Having flown into Los Angeles a handful of times, this trip was no different, at first. A general haze formed as we approached the Pacific coastline, which is quite normal. When looking down from 20,000+ feet on the descent, the City of Angels is really a city of cement that seems to go on and on and on and on. However, this trip seemed a tad different. Perhaps it was the sheer excitement of the purpose for this visit – seriously, moving overseas for a year to be closer to Alan’s family is outrageously crazy and, well, exciting. Perhaps I was distracted from my typical ‘viewing LA from the sky’ stance as we approached the runway. Perhaps it was [eafl id=”412″ name=”Southwest Airlines” text=”Southwest Airlines'”] miraculous ability to make any flight feel like a perfect experience, despite turbulence out of Denver and Tucson (gotta love the mountain air). Perhaps it was my exhaustion that won over and helped to close my eyes in the final minutes of the flight – taking a few deep breaths as we approached our last leg of our US adventures before heading overseas. Either way, the city of cement angels welcomed me with wider arms than before, and I was thankful.
Three days in Los Angles seemed like the perfect amount of time to connect with some dear friends, to enjoy a little family time Stateside before hopping our next flight, and to explore a city we know, but not deeply. Upon arriving on Wednesday evening, we gathered our luggage (once we found three of our cases – in the oversized baggage area?! strange!) and headed to [eafl id=”413″ name=”Alamo” text=”Alamo”] to pick up our rental. I would HIGHLY recommend using Alamo (we booked through [eafl id=”414″ name=”Costco” text=”Costco”] – great deals if you are a member) as the shuttle was smooth and quick, check-in was a breeze, and the vehicle was a perfect fit for our family (with an added bonus of Bluetooth – it’s the small things)! Onward to our Airbnb!
Traffic in LA can be, well, HORRIFIC! What would be a 20-minute drive in Grand Rapids was over an hour and a half at 5 pm on a Wednesday. The kids were starving (travel and time changes can do that to anyone) and so we chose to do a very LAish thing – find an [eafl id=”415″ name=”In and Out Burger” text=”In-N-Out Burger”]! Simple menu, easy to order, and SO YUMMY! Now, onward to our Airbnb!
Accommodation can be tricky with a family of six, that’s why I think I have fallen in love with [eafl id=”416″ name=”Airbnb” text=”Airbnb”]! There are many more affordable and comfortable options for large families to travel and actually stay together instead of having to book two hotel rooms at double the cost! Win-Win!!!! Adventure is something that we tend to seek when traveling, so when I found [eafl id=”417″ name=”Los Angeles Airbnb” text=”this Airbnb”], I knew it would be the PERFECT place to call “home” for three nights! I mean, who wouldn’t love to sleep in an RV by a pool?! The location was perfect for our needs – our friends live in the greater North Hollywood area, so staying just off Oxnard was great. Our hosts, Alex and Rafael were FABULOUSLY accommodating! Our original booking had some complications (we had booked their 7 person RV, but it had mechanical issues and had to get repaired), so they quickly switched us to their 5 person RV AND the quaint little pool house studio! This ended up being a wonderful situation as Niyah needed her own little space to scream and cry all three nights – Alan and I took turns “sleeping” with her in the cozy studio! The RV was just enough space for each kiddo to spread out and relax a bit. We even attempted to make pizza in the little oven (let’s just say we have some work to do on mastering the art of RV cooking)!
The bonus of this Airbnb was the pool right at our doorstep – literally! Our first night ended with a late night swim – nothing better than to cool off from a day’s journey!
Reflecting upon our arrival, I realize there were five important things to consider when arriving in Los Angeles:
- Car rental – Make sure you book through a reputable company and double-check their policies. We had a horror story a year ago (flew into LAX at 10pm, shuttle took almost 40 minutes to get to no-name rental company’s off-site location, check-in took 2 HOURS because they had rented our car to someone else and didn’t have anything big enough to fit our large family and luggage – all in the name of saving a few bucks – IT’S NOT WORTH IT). Los Angeles actually has very fair and reasonable rental prices if you shop around with companies you trust.
- Accommodation – LA offers a variety of accommodation from Hostels to Airbnbs to Hotels – there are even [eafl id=”573″ name=”KOA” text=”KOA Kampgrounds”] fairly close to the city. Make a list of amenities you and your fellow traveling tribe want/need and begin narrowing down your options. Hotels are lovely for the convenience, sometimes the breakfast and pool, but there are limits if you are traveling with more than 4 people. Hostels are a great option for your budget, but you tend to have to share bathrooms and sleep in shared dorm-style rooms. Airbnbs are definitely becoming our favorite choice for accommodation as you can really find anything to suit your needs and budget!
- Activities – Plan your stay based on one or two “must see/do” activities. Are you interested in the movie scene? Perhaps staying in the North Hollywood area would suit you as you would be close to some of the major attractions. Are you interested in what the coast has to offer? Check out some of the suburbs and coastal towns like Malibu and Venice Beach – although you will pay more for these locations. If you don’t mind driving (it’s LA, there WILL be traffic), then consider heading north out of the city to get away from the hustle and bustle! Los Angles has endless places to explore and to experience!
- Good Eats – Due to the sheer size of Los Angeles there are countless restaurants and bars offering pretty much any fare you can imagine! Do you want farm-to-table? No problem! Do you eat vegan? Heaps of options! Do you desire an all-meat and potatoes fare? Yup! You’ll have lots of options! How about all things deep-fried? Absolutely! Not to mention the coffee shops, bakeries, and little markets you can find along the way – so many places to explore! If you do not have any LA locals in your tribe, I suggest using Yelp or TripAdvisor to help you find what you are looking for – or simply ask someone who is local for a recommendation. We have always found at least one good ‘hole in the wall’ restaurant that ends up being one of our favorites – this time, Jinky’s!
- Give Yourself Permission to Do Nothing – No matter where you find yourself traveling, I think this is a good rule to follow. If you are anything like us, you feel the need to pack as much in as possible, especially when we have limited time, to get the full experience of wherever we are visiting. However, the best moments that we remember are always those of just being still. If you are a super planner, like myself, go ahead and plan a little R&R time into your schedule, you deserve it!
Be sure to check out more on A Traveling Tribe’s Los Angeles adventures in following posts!
