takes you past the beach workout points, and past muscle beach along to trendy Venice beach with it’s graffiti covered palm tress, street markets and half pipes.

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Cycle trail Santa Monica

WHERE TO EAT?

Finish the day with dinner at one of Los Angeles many restaurants. Two completely different bars/ restaurants we love are;

The Ivy, either in Beverly Hills or in Santa Monica. The Ivy (in no way related to The Ivy in London), is a celeb favourite. A beautiful boutique restaurant serving 5* food in a quirky and romantic setting with Ivy vines and fairy lights on the ceiling. This restaurant will complete your 24 hours in LA leaving you feel like a VIP or celebrity yourself.

The Saddle Ranch Chop House, Sunset Blvd, this is in no way a VIP celeb hangout but more of a larger than life american dining experience. The plus point of eating here if you’re staying at the Andaz hotel is that you can just walk down the road to this spot so you can have a few drinks! This is a novelty bar and restaurant with a bucking bronco in the middle of the restaurant, rock/pop music playing loud and humungous portion sizes! We literally had enough nachos on our sharing starter to feed 10 people!

Whether you’re a classy couple or a young crazy travelling party, you can’t go wrong with finishing your day with one of these two!


No matter what you do you’re sure to have a blast in this amazing city! 24 hours gives you an insight to how much this city has to offer, but if you get a chance to come back for longer, I think around 5 nights is perfect for sightseeing, or up to 2 weeks if you want a full on theme park thrill trip.

Feel free to share any tips your have for those with only 24 hours in Los Angeles!