How to Build the Best 3 Days in Los Angeles Itinerary
If you’re not famous by the end of your 3 days in Los Angeles itinerary, we’ll scribble your name on the Hollywood Walk of Fame ourselves. Maybe.
~
Los Angeles is made up of an intricate labyrinth of neighbourhoods spread apart by endless highways. But as long as you get yourself a car, you’re alright. Do you want to hear more about cars and roads? OK, onto what makes Los Angeles one of the world’s most special and appealing places. For starters, the weather is warm and sunny year-round, while the city has countless beaches for every kind of person. Family entertainment is on the brain on the Hollywood Boulevard, with its museums centred around celebrity, while the city is lined with exclusive restaurants.
In all, your 3 days in Los Angeles itinerary isn’t long enough to see everything that makes the place so diverse and fascinating, so we’ve got our work cut out for ourselves. But rest assured, follow these tips and you can’t go wrong, because here at Plum Guide, we have done all the research for you.
Day 1
Morning: Have breakfast with a view
The early hours are pretty special in Los Angeles, with ocean sunrises and its thriving bohemian breakfast culture. Stay in a Plum Guide home in Los Angeles and saunter out into the golden light of a Californian morning, before settling on a café terrace in Venice. Try the exclusive Gjusta bakery or the friendly-sounding Café Gratitude. The Butcher’s Daughter is another favourite, with plenty of healthy juices and veggie food to energise you for a day of walking driving around like a sloth with opposable thumbs.
Afternoon: Explore Venice
Continue conquering Venice on the first day of your 3 days in Los Angeles itinerary. If you like Italian, spoil yourself with a trip to the Tasting Kitchen, the Felix or the Barrique. Then again, there’s upscale Armenian at Yours Truly (it’s the name of the restaurant: don’t turn up at our house… or at least call first). You can try the famous sushi at Shima or tuck into lavish American food (yes, there is such a thing, though only god knows what it comprises) at Maso.
Venice Beach Sign at Sunset in Los Angeles California
Well, you’re in Venice, right? Check out the Venice canals, which are nothing like the Italian version in terms of antiquity, but sure do smell fresher. Walk along the banks of these manmade canals and imagine which of the adjacent mansions belong to the rich and famous. Ring one of the bells and drop by for tea (don’t really do that).
Day 2
Morning: Get to Hollywood
There’s life outside Venice. Get on down to the Hollywood Boulevard bright and early to skip the crowds. Check out the names of your favourite stars on the floor and get up close to their wax counterparts in Madame Tussauds. Check on world records and weird facts in Ripley’s Believe It Or Not and get a good look at the Dolby Theater, because you’re unlikely to ever grace that stage and win an Oscar. Although, you never know… if you do, please invite us to the ceremony, as we gave you the encouragement.
Afternoon: Enter the film world
Follow the celebrity trail to Universal Studios, where a tour led by Jimmy Fallon (who isn’t really there, of course) takes you through the synthetic and manipulative ways Hollywood films are made. And yet, despite the artifice, we keep on coming back for more.
Evening: Have a fancy dinner
Make a scene in the fancy Providence restaurant in Hollywood by filling your face with seafood. You may also want to venture into the adjacent zones of Thai Town and Little Armenia for cuisine from… Thailand and Armenia, obviously. Other exclusive suggestions include the Redbird, the Parkway Grill and the Little Door restaurants.
Day 3
Morning: Breakfast on the beach
Get yourself a full breakfast in the Sidewalk Café on the Venice Boardwalk and go for a run along the beach. If you’re brave enough, venture onto the Muscle Beach to pump iron with the worst people in the world. More likely, you’ll keep yourself to yourself, and sheepishly walk back to your LA apartment. The weather’s probably perfect, so you’ve got a choice. Beaches or museums?
Jasmine Sprigs, Plum Guide home in Los Angeles
Afternoon: Have fun on the ferris wheel
Santa Monica Pier with ferris wheel at sunset in Los Angeles california
Soak up the sun in Santa Monica. It may sound like your least-favourite Friends character all dressed up for Christmas, but it’s actually a sunny entertainment hub full of beautiful and celebrated people: like you. You’re welcome. Walk out along the double pier and take your kids on the Ferris wheel, which lights up at night, as if to celebrate (or mourn) the approaching culmination of your trip. But hey, stiff upper lip, you've had the best trip possible, because you followed our 3 days in Los Angeles itinerary. Let’s go out on a high.
Evening: Eat like a local
Don’t just stand there staring gloomily at the Ferris wheel lights. The pier stays open and comes alive with street performers and arcade games. OK, that’s enough of that. Get your fill of fashionwear and what not in the nearby Third Street Promenade. They say it’s best to go shopping there at night, but that can’t be entirely true, because you’d be too distracted by such prestigious eating establishments as Tar & Roses and Water Grill Santa Monica. Still, it can’t hurt to frequent a few upscale stores to walk off your meal.
