The Rough Guide to Los Angeles & Southern California

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• Publisher: Rough Guides
• ISBN:
  9781409351689
• Topic: Personal Development
• Subtopic: Travel

The Rough Guide to Los Angeles & Southern California is the definitive guide to the region. Whether you're looking for inspiring accommodation or great places to eat, you'll find the solution with hundreds of restaurant, hotel, nightlife and shop reviews. Along with a thorough look at LA's top tourist areas, from Hollywood and Beverly Hills to Santa Monica and Disneyland, the guide explores more obscure but no less deserving sights, like Downtown's arts district and Santa Catalina Island. Additionally, the book covers the broader Southern California region, including San Diego, Palm Springs and Santa Barbara. Accurate maps and comprehensive practical information, from city transport and tours to costs and currency, help you get under the skin of the region, whilst stunning photography and an inspirational introduction make this your ultimate travelling companion to this free-spirited American metropolis.
Originally published in print in 2011.
Make the most of your trip with The Rough Guide to Los Angeles & Southern California.

Now available in ePub format.

Listings

Accommodation >>

Eating >>

Bars and clubs >>

Live music >>

Performing arts and film >>

Gay and lesbian LA >>

Sports and outdoor activities >>

Festivals and events >>

Kids’ LA >>

Shopping >>

Accommodation

Accommodation prices >>
Where to stay >>
Hotels and motels >>
Hostels >>
Campgrounds >>

There are plenty of options for accommodation in Los Angeles, whether you seek budget motels or world-class resorts. Finding somewhere that’s good value and well located can be trickier, but it’s far from impossible, especially if you don’t mind a short drive or light-rail trip between your hotel room and your destination. If money is the issue and you must stay in an ultra-budget motel farther from the action, you’ll need to be choosy about the district you pick, as getting across town can be a time-consuming business. Either that or stay in a better-located hostel, if you don’t mind a loud atmosphere.

You can often find worthwhile deals by booking online through a site such as Hotwire or Priceline. An adequate motel or low-end hotel will start at $70 for a double, and if you’re comfortable in the familiar two-storey, neon-lit 1960s motel built around a shallow swimming pool, with minimal amenities, you’ll find many options. For pricier accommodations, LA has a seemingly limitless collection of high-end hotels and resorts that rival the best in the world for views, comfort and amenities – and you can expect to pay a small fortune for some of them ($500–1000 a night in some cases). Bed-and-breakfasts are slowly becoming more common in LA (typically based on a Victorian-architecture or country-cottage theme), but the few that do exist tend to be expensive.

For those on a tight budget, a dozen hostels are dotted all over the city, many in good locations with desirable amenities – though at some, stays are limited to a few nights, and at others, the nonstop party atmosphere can be grating. Camping is also an option – from the beach north of Malibu, throughout Orange County, on Santa Catalina Island, and in the San Gabriel Mountains – but you’ll need a car (or a boat) to get to these campgrounds.

Accommodation prices

The accommodation prices quoted are for the least-expensive double room in each establishment throughout most of the year. As with most major cities, however, rates can fluctuate wildly, rising steeply during the busiest periods – holidays, summer weekends, popular conventions, etc – or dropping similarly when chance discounts are offered. The steepest fluctuations are noted in the review. Bear in mind also that in Los Angeles all room rates are subject to a fourteen percent room tax in addition to the rates listed below.

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Where to stay

LA is so big that if you want to avoid constantly having to cross huge, congested expanses, it makes sense to divide your stay between several districts. Prices and options vary widely by area, and except for the most desirable spots – Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, Malibu, beachside Santa Monica – you can find standard chain hotels that are reasonably affordable. Dow...

Table of contents

• Book Contents
• How to Use this Rough Guide ePub
• Introduction
• Basics
• The City
• Listings
• Southern California
• Contexts
• More on Los Angeles & Southern California
• Map symbols
• Small print