LA + Vegas, need tips and recommendations!

lind_3

The Barbary coast has reasonably priced rooms average 80 dollars a night plus the added bonus that this hotel is right bang in the centre not so bonus is that there arent so many rooms as other hotels so be quick to book

pbright

Yeah get All your park tickets when your there for sure!! & get the discounts they give to locals through coupons such as coke cans for six flags the last 2 times i have been there. At your age i suggest you stay at the Hard Rock Cafe or the Flamingo Hilton where i stayed. I have only been to Vegas once but i stayed at these places on reccommendations and they dont dissapoint....they give you alot of free drink, they cater for the young crowds, they are modern, and in a great location. I dont know where to reccommend for LA. If you want to stay in Hollywood and want to go out in Hollywood then stay at The Grafton, http://www.graftononsunset.com/on sunset stip, they have free parking(rare) but even better is that they give you free transport anywhere within 2miles in their nice cars, and all the famous and trendy nightspots are within 2miles of here. The website direct was cheapest to book for us, so keep an eye on that. It is a great hotel, not to popular with tourists due to its size. They also put you on the guestlist to the top clubs, and i got the impression that because you are british, and staying in that hotel, they assume your famous or something and they let you skip the Q's, give you a nice table etc. Despite of this the htel is resonably priced and the clubs they can get you on to the guestlist are not mega-expensive, you dont have to buy a minimum no. of drinks or anything...even though you will have Mandy Moore(if you know who she is) to the left of you. Theres loads of stuff i can tell you, just tell me what your interested in and looking for.

photome

I have already mentioned it but I can reccomend the Days inn los angeles it cost me $79 + tax a night with free parking and a basic but adequate breakfast. the neighbourhood was ok and it was about 15 minutes from universal studios and hollywood, This was in April this year, the rooms were clean and comfortable for a fraction of the price of most LA hotels.

Dont forget you can always book it and then cancel up to 24 hours before arrival at no cost, it is actually called the los angeles days inn on mariposa ave and the rates in sep are less than I paid

I cant comment on the grafton (above post) only to say it is over $200 a night

phill79

lind wrote:

The Barbary coast has reasonably priced rooms average 80 dollars a night plus the added bonus that this hotel is right bang in the centre not so bonus is that there arent so many rooms as other hotels so be quick to book

There is also no wait for the lifts to your rooms, unlike most of the others. We had a view of the Belagio fountains too!! I would definately stay there again.

fatboyonadiet

Booked my Vegas hotel but thanks for the LA tips

Murphy_The_Cat

Quote:
Originally Posted by Murphy_The_Cat
£480 is a cracking fare, you should be really, really chuffed. Are you going with BMI ?

I've got some bad news for you though, your holiday itinerary is only £350 incl tax on the AA website this morning

aaarrrrrrghhhhhh, got you, I'm only kidding.

You almost had me for a minute then! It's BMI but the internal flight isn't (can't remember who)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Murphy_The_Cat
When I stayed in LA, I stayed a the Beverley Hills Sofitel, which was very acceptable (bullet proof glass, armed guards, machine gun nests on the roof, sorry I'm just pulling your leg), shop around, get a deal and I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Again, almost had me!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Murphy_The_Cat
Watching the traffic lights change is like watching your own private motor show. Light goes red and they line up in front of you - Merc, BMW, Ferrari, Jag, Range Rover, Lincoln, Hummer, Porsche, Aston Martin, Lambo, BMW, Limo etc etc and it just goes on. However, leave Beverley Hills and the neighbourhoods are "ahem" less nice.

And then there will be me beaming away in my Chrysler Sebring! Fast forward a week to LA and I'll be beaming in my Ford Mustang!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Murphy_The_Cat
If you get fed up with the crazies in LA, I can recommend 2 x drives for you.
No1 is a 200 mile round trip & No2 is a 400 mile round trip, but you end up at one on the nicest places I've ever been to.

& I've got a wild card idea for you as well.

Tell me more, I might take the sat nav option as well so no chance of me getting lost!

Hi fatboyonadiet.

sorry about the late response, but in order, here goes.

BMI is a great airline, I think that your internal airline will be United. Your next step could checking out which planes your flying on,logging on to https://www.seatguru.com, finding out which are the best seats, contacting the airline DIRECT yourself and asking for them (If you'd taken the AA option, you could have done it online yourself).

