The Official "Explore Southern California!" Thread

Californian Elitist

Well-Known Member
I know this has nothing to do with Southern California, but I wanted to post this anyway. Today marks the 78th anniversary of the opening of the Golden Gate Bridge. Happy Anniversary to this gem:

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It may be time to start an "Explore Northern California" thread.
 

DznyGrlSD

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
Yes
Bumping this for my own reference. We're going to Forest Lawn & Griffith on our 1st day in Anaheim. How close to the hollywood sign can you get without having to hike?
 

Travel Junkie

Well-Known Member
Bumping this for my own reference. We're going to Forest Lawn & Griffith on our 1st day in Anaheim. How close to the hollywood sign can you get without having to hike?


You can get pretty close. I would recommend 2 places. On Google maps search for Lake Hollywood Park. It is on Canyon Lake Drive. It is a small park very close to the sign. On one side is the Hollywood sign and on the other is the Hollywood reservoir and overlooks LA.

The other place is further away but a great place to visit anyway and has good views of the sign and that is the Griffith Observatory. There is limited parking at the Observatory itself so you may have to drop off your party and elect one brave sole to park and hike back up. It has wonderful views of LA (if there is no fog or smog) and the Observatory itself is terrific. For those that don’t know, it’s also famous for having many TV and movies filmed there including James Dean’s Rebel without a Cause.
 

Californian Elitist

Well-Known Member
In case anyone will be in Los Angeles on Halloween, besides residents, Danny Elfman will be performing as Jack Skellington at the Hollywood Bowl for a Nightmare Before Christmas show on Halloween night. There will be other singers performing songs from the soundtrack. The venue will be dressed up to look like the film, and guests are encouraged to dress up as characters not only from Nightmare, but from those of Tim Burton's other films as well. Elfman will perform with a live orchestra. I believe there will be a pre-sale tomorrow, and the regular sale will start this Friday.

http://touch.latimes.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-84424766/

I will pull money from my savings to go to this show. This would make for an awesome Halloween.
 

Cosmic Commando

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
In case anyone will be in Los Angeles on Halloween, besides residents, Danny Elfman will be performing as Jack Skellington at the Hollywood Bowl for a Nightmare Before Christmas show on Halloween night. There will be other singers performing songs from the soundtrack. The venue will be dressed up to look like the film, and guests are encouraged to dress up as characters not only from Nightmare, but from those of Tim Burton's other films as well. Elfman will perform with a live orchestra. I believe there will be a pre-sale tomorrow, and the regular sale will start this Friday.

http://touch.latimes.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-84424766/

I will pull money from my savings to go to this show. This would make for an awesome Halloween.
He did a similar Halloween concert before with all of his Tim Burton music. I believe it got a very good review on Mousetalgia, so I'd bet this one would be very worth going to.
 

TexasErin

Member
Can someone help flesh out my plans or give advice?

We are going to rent a car on Sunday, May 28 from downtown Disney (yes, Sunday on Memorial Day weekend!) On the road by 8:30 AM and head to the Griffith Park Observatory for couple of hours, then see the Hollywood walk of fame, Chinese theater, and then head to the beach hopefully around 4 PM. I had really wanted to go to Crystal Cove and I had found an upscale Mexican restaurant that I wanted to try there, but I think that is out so would you recommend any other beach besides Santa Monica pier before we head back to VGC around eight-ish that night? We will not be swimming, but I really want to see the sunset at the beach. Lunch and dinner are still up in the air. I thought it would be fun if there were some kind of soda fountain conveniently located to where we will be in Hollywood and then I wish there were a really nice Mexican restaurant along somewhat convenient beach.
 

NobodyElse

Well-Known Member
I would stay on the 101. It eats up a lot of time and there isn’t a whole lot to see. The AF base takes up most of the good stuff and is off limits.

Quick side note. if you ride the Amtrak Coast Starlight, you get to see lots of Vandenburg AFB (Including missile launch sites) that you can't see from the highway.


There's also a spot on some ranch land above the Pacific where James Cameron has some Airstream trailers set up as a retreat.
 

