So Much in SoCal

Southern California is one the most visited places in the world, yet alone the United States. The weather is generally favorable to people, warm with very little rainfall. Geographically it is situated along the coastline but within driving distance to the mountains, deserts and valleys. In addition to the natural elements that draw people here are all of the events and man-made attractions.

Let's start with the most notable attraction: Disneyland. Disneyland is the number one reason people visit SoCal. They attract hundreds of thousands of visitors per year and with the upcoming expansions, their attendance is sure to continue growing. Other theme parks include Universal Studios Hollywood, Six Flags Magic Mountain, Knott's Berry Farm, Sea World, and Lego Land. All offer all-day fun for families and adults and aside from Disneyland, all of them offer kids ticket prices for around $45 and adults around $75 on average. You can usually find discounts for tickets online or for large groups.

Beyond the theme parks are the film studios that you can take guided tours on and they are all working studios which gets you close to the action and a chance to see where some of your favorite films and television shows were created.

I'm biased but I will start with Warner Bros. because not only do I think it is the best studio tour offered, but it is also rated #1 by Trip Adviser and the Hollywood chamber of tourism, among others. They offer a standard 2 hour tour and a longer, 5 hour VIP tour. Paramount studios and Sony studios both offer guided tours as well and they are each around 2 hours long. Between Warner Bros, Paramount and Sony they each are around $75 for the regular tour and $250 for the extended VIP tours. Universal's back-lot tour is more of an attraction in their theme park, rather than a real up close studio tour, however they do offer a VIP tour and I believe that is also a few hundred dollars. In my opinion the regular tour is a great value and will suffice most people's film and television hunger.

The music scene in SoCal is another huge thing. Tons of major bands have come from SoCal and if they weren't born here, they definitely come through here on their tours. The biggest venues are the Staples Center, The Honda Center, Hollywood Bowl, The Forum and the Greek theater, but there are tons of smaller, more intimate venues and many of them just as famous, such as: The Troubadour, The Viper Room, The Whiskey, The Rainbow Room, The Fonda and many others. The list goes on and on, and each venue has it's own personality and almost all of them are difficult to find parking; but well worth it to see bands.

If you're in need of some laughs, there are plenty of great comedy clubs here as well. My favorite is the Laugh Factory because they seem to get some pretty big names through there for reasonable prices and there is a small parking lot there and street parking available just up the street from the club. The venue itself is also small enough that you feel close to the acts but large enough that if you arrive a bit late, you may still be able to get inside. Other great places to see good comedy is at The Comedy Store, owned by Pauly Shore, The Improv, which has locations in Hollywood, Brea, Irvine and others. On that note, the Laugh Factory also has a location in Long Beach. The Ice House in Pasadena and Flappers in Burbank. All of these places are great to see stand-up comedy. If you have never been to a show, it is pretty standard that there will be a two-drink minimum in addition to the price you paid for your ticket.

Shopping is another thing in abundance in SoCal. From Rodeo Drive to the many outlet malls, if you're looking to spend an entire day shopping, you can easily do that here. You can find very high-end designer items, custom jewelry and clothing, rare items, hand-crafted and everything in-between. Now I realize you can find these things in most populated areas of the country, but I feel in SoCal, everything is close together and because so much of it originates here, I feel we get things first. Maybe that's just my perception? But if shopping is what you're looking for, it's here for as much as your wallet can handle.

Other fun attractions here are, Medieval Times, the Pirate's dinner and show, the Grammy Museum, Paley Center for media and television, National History Museum, La Brea Tar Pits, Los Angeles Museum of Art, The Peterson Automobile Museum, The Museum of Death, Hollywood Blvd., The Skirball Center, The Getty Center, Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Richard Nixon Presidential Library, the Hollywood Sign, the Griffith Park Observatory, Jet Propulsion Labs in Pasadena, Gibson Guitar factory in Riverside, Siracha hot sauce factory tour, The Magic Castle and so much more! I've tried to just list places that we've been to before, some of them we have not, but the point is that there is huge list of places to visit and it covers such a wide range of things to do.

Events come here such as San Diego Comic-Con, Wonder-Con, D23, and Coachella Music Festival. Then there's the sporting events. We're home to The Dodgers, The Angels, Padres, Rams, Chargers, Kings, Ducks, Lakers and Clippers. We host PGA events, racing events, the summer Olympic Games are coming here in 2028.

I want to end with some things to do that are often overlooked or unknown to people. The beaches are an obvious location, but my suggestion is to visit the lesser known beaches for beautiful views and to avoid the large crowds. My favorite beach is Sunset Beach, located just south of Seal Beach, our other favorite is Zuma Beach in Malibu and there are many others. Now having said that, there's nothing wrong with Santa Monica, Huntington, Long Beach, Venice etc. The only down side is that they're all crowded and parking is a scarce commodity as it is. During the winter there are great spots to go skiing or snowboarding, camping in the summer. There are several State Parks including Joshua Tree and Malibu. Famous landmarks from historical events are tons and tons of filming locations. Speaking of filming, there are many celebrity book signings and other meet and greets if that's your thing.

You will obviously be eating if you're visiting here and lucky for you, there is a ton of great places to eat! There are great places to eat all over SoCal and in all types of food. From mom and pop places to local chains, there is something for everyone and maybe even more than the shopping, the eating will put a dent in your wallet. But not because it's necessarily expensive, but there's just so much you'll want to try that you'll break the bank. I recommend, Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles, they have several locations and all are great. I would argue that almost any Mexican restaurant here is amazing! Hit up Grand Central Market for a variety of food options all in one convenient spot. Of course Pink's hotdogs are a treat. We love Fat Sal's, a local sandwich chain, along with Norm's coffee shops, another local restaurant chain in SoCal. If you're in the mood for something fancy, head to downtown Los Angeles or Beverly Hills for some uber decadent treats and meals, from foam food to celebrity owned restaurants and celebrity chefs such as Gordon Ramsay, Emeril, and Ludo. Really the list for food can go on and on....perhaps I will write a more in depth and restaurant-specific blog in the future.

There is so much to do here, which is great but can also be over-whelming. It can definitely get expensive to attend these things but some of them are cheap or free. I like having the option and variety of things to do. If money was no option, I believe you could easily attend a different event each and every day of the year here in SoCal. I have now lived in SoCal for over 10 years and each year seems to show me something new to see and do.

I know this was more of a list of things to do here, maybe in the future we'll do a more in depth review on each one. Just a side note, when you're visiting, use your GPS to get an idea of how long it will take you to get around but you can also just double the distance. So if it's 30 miles away, it will most likely take 60 minutes (at best) to get there. This isn't always true, but it seems to work as a general rule most of the time.

Thanks for taking the time to join us and check out our website. Enjoy the rest of your day!