Enjoy the convertibles and remember to keep some money spare for your hotel car parking - most charge (& some really charge) in LA.

If you fancy San Diego (& I'd return there in a flash, it was that good), I could give you a few ideas of things to do.

But now for my driving tours.
Tour no1 is straight up Highway 101 (a really nice scenic route) to Santa Barbara which is a beautiful town/city to while away some time in (apparently it has the highest number of Mercs per head of poulation in the world) and It's about 100 miles North of LA. As dingy and crap as LA is, this place is the complete opposite.

At this stage you could return back to [STRIKE]the warzone
[/STRIKE] LA, or you could carry on up highway 101 to San Luis Opisbo. It's about 100 miles but it is about the nices place I have ever been to in my life. It's hard to put my finger on it - it was just how you hoped that little town America would be. If you do go, make sure that your visit coincides with a Thursday night. On Thurday evenings they shut down the amin street and have a big open air Farmers Market / Party / Open Barbecue / Carnival. Idyllic.

When we went we stayed at The Apple Farm in San Luis Opisbo. Words can't decribe how pleasant a place to stay at the Apple Farm is - Mrs Cat goes all misty eyed at the mere mention of the place. It's not a cheap place to stay at (by any stretch), but it was worth every cent that we spent there.

Now heres the wild card suggestion. The route from Santa Barbara to San Luis is a beautiful scenic route, but an even better option is going by train as the train hugs the coast nearly all the way up (& takes you through Vandenburg Air Base at one point). A business class return on the Amtrak Surfliner will cost you $68.00, a regular ticket $44.00.
It may not be your thing but it's an option that few would ever consider.

Hope I've given you some ideas.

MTC

p.s. and the double Brucie Bonus is that you're not in LA.

pbright

photome wrote:

I have already mentioned it but I can reccomend the Days inn los angeles it cost me $79 + tax a night with free parking and a basic but adequate breakfast. the neighbourhood was ok and it was about 15 minutes from universal studios and hollywood, This was in April this year, the rooms were clean and comfortable for a fraction of the price of most LA hotels.

Dont forget you can always book it and then cancel up to 24 hours before arrival at no cost, it is actually called the los angeles days inn on mariposa ave and the rates in sep are less than I paid

I cant comment on the grafton (above post) only to say it is over $200 a night

I payed $100 a night...its down to timing and research

pbright

Also Murphy the cats suggestions are taking you north...i disagree...its the south towards San diegio you should be taking in. The north is better suited to older people...the south...Laguna, Newport, La Jolla etc are more fast-paced/trendy and i feel you should def. visit. What kind of rental car are you getting? Go for the Mustang if you can, much cooler than the sebring! If you can get the Grafton for under $150 & can afford it i would go for it. Its an amazing hotel, really trndy and you will meet other young folk at the hotel...not many families and old folks here. + factor is the free parking and free chauffeur car to anywhere within 2miles anytime as much as you like, it could justify the $150 a night. Like i said though...I got it for just over $100, its down to timing.

nelly_2

fatboy. If you deffinately going to six flags, I have some very NON money saving advice but its also priceless.

We went to a different six flags park last year (its a chain) near new york.

They do a fast pass system but what a lot of people dont know (im a full on theme park nerd btw) they have a system called VIP pass. It cost $100 dollars each on top of entry price. You get a sticker that you stick on your t-shirt and you dont queue at all. You walk up the exit ramps and get straight on the very next ride and if you liked it you get off wait for that train to go and get straight back on the next one as many times as you like.

There were estimated 1. 1/2 to 2 hour queues when we did this, that's 6 or 8 rides all day.

We rode 30 coaster rides in 4 hours best $200 I've ever spent.

They have a six flags marine world in sandiego too which has some great rides. If you get a six flags season ticket, you make it pay by the second visit

and its good for every park in the country.

all so check out Knotts berry farm http://www.knotts.com/

its another great theme park

fatboyonadiet

Plenty for me to go on again, thanks all, again some decisions to be made, will keep on trying the Grafton, but otherwise might take the days Inn, also seen the Hollywood Inn Express North and the Hollywood Exec Vagabond Inn. Both with free parking and discounted via Expedia and fall well within our budget. The grafton would be a back if we got a good price, the cheapest at the moment it's showing is $155.