Los Angeles-Ca Tourist-Attractions

Los Angeles-Ca Tourist-Attractions information

Venice Beach

The original beach life can be found on Venice where musclebound bodybuilders lift weights in cages and bikini'd beauties rollerblade up and down the boardwalk. Movies such as "White Men Can't Jump" have long since cashed in on the small-time life, big-mouthed attitude of Venice, but seeing it for yourself is ten times the dose. It can all be a bit tacky and tawdry but is undeniably fascinatingly alluring. As well as watching the normal people who workout, play ball or skate round here there are entertainments to be had, with jugglers, comedians, acrobats and the generally extroverted doing their best to catch the eye, and a few bucks, of passers-by. Europeans should beware that topless sunbathing is illegal on South Californian beaches, although the string bikinis the locals sport aren't exactly prudish

Getty Museum

Culture in LA? Surely not, but yes, in the capital of delightful tack, John Paul Getty saw fit to offer the people some real art. The collection is one of the world's most valuable and eclectic collations of masterpieces from periods spanning centuries right up to modern times. European Masters and American Pop-art vie for attention in the exhibition space of the superb modern Getty Center, which has housed the collection since 1998. There is also an extensive gallery of photography and, of course, film reviews and exhibitions are held within the complex. 1200 Getty Center Dr. Open: Tue-Sun 10h00-18h00 (until 21h00 Fri & Sat). Admission: free.

Grauman's Chinese Theater

Halfway down Hollywood Boulevard, Grauman's movie theatre is the epitome of LA, where the fake is made bigger and better than the original. In Grauman's case it is in the shape of a huge Chinese pavilion with an ultra-modern cinema inside. Open since the '20s this is where real movie lovers come to get their celluloid fix. When Star Wars: The Phantom Menace opened here in 1999 people queued outside for months - it's that sort of place. Most famous of all is the concrete courtyard outside that has the hand and footprints of stars from the movies or the movie industry indelibly impressed in them. Nearly 200 people have left their imprint, beginning with Douglas Fairbanks in 1927. 6925 Hollywood Blvd.

Hollywood and the Boulevard of the Stars

Hollywood's centrepiece, the Boulevard, in actuality has become a slightly rundown place in areas but nevertheless the stars along the pavement are still a must-see during a stay in LA. Check out Elvis Presley at 6777, The Beatles at 7051, James Dean at 1719 Vine Street and Charlie Chaplin at 6751. Being human or real is no criteria for having a star either: Lassie, Mickey Mouse and Bugs Bunny are all honoured on the Boulevard. While you're here you can't miss the huge Hollywood sign on Mt Lee. Originally built as advertising for the "Hollywoodland" housing estate, it has become a symbol of the movies. The closest you can get to the sign nowadays is by driving out to Beachwood Canyon. Here you'll not only see the mansions of the millionaires but occasionally a spot of movie-making.

Disneyland

The place that never grows old is now undeniably part of history itself. The original Magic Kingdom still boasts its famous four general themes in Fantasyland, Frontierland, Adventureland and Tomorrowland, with all the rides, attractions and shows anyone could want. The Disney glam hasn't faded one iota since 1955 when Walt himself officially opened the park, although things have moved on a bit in technology of course. As you'd expect, the mouse is much in evidence as is his goofy mate. But the new stars of Disney such as Aladdin, Pocahontas and the lead characters of Toy Story are the biggest draws for kids nowadays.

Film Studios Tours

The Hollywood movie mill is still turning, and the big companies, Sony (Tel: +1 (1)323-520-8687) and Warner (Tel: +1 (1)818-977-8687) both offer tours around their lots. Each has a dedicated tourist area and tour but the main attraction for movie fans is getting close to the huge (and mostly out of bounds) warehouses around the complex, which contain sets for tomorrow's blockbuster movies. Of course the stars are always somewhere around - although you're only likely to see your own reflection in the blacked out windows of the SUVs that whisk them on and off set. The tours are still worthwhile however, if only because you'll be able to tell people for definite who it might have been that you nearly saw. You get better value at Universal Studios Hollywood, which has been developed into a full theme park with rides, shows and film-based attractions aplenty. Only Disneyland gets more visitors so be prepared to battle the crowds.