NobodyElse

Well-Known Member
Really enjoyed exploring through this thread! Our DL/DCA trip is -60 days and counting. This trip was an afterthought/add-on to our summer vacay and we'll only be there a few days to do the parks. The day we depart for home (from SNA at 3pm) we thought we'd try to head to one of the beaches within a close enough driving distance and have lunch before our flight. My travel companion has never been to Cali before and wanted to see the Pacific and eat some seafood, if time allows. Any recommendations from you locals? I noticed the post about Crystal Cove and had actually been considering there, but would really appreciate any other suggestions. Would like to be directly on the beach if possible. Thanks!

Hmmm....

Crystal Cove (state park) has The Beachcomber. It's in one of the old converted cottages, and the food is pretty good. (I believe it is run by the company that owns Ruby's Diners, but it's got it's own menu.) Reservations are a little hard to come by, but most of their tables are for walk-up. They'll give you a pager, and you can use the time to explore the cool historic area. It's kind of a hidden gem. We ate there a couple of weeks ago, and the walk from the Los Trancos parking area was beautiful (in full bloom). Also, diners were able to spot whales from patio seats that afternoon.
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Here's the aerial view, showing proximity to the beach. Also note, the slightly more permanent tent covering for the deck, rather than the umbrellas. I'm not sure if it comes down in the summer or not.


(Crystal Cove shopping center has places like Javier's and Maestro's Ocean Club, but they're on the other side of PCH.)

Farther down the coast in Laguna Beach, you've got other "on the beach" options like Driftwood Kitchen or Deck on Laguna Beach or even Splashes at the Surf & Sand.

Closer to the airport, not on the beach but on the water are several options on Newport Harbor. We like to go to Bluewater Grill. It's on the Lido Peninsula, and has consistently good seafood at reasonable prices. (I believe it's owned by one of the original "Fish Market" owners, if you're familiar with that Del Mar landmark.)
 
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NobodyElse

Well-Known Member
Also down by the Egyptian is the Pig & Fife, I think I got the name right. It's an old Hollywood hang out with beautiful wood and I think its supposed to be haunted.

That's actually the Pig'N Whistle. I agree with you - it's a cool place to visit and hang out. If you liked the design of the lobby area of the former DCA Tower of Terror, you'll appreciate this place.

Indeed, next door is the old Egyptian Theater (American Cinematheque). You never know what might be showing there. Actually, if you follow that link, you will.
 

PiratesMansion

Well-Known Member
I have a question regarding LA area traffic. On July 6th (Wednesday), I have a free day in the LA area. I have several attractions that I'm trying to decide between (USH, Getty, Tar Pits, a studio tour, Science Center etc.), and how this question is answered will influence what attraction(s) I do.

I'm starting the 6th near Santa Clarita, and I am staying in San Diego that night. Around what time should I start to head for San Diego? What time do I need to avoid being on the road if I want to stay away from rush hour traffic?
 

NobodyElse

Well-Known Member
I have a question regarding LA area traffic. On July 6th (Wednesday), I have a free day in the LA area. I have several attractions that I'm trying to decide between (USH, Getty, Tar Pits, a studio tour, Science Center etc.), and how this question is answered will influence what attraction(s) I do.

I'm starting the 6th near Santa Clarita, and I am staying in San Diego that night. Around what time should I start to head for San Diego? What time do I need to avoid being on the road if I want to stay away from rush hour traffic?

What's your actual timing like. Are you waking up in Santa Clarita, ready to go first thing in the morning? Are you trying to get to San Diego by any specific time? ( i.e. If you're just going to check into your hotel and hit the sack, it would be best to go down in the late evening.) Where are you staying in SD?
 

PiratesMansion

Well-Known Member
What's your actual timing like. Are you waking up in Santa Clarita, ready to go first thing in the morning? Are you trying to get to San Diego by any specific time? ( i.e. If you're just going to check into your hotel and hit the sack, it would be best to go down in the late evening.) Where are you staying in SD?

I would be leaving around 8 or 9 AM from Santa Clarita, probably. The hotel in San Diego is near Sea World. The only thing I need to do in SD that day/night is check in to the hotel.
 

NobodyElse

Well-Known Member
I would be leaving around 8 or 9 AM from Santa Clarita, probably. The hotel in San Diego is near Sea World. The only thing I need to do in SD that day/night is check in to the hotel.

Roughly, I'd say do your stuff in L.A., then head down after 7:00 PM / dinner. Think about what you might like to do, then go to Google Maps and get directions. Then click the drop-down that defaults to "Leave Now", and change things like the time you'd like to arrive at your hotel. Try different scenarios to figure out the best way to utilize your time.
 

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