Los Angeles Travel Guide

Los Angeles; off the beaten path

All the blogs talk about Paris and Lindsay and the fabulous places that make LA, but what about all of the other places that the tours leave out, the ones that only the locals know about? LA is so much more than the same touristy stuff that people have been visiting for decades…

Of course there are plenty of other weird things to do that’ll let you see the city, and not have you caught up in the sea of cameras and foreigners that litter every street corner. Sounds mean, but even tourists find other tourists annoying. Let’s take a trip through some other cool stuff a billion people haven’t already done.

Start your ‘off the beaten path’ expedition with the Dearly Departed Tour, (available to book online through Viator) which will have you wandering around LA’s seedier side, visiting sites in major LaLa land history, like that George Michael public restroom and the homes of famous dead people, or even exactly where they died, aka The Viper Room’s sidewalk… Possibly not suitable for children, but hey, that’s not what you’re here for.

Keep things a bit indie in Chinatown, which is in the downtown area, as is Little Tokyo- also worth a stroll. The second building in the MOCA (Museum of Contemporary Art) series is also in this area and will thrill all art lovers. If you plan on visiting all three galleries, locals say to start with building number two, the Geffen Contemporary.

The Fashion District is a great place for bargain hunting, real or faux items of interest. This is where all the major designers get their fabrics from, so it’s a delight if you are into making your own stuff or like to keep up with the latest styles. In LA this is hard to do as fashions change weekly, but you can give it a try, right?

Hire a Los Angeles rental car and cruise around the scores of different neighborhoods. Beaches, mountains, buildings, the high class, the low class, the middle class are all found in this city. You can’t just stick to the downtown area and the places the guidebooks will have you wander around, keep it real! Just try to keep off the highways (especially the 405) during peak times (or any time if you can), otherwise you’ll find yourself with a nasty case of trucker’s arm…

Take a boat or helicopter ride to picturesque Catalina Island, which is gorgeous and very friendly, most readily accessible via Newport Beach, Long Beach, Marina del Rey and San Pedro. But if you want something a little lower key, Zuma Beach (right) in Malibu is where locals go to get away from tourists. The water is cleaner, the food is better and the waves are so good, they’re crowd drawing.

Go horse back riding at Sunset Hollywood Stable, over the ridge into Burbank and have a truly Mexican meal to top it off. The ride is a bit taxing and at times scary, but you get a great idea of the surrounding landscapes of Los Angeles and it’s a fun way to see the scenery with your friends. Not your thing? It is California after all, head to the coast for a surfing lesson…

Weird eats at the restaurant Opaque ‘dining in the dark’. You eat your entire meal in a pitch black room, so your other senses are truly honed in on. Crazy stuff, fantastic idea (don't wear white?). But less strange meals are found on the Santa Monica Promenade or on Ocean (great seafood if you’re on the hunt, plus a nice dinner stop if you’re heading into LA from Malibu).

If you’re still reading this, you also deserve to know that those maps you buy on the side of the road listing stars homes’ are mostly fiction. If you want to do a star- seeing tour, do the organized tour guide version instead.

By Leah Bradicich