In LA for 5 days. Need ideas. No kids

freshair

Tue, Nov 19 2019, 12:01 pm

Hi. I am traveling to LA for 5 days without my kids. I will be going with my husband. We are looking for an adventure, from hiking to water sport. We would like one day at one park. I would appreciate 'must do' ideas.
We would spend one day just walking along Rodeo Drive and walking along the stars. One day we would spend in a park. I have another 3 days of pure adventure. Can I get some ideas please?

doctorima

Tue, Nov 19 2019, 3:05 pm

What month are you going, and how far are you willing to drive? We did this many years ago and absolutely loved it: https://www.speedboatadventure.....iego/

You can also rent bikes and ride along the boardwalk from Santa Monica to Venice Beach, and there's boat rentals in Oxnard (along with an amazing kosher restaurant called Tierra del Sur).

amother

Coral

Tue, Nov 19 2019, 5:20 pm

Rodeo Drive is not a full day activity. Maybe a few hours if you stretch it or take a tour. We did Rodeo drive and Griffith Observatory in one day. The lookout is beautiful and you can park down the mountain and hike up if that's what you like.
We did 4 days in LA and the last night/day in San Diego. We drove down late afternoon and saw the La Jolla coves with the seals and sea lions, stayed overnight in San Diego and went to Sea World the next day. We loved it way more than Disney but we're not really into rides. We booked our flights to fly into LA and out of San Diego. If you already booked it might not be worth driving there and back from LA in one day.
The other thing we really loved was Segway on Santa Monica beach. It was pricey but a lot of fun. We spent some time on Santa Monica Pier after and then drove up to Oxnard for the winery and dinner.
I'll echo someone else to eat at Fish Grill. Food was so fresh and yummy and really inexpensive.

Amarante

Tue, Nov 19 2019, 6:10 pm

Rodeo Drive is not going to take one day. At most a morning.

If you want to hike and see stars, do the famous walk up Runyon Canyon in Hollywood. It’s periodically seen tabloids as a Star is spotted doing the hike. It’s a fun hike anyway because it’s in the city but seems like it’s in the country and when you get to the top, you are rewarded with a panoramic view of the city.

Definitely eat at the Beverly Hills Thai Kosher restaurant. There are also some other excellent kosher restaurants depending on what you like. Love the pretzel challah sold at a bistro on Pico.

Santa Monica and Venice are definitely worth an afternoon. If you like to bike, you can rent bikes and bike south for miles or as far as you want to go. You could pack a lunch picked you from one of the excellent cafes on Pico. There’s some good shopping along Third Street Promenade as well as an interesting street scene but Venice Boardwalk is way more colorful.

If you like museums, the LA County is first class. The natural history museum is next door.

Pasadena is worth visiting. It has Huntington Museum as well as Descanso Gardens. Of course it depends on what season you are visiting. If you like architecture, a visit to the Gamble House is fascinating as it is one of the best examples of an Arts & Crafts home. It was built by one of the Gamble families of Proctor and Gamble fame for their winter home.

Universal is probably more exciting for adults than Disney and that is definitely going to take a day.

You could visit the Museum of Tolerance on Pico.

If you are only going to be in Los Angeles, for five days I wouldn’t drive to San Diego because there is enough in Los Angeles without wasting time driving there and back.

shmosmom

Tue, Nov 19 2019, 6:24 pm

Charcoal Grill for dinner is a must do in my book.
If you're going to Santa Monica Pier I'd do some shopping on 3rd Ave Promenade. For fancier shopping I'd recommend the Grove.
By a park you mean like Universal?

If you visit Marina Del Ray you can kayak/SUP with adorable sea lions.
Parasailing is pretty cool too, esp if you've never done it. Or those hydrobikes that glow up.
If you go to San Diego there's some cool hiking spots near Solana Beach with breathtaking views.
Tell me if you need more ideas 🤗
Which month are you visiting in?

freshair

Tue, Nov 19 2019, 8:05 pm

I am planning my visit in January. I didn't book just yet as I like to fully plan then book. I've never been to California and I'm looking to fill the 5 days to the max. I would love more ideas. I will look into the biking ideas and museums. I want to hear some "must do" ideas from anyone who has traveled or lives there and can help me plan a trip from the early morning stuff to night life ideas as well.

Amarante

Tue, Nov 19 2019, 9:27 pm

Los Angeles is a major city and you could fill more than five days from morning to night doing stuff.

What do you like to do?

If you want night activities, it would make sense to pin down actual dates and see what special events are going on. There is so much going on depending on the date and what you like to do - dance, theater, music.

If you like museums, there are lots of different ones from ones that have a bit of everything like the LA County to specialized ones - modern art, neon art, Japanese. The Getty is a major museum which many culturati consider to be a destination. My friend and I went to a Bob Dylan exhibition at the Wise Center a few years ago :-).

The Farmers Market/Grove is generally viewed as a tourist destination. It's interesting but not a great place for serious shopping as the stores there tend to gear towards tourists. They have a Nordstroms but it's relatively small. For serious shopping, there are better places. Consider that in January, there will be lots of holiday sales - or new merchandise if you want to splurge. The department stores on Wilshire - Neimans and Saks have great sales.

monkeys

Tue, Nov 19 2019, 9:50 pm

There’s tons to do! What do you like?
Are you interested in the theme parks?
I’ll echo the other posters and say that rodeo drive is definitely not a full day trip.
One of our favorite day trips is Pointe Dume in Malibu and then eat at fish grill. If you go down to San Diego, the La Jolla cove is beautiful.

Moonlight

Tue, Nov 19 2019, 10:41 pm

I did 4 days w dh.... it was amazing. Definitely do universal studios. We did point dume, Oxnard beach + winery, Santa Monica, museum of tolerance, marina deli Rey, venice canals, it was amazing.
Be aware that LA traffic is insane at rush hour so plan not to travel to/from places during rush hour

Moonlight

Tue, Nov 19 2019, 11:24 pm

freshair wrote:

As I mentioned I would like to do one theme park.
Moonlight can you tell me what you did day by day? I would like both a night life and an early morning day life. I will chill when I come back 😉

Day 1 Warner bros studio tour, museum of tolerance
Day 2 hike to Hollywood sign and Griffith observatory (dont recommend). Did walk of the stars, was totally overrated. Dont bother
Day 3 Ventura beach, herzog winery and tierra sur, Oxnard beach, drive Pacific coast highway back to LA, hike point dume (sea lions included) , night life @ Santa Monica
Day 4 venice canals, marina del rey. We also squeezed in La Brea tar pits and the Grove and almost missed our plane back
We had planned more museums but ended up having wildfires so museums were shut.
Lots of excellent restaurants.