Have you been to Los Angeles before? I have a few questions

[TheKingdom2000]

hey guys,
have any of you been to LA before?

my main question is; where did you stay? i'm not interested in the theme parks.
that being said, where is the best area to stay for shopping/beach etc.

i was thinking of staying near the LAX airport at the hilton
(http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=sherato...N&hl=en&tab=wl)

edit: it's about $400 cdn to stay at the hilton,sheraton/renaissance near the air port..
or if i want to stay in santa monica it will be $550 cdn.
so is the $150 worth staying in santa monica? plus i have to spend another $120 to rent a car...

fyi, i'm flying out of bellingham because it's cheaper...in mid july

will this be too far from everything?

and any suggestions on what to do?

thanks

[bcrdukes]

The hotels near LAX are a dump (Jah will agree.) I suggest you stay elsewhere. If you want to be near the beach and shopping areas (I'm not sure what you're looking for) try the hotels in Santa Monica, albeit lack of selection of major chains. The beaches are within a few minutes of a walking distance and you have the Santa Monica Third Street Promenade to do your shopping as well as an accessible drive down to Melrose Ave and Beverley Hills for more high-end streetside shopping. You have the option of clubbing Downtown.K-Town/LA/Hollywood. Keep in mind that if you really have to stay at the LAX Airports, you're just as acessible as being in Santa Monica, minus the beach and shopping.

Staying in Santa Monica, you're close enough to the 10 FWY which connects to the 405 FWY that takes you down to the OC. You can then stop at Costa Mesa Shopping Centre for your high-end shopping. As an alternative, you can take the Pacific Coast Highway (1) down to the OC for their beaches. For LA beaches, I recommend Santa Monica, Venice, Manhattan, and Redondo. For OC beaches, they're all pretty good. Sunset, Huntington, and Newport are my favourites.

[MASTER_J]

im acutally going there this friday, staying close to the airport and renting a car. What are some big malls/outlets in LA?

[bcrdukes]

http://www.family-vacation-getaways-...et-Stores.html

[SkinnyPupp]

I stayed at the Hilton many, many years ago. I can't really remember, but it seemed fine. I also have stayed at the Four Points which is sort of between the airport and city, IIRC. Taxi to downtown was expensive, but if you're renting that shouldn't be an issue. The hotel was fine, and the bar was actually pretty nice. The bartender was the actor from Six String Samurai

[TheKingdom2000]

Originally Posted by bcrdukes

The hotels near LAX are a dump (Jah will agree.) I suggest you stay elsewhere. If you want to be near the beach and shopping areas (I'm not sure what you're looking for) try the hotels in Santa Monica, albeit lack of selection of major chains. The beaches are within a few minutes of a walking distance and you have the Santa Monica Third Street Promenade to do your shopping as well as an accessible drive down to Melrose Ave and Beverley Hills for more high-end streetside shopping. You have the option of clubbing Downtown.K-Town/LA/Hollywood. Keep in mind that if you really have to stay at the LAX Airports, you're just as acessible as being in Santa Monica, minus the beach and shopping.

Staying in Santa Monica, you're close enough to the 10 FWY which connects to the 405 FWY that takes you down to the OC. You can then stop at Costa Mesa Shopping Centre for your high-end shopping. As an alternative, you can take the Pacific Coast Highway (1) down to the OC for their beaches. For LA beaches, I recommend Santa Monica, Venice, Manhattan, and Redondo. For OC beaches, they're all pretty good. Sunset, Huntington, and Newport are my favourites.

THANK YOU bcrdukes, this info was actually really helpful. i'm probably going to look at Santa Monica now. My girlfriend and I are all about the beach and shopping (more her than myself) and downtown. and we'd definitely hit up the night life...

and i'm pretty excited, because there is a Medieval Times close by =DDDDDd
i'm soo stoked on this.

Thanks again bcrdukes!!!

[TheKingdom2000]

Originally Posted by bcrdukes

http://www.family-vacation-getaways-...et-Stores.html

wow. great find.
Thanks once again.

also, do you suggest renting a car? my friend told me that the transit down there is decent. but, would renting a car be that significant?

