A Layover in Los Angeles

LAX is a busy hub, with hundreds of flights to and from destinations around the world, including many long haul flights across the Pacific. These lengthy flights make most people arriving in L.A. tired and cranky. Knowing your next flight doesn’t depart for ten or twelve hours only makes it worse. On our most recent trip from Australia to North America and back, we traveled through LAX, so we can relate. We helped ourselves by staying overnight and made the most of our time. Here are suggestions for things to do on a layover in Los Angeles.

We recently took a break from the boat, left Go docked in Australia and flew back to North America. This is one in a series of posts about our trip to the U.S. and Canada. We’ll be back to Australia content in no time.

Pick a Neighborhood

L.A. is huge, sprawling, and has terrible traffic. If you have only a night or two, you’ll want to stay close to where you’ll be spending the majority of your time. Otherwise, you’ll be stuck in traffic.

On our trip to the U.S., we arrived in the afternoon and took a flight the following morning. Since we didn’t know how much energy we’d have after the 14+ hour flight from Sydney, we booked an airport hotel. Fortunately, we did have some energy and took a car to Manhattan Beach for some evening activities.

On the return trip to Sydney, we took an even longer layover. Our flight arrived in LAX in the morning, but the flight to Sydney wasn’t until late at night. So we booked two days and a night in Hollywood and planned our activities accordingly.

To Rent a Car for a Layover in Los Angeles

We opted not to rent a car for our layover in Los Angeles, feeling that our time and money was better spent elsewhere. The airport hotel had a free shuttle, and the Hollywood one charged for valet parking. Plus, L.A. is sprawling and confusing and we didn’t want to spend a big chunk of our time navigating the highways. We walked a lot and took UBERs and even a few city buses.

Go to The Beach: Manhattan Beach

Despite being relatively close to LAX and six miles from our airport hotel, the UBER ride to Manhattan Beach cost $70. Still, after a 14 hour flight we needed some fresh air so we took the UBER and explored a little.

On a Friday night, Manhattan Beach was a great choice. We walked the pier with all the other tourists, soaked up the ocean air and enjoyed the great weather.

After that, we hit a couple of bars and restaurants. Many of the eateries were all booked up. We could have made a reservation but didn’t want to be beholden if we were too tired or jet lagged to go out, and it turned out fine. We had a drink in one of the many beer bars and a delicious dinner at a New Orleans themed restaurant. You don’t get many po boys in Australia.

Concert at The Hollywood Bowl

When we decided to stay an extra night in L.A. on the return trip to Australia, I researched how to spend that night. There was a lot of choice! L.A. is an entertainment epicentre, with multiple comedy shows and theatre productions nightly. I tried to think of bucket list experiences and immediately thought of the Hollywood Bowl. An iconic historic venue, the Hollywood Bowl happened to be hosting some bands we loved, a perfect way to spend our layover in Los Angeles. We got to see three great bands at an awesome venue.

The 100 year old amphitheatre has excellent acoustics in stunning natural surroundings. We loved our night, starting with the quick walk from our Hollywood hotel to the tour around the stadium, to the show itself in beautiful clear weather. We’ve seen The National already in Toronto and Auckland, and this show was another great night with a favorite band.

Go For a Hike

We figured a good way to spend a layover in Los Angeles was to get exercise and views.

Shows and movies set in Los Angeles always feature the characters hiking in canyons. Our Hollywood hotel was a 15 minute walk to Runyon Canyon, so we decided to join the trend. Hiking Runyon Canyon gave us another epic L.A. experience, and we saw lots of cute dogs.

Our layover in L.A. was in early October, and the skies were very clear, aside from smog. The sun was warm so we hiked in the morning, at around 9am. We didn’t beat the heat but did get it done before peak sun. And we still had time to shower and change in our hotel before checkout time.

When in Hollywood

Since we stayed in the heart of Hollywood, we strolled around soaking up the neighborhood sights. We walked past the theatre where Jimmy Kimmel hosts his show live, and picked out some of our favorite stars on the Walk of Fame.

Also nearby, the Chinese Theatre and the Dolby Theatre where the Oscars are held annually.

The Griffith Observatory

We took a city bus and a shuttle to one of L.A.’s top tourist sites, The Griffith Observatory. You can walk, but we didn’t want to do another climb in the heat. The views are beautiful and the exhibits within, including a camera obscura, are interesting. I’d love to visit at night to see the stars, but we didn’t have the time.

Hollywood Forever Cemetery

Another free and interesting outdoor destination in Hollywood is the Hollywood Forever Cemetery. The observatory shuttle took us partway there and then we hopped on another city bus. The Hollywood Forever Cemetery is one of the oldest cemeteries in L.A. and has a bandshell where they host movies and concerts. Which sounds creepy, but despite the buried bodies, it’s a beautiful parklike place.

We wandered around, recognizing some names on the gravesites. In the mausoleum, we found the crypt of Rudolph Valentino. Even better, outside by a lovely pond, was the gravesite and statue of one of the Ramones! You can purchase a map of the stars graves at the main office, but we preferred our serendipitous stroll.

Layover in Los Angeles Feedback

We had a great time and feel like our layover in Los Angeles was well spent. As the second biggest city in the United States, there’s a lot of things to see and do. Let me know in the comments your favorite places and things to do in L.A. for our next layover!