Los Angeles/Hollywood

Hollywood, a district of Los Angeles, is elusive both conceptually and physically, as the self-declared entertainment capital of the world.

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Understand

A business and residential district in the city of Los Angeles, the core of Hollywood for a tourist are its three fascinating boulevards: Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood Boulevard, and Melrose Boulevard. All three are worth seeing. Hollywood Blvd. for its entertainment history; Sunset Blvd. for its clubs and nightlife; Melrose Blvd. for its shopping, nightlife, and eclecticism.

Hollywood has done a fantastic job marketing itself as synonymous with the film industry. In reality, only one of the major studios is in Hollywood (Paramount). The largest concentration of studios are northeast in the Universal City-Burbank corridor (Universal, Warner Brothers, Disney, NBC). Most of the rest are to the west-- Century City (Fox), the Fairfax District (CBS), and Culver City (Sony).

If you want to see where films are shot, take a tour at one of major studios. Universal "bundles" a full amusement park with its tour. Several other offer smaller, but interesting tours.

If you want to see celebrities, the experience is less convenient (for you and them). The chances of bumping into a celebrity are very low-- unless you're willing to do a lot of "hanging out" at expensive restaurants in Beverly Hills, on Sunset Plaza, or in Malibu. You can easily see where they live, however, by taking a tour or following a star map (remember Drew Barrymore in the Bad News Bears?).

Get in

See

Do

Buy

Eat

  • Cinespace, 6356 Hollywood Blvd (2nd level), Ph: (323) 817-3456, [1]. Offering dinner in front of a large movie screen showing everything from recent movies to classics (movie shown Thursday, Friday & Saturday at 8:00 PM). The food is reasonably good California cuisine, and the movie is included with the dinner price. With drinks expect to spend between $25 and $40 per person. Reservations are required and should be made several days in advance. The restaurant becomes a club after movie showings.

Drink

Sleep

  • Best Western Hollywood Hills, 6141 Franklin Avenue, (323) 464-5181, Toll-free: (800) 287-1700, Fax: (323) 962-0536, [2].
  • Best Western Hollywood Hotel Plaza Inn, 2011 North Highland Avenue, Ph: (323) 851-1800, [3]. Just minutes from Universal Studios, two blocks from the Chinese Mann Theatre, Walk of Fame, Ripley's and Wax Museum and Hollywood Bowl. Beverly Hills, the Farmers' Market, NBC Studios, downtown Los Angeles, the Convention Centre, Dodger Stadium, the Los Angeles Zoo and the Griffith Park/Observatory are among the various other tourist attractions.
  • Holiday Inn, 2005 N. Highland Ave, (323) 876-8600, [4].
  • Holiday Inn Express, 1520 N. La Brea Ave., (323) 464-3243, [5].
  • Motel 6 Los Angeles - Hollywood, 1738 North Whitley Avenue, (323) 464-6006, Fax: (323) 464-4645, [6].
  • Renaissance Hollywood Hotel, 1755 North Highland Avenue, (323) 856-1200, Fax: (323) 856-1205, [7].
  • Summerfield Suites by Wyndham West Hollywood Hotel, 1000 Westmount Drive, [8]. A two-block walk from Santa Monica and Sunset Boulevards.
  • Wyndham Bel Age West Hollywood Hotel, 1020 North San Vincente Blvd, [9]. Just minutes away from L.A.'s hottest spots - including exclusive Beverly Hills and trendy downtown.

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