[oh_juicy]

I stayed at the Hilton and Doubletree near the LAX airport. yeah, it was pretty far from everything. there's a mc donalds right next door.

Huntington beach! there's a wooden beach bridge you can walk across.

if you decided go to an amusement park, go to Six flags magic mountain. way better than Disneyland.

Desert Hills outlets is the shit!! it has everything. but it's located in Cabazon. it's about an hour drive from LA. it's really hot there too. almost like Vegas but it's worth it.

mall = Westfield Topanga and Westfield Santa Anita. can't remember where else.

[El Bastardo]

I'd rent a car. The area may look overwhelming but its not a huge space and you can see a whole lot more with a car.

Big ups to BCRDukes on this. I'd half expect him to the authority on SoCal.



Oh, and one more thing. In N Out burger.

[TheKingdom2000]

Originally Posted by oh_juicy

I stayed at the Hilton and Doubletree near the LAX airport. yeah, it was pretty far from everything. there's a mc donalds right next door.

Huntington beach! there's a wooden beach bridge you can walk across.

if you decided go to an amusement park, go to Six flags magic mountain. way better than Disneyland.

Desert Hills outlets is the shit!! it has everything. but it's located in Cabazon. it's about an hour drive from LA. it's really hot there too. almost like Vegas but it's worth it.

mall = Westfield Topanga and Westfield Santa Anita. can't remember where else.

ok. so if i book at the hilton/sheraton/renaissance by the air port its about $400 cdn.
if i book in santa monica it's goign to be about $550 cdn.

do you think it's worth the extra $150 to be in santa monica, oh_juicy?
plus it's going to cost another $120 to rent a car...

so should i just stay near the air port and rent a car, or did you find staying close to the air port was a hassel to get to many places.
ie. during night time when you get back from everything, there isn't much to walk around too?

[MASTER_J]

I booked my hotel through priceline, I managed to get a room for 3 nights, june 12-15 for only 45usd a night at the Crown Plaza Hotel 3.5 star hotel. I believe you can book through priceline to get sheraton/hilton/renaissance any pay around 60usd, you should definitely check it out!

What are the major malls in LA? Not high end stuff but stuff like forever 21/footlocker and etc (for my girlfriend)

and whats the la fashion district?

[MASTER_J]

if you want something in santa monica, price line has that as well. It will prolly beat any price you search online!

Also in terms of rental cars, where are you guys renting and how much? I found the best deal at alamo for costco customers, its 10-20 bux a day for a company to mid-size vehicle. However you have to pay an extra $25.00 a day because of the under age rule. Anyone have any ideas to get around that or have found a good deal with renting a car (maybe with the smaller companies)? thanks

[bcrdukes]

If you guys want to avoid underage rental fees, use Enterprise and make your reservation using corporate code 4CA5793 (Rogers). This will waive the underage fee. Their prices aren't that bad.

[MASTER_J]

ive tried using the code but they ask for this

" please enter the first 3 characters of your company's name or PIN number:"

do you know what i should enter? thanks

[bcrdukes]

ROG

[TheKingdom2000]

Originally Posted by MASTER_J

I booked my hotel through priceline, I managed to get a room for 3 nights, june 12-15 for only 45usd a night at the Crown Plaza Hotel 3.5 star hotel. I believe you can book through priceline to get sheraton/hilton/renaissance any pay around 60usd, you should definitely check it out!

What are the major malls in LA? Not high end stuff but stuff like forever 21/footlocker and etc (for my girlfriend)

and whats the la fashion district?

hey Master_J. i'm booking for july 24-27. so we both are staying the same length of time.

how much is your trip coming out to (and i assume the total is in american since you're using priceline)? since you're booking air and hotel seperate?

thanks.

[TheKingdom2000]

wow, the cheapest hotel rate in santa monica on price line is $99 USD for a 1 star super 8 motel...

i'm pretty sure we're just going to stay at the renaissance near LAX from july 24-27 for $440 CDN.

