A First Timer’s Guide to Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica is the No. 1 place to go for anyone with a rosy, rom-com-like vision of a Los Angeles vacation. It’s a sunny, lively, visitor-friendly beach city that feels familiar even if it’s your first visit. Santa Monica is genuinely walkable and bikeable (a rarity in Southern California). It’s more urban than Malibu, more […]
Explore Exposition Park, a Remarkable Los Angeles Landmark
Exposition Park, a 152-acre urban park in a South Los Angeles neighborhood also named Exposition Park, is one of the top visitor destinations in all of Southern California. The park’s most famous landmark is the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, a historic venue that hosted the Summer Olympic Games in 1932 and 1984, and will again […]
Travel to These 7 Must-See California Destinations in 2024
New year celebrations have settled and it’s time to look forward to four seasons of California travel experiences. Planning ahead is not only sensible, allowing you to get the best deals and top choices for lodging across California, it also gives you something to be excited about. It all starts with picking a destination or […]
A Visitor’s Guide to LA’s Miracle Mile and Museum Row
The Miracle Mile neighborhood of Los Angeles scores a spot on many visitors’ itineraries thanks to its biggest draw – Museum Row. The strip of top-notch museums along Wilshire Boulevard includes the La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, the Petersen Automotive Museum and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). In front of LACMA […]
A Visitor’s Guide to Griffith Park, One of LA’s Greatest Assets
Griffith Park is one of the greatest assets of Los Angeles – for locals and visitors alike. Massive and rugged, the municipal park’s 4,310 acres cover the eastern end of the Santa Monica Mountains. Major attractions in Griffith Park, which include the LA Zoo, Griffith Observatory and trails to the Hollywood Sign, take up just […]
A First Timer’s Travel Guide to Hollywood
An ultimate guide to all the best things to see and do in Hollywood, California Hollywood is the most famous neighborhood in Los Angeles and one of the top tourist destinations in the world. The name alone evokes visions of movie-making magic, Golden Age glamor, and stars. Stars everywhere. Stars in everyone’s eyes! Stars on […]
Where to See Fall Foliage in California
As easy as it is to be boastful about California’s natural beauty, we have to hand it to the eastern United States – your fall foliage is truly incredible. With forests dominated by evergreens, the Golden State simply can’t compete with New England or the Appalachians when it comes to diversity or density of those […]
Travel Guide: Downtown Los Angeles
A first-timer’s ultimate guide to all the best things to see and do in downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) Downtown Los Angeles, or DTLA, is not like other downtowns. This isn’t a judgment call on its appeal – there is a lot to love about downtown – but rather a useful thing to know before making […]
Museum Monday: The Exploratorium, San Francisco
The Exploratorium, an award-winning, science-meets-art museum in San Francisco, checks off a lot of boxes on visitors’ wish lists. It’s one of the best places to go with kids in San Francisco, yet the museum is equally fun and engaging for all ages. Designed as a public learning laboratory for science, art and human perception, […]
Places to Play: Modesto, California
Check out the Central Valley city of Modesto for the almond blossom cruise, cool downtown murals and more By J.C. Thomas [Note: This post was originally published in March, 2021 and was updated in March, 2023. Due to this year’s unusually cold, wet weather, Modesto’s almond blossom season is later than average. You might still […]
12 Beautiful Botanical Gardens in California
Here’s an easy way to feel like you’ve cleansed your soul, just a little bit – take a stroll around your local botanical gardens. There are around 100 botanical gardens in California that are open to the public, according to Botanic Gardens Conservation International. They vary considerably in size and scope, but all have in […]
Museum Monday: Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)
In late 2024, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) is set to complete construction of its brand-new David Geffen Galleries. The building will house the museum’s permanent collection of 150,000 objects and reestablish its status as the largest art museum in the western United States. LACMA’s Resnick Exhibition Pavilion and Broad Contemporary Art […]