Five Ways to Get Your Tourist On in Los Angeles

Los Angeles is the 2nd largest city in the United States, second only to New York (LA County, however, is the largest county in the US) It's a sprawling, spread out city of highways, glitz and glamour and is the center of the film and television industry. Whether it's your first visit or your 10th there are so many things to do and see. Here's an overview of how to get your tourist on in LA:

Hollywood Walk of Fame
In August of 1958 eight stars were implanted into the sidewalk at Hollywood and Vine and unveiled with names representing the entertainment industry - motion picture, television, radio and the recording industry. Thus began the Hollywood Walk of Fame and one of the greatest marketing strategies ever. Currently two stars per month are added with ceremonies covering the honorees.

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You can walk along the Walk of Fame and also visit the infamous Grauman's Chinese Theater with it's footprints of the stars (you can actually see a movie here, also)

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Unfortunately, this area has been in decline over recent years and today you can be bombarded with people in superhero costumes wanting you to pay them for photos or hawkers selling tours of the stars homes. But if you've never been here, it might be worth your while to visit just once.
We parked at the Hollywood and Highland Center Mall, walked along the Walk of Fame, put our hands and feet in to size them with the stars in front of Graumann's and walked up the stairs at the Dolby Theatre where the Academy Awards are held every year. (You can also tour the Dolby Theatre) 
And a bonus tip - perhaps the easiest place to view the Hollywood sign is from the back of the Hollywood and Highland Center Mall rear patio.

Griffith Observatory
If you've watched the movie La La Land, then you've seen Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling prance around Griffith Observatory. They have the whole place to themselves and float through the planetarium. Movies certainly aren't real life! This place is popular - it's teeming with people!

Griffith Observatory sits high in the Santa Monica Mountains  and is part of Griffith Park which is run by the City of LA Department of Parks and Recreation. It houses telescopes, the Samuel Oschin Planetarium and exhibits while providing some of the best views around of the city of LA and the Hollywood sign. Entrance to the building and grounds are free. You'll just need a bit of luck to find parking (The Observatory urges people to take the bus to avoid traffic and parking woes)

Mr. UR took one for the team and dropped my daughter and I off in front of the building so we had a bit more time to explore.( He parked about a mile down the mountain on the street. ) We took our time taking in the views, walked around the exhibits and visited the rooftop for more views.

If you want to get out of the city, have fantastic views and learn a little more about the cosmos, then Griffith Observatory is for you. If you'd like to avoid crowds then avoid weekends or sunset - it's crazy then. 

Here's a hint: If you like great ice cream and want to take some to the park or just enjoy it before or after your visit thennear the park, in the Los Feliz neighborhood, we stopped for a treat at one of my favorite ice cream stores, Jeni's. (At the corner of Hillhurst and Clarissa Avenues) My daughter and I each had a flight which includes 3 flavors in tiny scoops. There isn't a Jeni's where I live so not only was I excited for a rare treat but also to introduce my daughter to the deliciousness of Jeni's.

Warner Brothers Studio
Warner Brothers is one of the largest - and busiest -working studios in Hollywood - well, actually it's in Burbank - including 36 sound stages on it's main lot and ranch facilities. It's one of the "Big Six" American film studios and for a fee you can tour the studio. 

The classic Studio tour takes about three hours where you are whisked around the studio grounds on a golf cart with a tour guide. You visit sound stages and back lots (they were filming Fuller House when we were there) including ones where Gilmore Girls, Casablanca and Friends were shot. You also visit the Batmobile collection of cars, a DC Universe exhibit, a Harry Potter exhibit and the Friends Central Perk set. The tour is very well organized, even down to the minute.
For $69 per person, though, it's a bit pricey.

So whether it's worth it for you is a personal decision. I'm glad I did it, though, I have no need to do it again. It is one of the few public studio tours so it may be worth it to you if it's important to see a film studio while you're in LA.

The Getty Center
The J. Paul Getty Museum, or The Getty as it's commonly known, is one of the world's largest art organizations. It's housed on two campuses - The Getty and The Getty Villa - and it receives over two million visitors per year making it one of the most visited art museums in the United States.

Founded by the oil tycoon, J Paul Getty, in his house originally,  it's known for it's architecture, it's gardens and it's views. Located in Brentwood, admission is always free. (Parking is $15, however) 

Once you park, you take a monorail to the actual museum which is housed in several buildings and includes art by Vincent Van Gogh and Paul Gaugain. 

You could spend days here getting lost amongst the art. And that's not including the gardens and views. We spent a few hours enjoying all of the above. I'd definitely say that the Getty is worth a visit.

Disneyland
The original Disney theme park is located in Anaheim, about an hour from LA (dependent on traffic of course), and it's not a requirement for visiting Los Angeles but it sure is a fun place to head to if you're here. 

We stayed close by at a Holiday Inn Express with a shuttle ($5 per person return) that picked us up in front of our hotel and dropped us directly in front of the main gate to Disneyland and California Adventure. I'd highly recommend doing this unless you're staying at one of the Disneyland hotels.

The day we went was listed as a non-crowded day on the crowdmeter but it sure seemed crowded. We arrived early - before the park opened - but there was still a line to get in. We decided to head to the back of the park first which was a good strategy and enjoyed no crowds for rides or food.

None of the 3 of us had ever been to California Adventure so we went across the way mid-afternoon (they are right across the street from each other.) After enjoying this park for awhile we headed to the Disneyland hotel area and had an early dinner and perused the shops. 

Back to Disneyland to finish out the night until we hopped on our shuttle back to the hotel with ease.

It was a good - and tiring - day (over 25,000 steps on the fitbit). But Disneyland is, after all, the "Happiest Place on Earth."!

How about you? What's your favorite thing to do in Los Angeles?


Linking up with: My Corner of the World at Photographing New Zealand and The Weekend Wanderlust Weekend Travel Blog Party!