[TheKingdom2000]

btw. this is the cheapest car rental i've found...
http://www.enterprise.com/car_rental...lectedCar=CCAR

it's $120 USD

[MASTER_J]

I am paying 45usd a night at the crown plaza near lax. bidding on priceline is a little tricky, you have to use the options "name your own Price" Basically what happens is that you choose your location in LA and the hotel star rating. Then you would input a price that you would be willing to pay for (basically a very lowball! If you book my crown plaza through their website its 120usd a night, i lowballed 45usd and got it) Then you actually have to put down your credit card, because if they find a hotel that matches your description and they accept the price the reservation is made automatically.

It does seem iffy that you do not know what hotel it is until the end, but you save alot of money compared with booking through other websites. The good thing about this is that you are able to choose the area and hotel rating; so you will know with your bid amount you will get what you have chosen. There is a website/forum where people actually post what their bidding winners are, so you basically have an idea how much a night is for that specific area/hotel rating.

http://www.betterbidding.com/index.php?showforum=428&

So just take alook at what other people have won and you will get an idea of what you will pay in that area/hotel star rating. You save a lot of money by going through priceline as the rates are around half of what other websites and the hotel charge.

When my girlfriend and I booked through priceline, we were quite happy with getting a 3.5 star hotel near LAX for only 45usd, shitty motels/inns cost even more then that!

[bcrdukes]

Originally Posted by mx703

btw. this is the cheapest car rental i've found...
http://www.enterprise.com/car_rental...lectedCar=CCAR

it's $120 USD

Try some of the outer rental locations. Airport rental locations are always expensive. MASTER J can probably tell you.

[TheKingdom2000]

Originally Posted by MASTER_J

I am paying 45usd a night at the crown plaza near lax. bidding on priceline is a little tricky, you have to use the options "name your own Price" Basically what happens is that you choose your location in LA and the hotel star rating. Then you would input a price that you would be willing to pay for (basically a very lowball! If you book my crown plaza through their website its 120usd a night, i lowballed 45usd and got it) Then you actually have to put down your credit card, because if they find a hotel that matches your description and they accept the price the reservation is made automatically.

It does seem iffy that you do not know what hotel it is until the end, but you save alot of money compared with booking through other websites. The good thing about this is that you are able to choose the area and hotel rating; so you will know with your bid amount you will get what you have chosen. There is a website/forum where people actually post what their bidding winners are, so you basically have an idea how much a night is for that specific area/hotel rating.

http://www.betterbidding.com/index.php?showforum=428&

So just take alook at what other people have won and you will get an idea of what you will pay in that area/hotel star rating. You save a lot of money by going through priceline as the rates are around half of what other websites and the hotel charge.

When my girlfriend and I booked through priceline, we were quite happy with getting a 3.5 star hotel near LAX for only 45usd, shitty motels/inns cost even more then that!

wow this is great. i'm definitley going to try this.
this will save me alot of $$$ since i can grab a flight for about $250cdn

btw. once you put in your "BID" how long does it take for you to find out if they accepted it or not?

[MASTER_J]

instantly, basically they will search for any hotels that will take that offer and once they accept, credit card is charged. At this point they will inform you what hotel you will be staying at. Remember read the betterbidding forum to see what options you have with the hotel rating and location.

[taylor192]

I always fly into John Wayne Airport in OC and would get economy rentals (government rates don't allow for bigger rentals). This is the airport that serves the rich of south LA/OC, so most of the rentals are mid size or bigger. Just ask, I was upgraded into a Buick SUV and a mid-size Hyundia each time for the economy rate.

BTW rentals are usually cheaper at any airport too.

A car is a must in LA to get around. You'll spend more on cabs.

[Blinky]

Absolutely rent a car. You'll be hopeless without it; SoCal is ultimate car culture. Getting around on the interstate is pretty easy. Everything is relatively close by car.

The area around LAX itself is kinda blah, from what I've seen around there. Don't expect there to be too much to walk to; you might find that you will spend all your time out and pretty much return to your hotel just to sleep.

Things to check out:
Hollywood if you're into that kind of thing.
Old Pasadena is cute.
And, like has been said, In-N-Out Burger. Just do it.

[TheKingdom2000]

great, guys. thanks alot for all your help. any more suggestions would be great.

i'm pretty set on getting a car. it's probably going to be from enterprise.. its about $40 usd a day.