Los Angeles - how to spend a 12 hour layover?

[FidelCashflow]

I have a journey with a 12 hour layover in LA (arrive 11:30AM - leave 10:40PM from LAX.) Does the timing mean I will miss the infamous LA rush hour?

I'm not sure what to do - I've never been to LA and want to see stuff like the Hollywood Walk of Fame - any suggestions? Places to eat, things to do? For 12 hours can I just use the metro/taxis and walking to get around - or do I need to rent a car?

 

[imatlas]



I have a journey with a 12 hour layover in LA (arrive 11:30AM - leave 10:40PM from LAX.) Does the timing mean I will miss the infamous LA rush hour?

I'm not sure what to do - I've never been to LA and want to see stuff like the Hollywood Walk of Fame - any suggestions? Places to eat, things to do? For 12 hours can I just use the metro/taxis and walking to get around - or do I need to rent a car?

First, you need to adjust your expectations: LA traffic at noon is roughly equivalent to what most of us picture as "rush hour" traffic.

That's a long enough layover to see a few things: Venice Beach and Santa Monica are within 30 minutes of LAX. Hollywood is farther, more like 45 minutes to an hour away, but could pair well with a trip to the beach.

Given your time constraint I would not try to use the Metro. It's up to you whether you'd prefer to rent a car or take a cab everywhere. Hollywood is probably a $75 - $100 dollar ride (each way).

 

[hanoiboy]

Since there is only 12 hours, I would visit areas more towards the westside(your original plan). First I would visit the Farmers Market located on 3rd and fairfax next to The Grove (a must see). These places that offer plenty to see and eat. Next I would visit the Getty Museum then end my final hours at Santa Monica. Skip Venice!

 

[foodguy]

If you really want to do Hollylwood, you have time, but you'll want to rent a car. taxis are BRUTALLY expensive from lax -- you're probably looking at $75 to $80 each way. i like hanoiboy's recommendation of the farmers market for lunch, and then it's a quick (like 10 mnutes) up to hollywood, or 5 minutes over to beverly center and then 10 up to hollywood, depending on what you want. hollywood, though, is just for the touristic. there are a couple of good restaurants, but it's mostly ogling. OTOH, you could also make a trip up to santa monica and then the getty, depending on what you like.
12 hours is plenty of time for a quick trip, but you'll not want to take the metro, which will probably take 90 minutes each way to get where you're going.

 

[erictheobscure]

I can only answer this as if the question were what I would do if I had about ten hours to kill in L.A. Not sure how helpful my thoughts will be since I'm someone who grew up in the area and have never had the slightest urge to visit the walk of fame. But with that caveat, I would:

- rent a car (you do not want to cab anywhere from LAX, as foodguy points out)
- get an In-N-Out burger (a few blocks from the airport)
- pick a beach to putz around (Manhattan Beach for low-key pleasantness; Santa Monica for a yuppie tourist vibe; Venice for, uhh, what it is)
- happy hour at said beach
- drive over to the Sawtelle area and goof off looking at the Japanese stuff and then eat sushi at Kiriko
(or drive to & through Beverly Hills and eat dinner at any number of good restaurants)
- on the way back to LAX, sneak onto the campus of Loyola Marymount and enjoy some spectacular views of the city

Might not be an eventful enough itinerary if you want to do a lot of sightseeing, but you could do all of this without getting yourself mired in freeway traffic.

 

[Cary Grant]

And if you do rent a car, make sure you know your way around/have Neverlost etc... I've hit Noontime freeway in LA and it was 20 minutes in, other times it was two hours... and when it was two hours, getting OFF the freeway does not help you.