Star Tours

After trying brunching on Melrose and hanging round the film lot to no avail then maybe it's time to visit (not stalk) the stars at home. It's possible to buy a map of the homes of the stars from almost anywhere along Hollywood Boulevard, but a better idea is to climb aboard a tour bus and let a guide point out the highlights in person. Starline Tours leave from outside Graumann's every half-hour and visits all the outsized pads of the most famous inhabitants of the city, past and present. A quirkier option is the Oh Heavenly Tour (formerly Graveline), which escorts visitors round the sites of the various suicides and accidents in which stars met their end - still pulling the punters in long after the final reel. Grisly, but fascinating nonetheless. Starline Tours, leave from Grauman's Chinese Theater. Cost: from USD35 per person.

La Brea Tar Pits

After all the glitz and glam of Hollywood the La Brea tar pits are a reminder that Los Angeles has a genuine history, and is firmly grounded in reality. The La Brea tar pits are probably one of the world's best fossil sites. The exposed pools entrapped many a poor creature over the centuries, and the remains were fabulously preserved under the cloying black stuff. Full skeletons of sabre toothed tigers, mammoths and bison along with fossils of plants, spiders and insects extracted from the pits are displayed in the Page Museum near to the site. In the park outside life-size replicas of the pits' victims, including tigers and mammoths are displayed in dramatic tableaux. For the curious, although several human artefacts have been dredged up over the years, only one human skeleton has been found so far, dating from 9,000 years ago. 5801 Wilshire Blvd. Open: Mon-Fri 09h30-17h00; Sat-Sun 10h00-17h00. Admission: USD7, adults; USD2, children (5-12).

El Pueblo de Los Angeles

This historic State Park encompasses the site where the city was first founded in 1781. Piquant Olvera Street is the centrepiece, and recaptures the Mexican flavour of the early settlement. There's a marketplace selling handicrafts as well as restaurants and shops to explore. The old buildings that fall under the park's protection remind you that LA has a genuine and interesting history underneath its movie set façade. While in the area it's worth paying a visit to Union Station, built in 1939 and widely considered one of America's great rail stations architecturally speaking.

Museum of Tolerance

An absolutely amazing - and disturbing - place that could only exist in LA, a city that has seen more than its fair share of hate crime. In the museum you are confronted by all the non-PC fears of modern society, from being the subject of abuse hurled at you personally, to your own levels of tolerance being cannily drawn out of you by the opinion-provoking Point of View Diner. Most harrowing of all is the entire section on the Holocaust with its recreation of the genocidal programme of hate perpetrated against the Jews by the Nazis. If you come out feeling shell-shocked, and a little more thoughtful, then that's how it should be. Museum of Tolerance. Simon Wiesenthal Plaza, 9786 West Pico Blvd. Open: Mon-Thu 10h00-18h30; Fri 10h00-17h00; Sun 11h00-19h30. Admission: USD10, adults; USD7, children (under 12).

Basketball - LA Lakers

If New York is the place to see baseball then its West Coast rival is the premier place to see America's other favourite spectator sport - basketball. There are two teams that play in the city, the Clippers and the Lakers, who share the massive Staples Center arena downtown. The Lakers are now back where they believe they belong as NBA champions following the supremacy of the Chicago Bulls through most of the 90s. Getting a ticket for the Lakers might prove difficult depending on how well they're doing and which team they're playing. There's always plenty of food, drink and entertainment and even a star or two. Jack Nicholson and Denzel Washington always sit courtside while Dustin Hoffman, the Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Steven Spielberg can often be spotted. Lakers tickets can be obtained at Ticketmaster outlets. They are located in The Wherehouse, Robinson's-May, and Tower Records.