Southern California

Status
Not open for further replies.

Gold60

Member
Joined
Dec 7, 2014
Posts
373
Hi All,

Either next year or in 2021 i am thinking of spending a week in Southern California for a week to 10 days. i will simply hire a car, and drive around the area, with no particular sightseeing ideas in mind, unless something pops up.

Can anyone suggest, based on past experience where might a central-ish place to stay ? All the places i have looked at - like San Diego, San Clements, etc look pretty expensive - not surprising afterall, considering where it is.

any ideas please ?

TIA
 
I think Carlsbad is a good choice.100 miles south of LAX on I-5,36 miles north of San Diego.Home to legoland and a good premium outlets so busy in summer.We have stayed in May and october with no problems.
If price is important then suggest one of the residence type hotels with kitchen/kitchenette and usually a coin laundry.
just checked and out of season Extended Stay,carlsbad is ~$A1000 out of season for a week.HGI about twice that.Really good rates if a senior or AAA.
 
thank you good sir !!!!

I think Carlsbad is a good choice.100 miles south of LAX on I-5,36 miles north of San Diego.Home to legoland and a good premium outlets so busy in summer.We have stayed in May and october with no problems.
If price is important then suggest one of the residence type hotels with kitchen/kitchenette and usually a coin laundry.
just checked and out of season Extended Stay,carlsbad is ~$A1000 out of season for a week.HGI about twice that.Really good rates if a senior or AAA.
 
We still use the car trawler site Arguscarhire for renting our cars. Last car I had was a Kia and it was quite ok for the freeway runs. Take the insurance!
What budget do you have for accommodation? We have used Ayres for our staff and they have been happy with the quality.
Days Inn would be lower as would EconoLodge properties. I was always happy with La Quinta and Embassy Suites but they were a bit more expensive.
 
i was hoping, unrealistically (?), for maybe $150-200 per day ?

We still use the car trawler site Arguscarhire for renting our cars. Last car I had was a Kia and it was quite ok for the freeway runs. Take the insurance!
What budget do you have for accommodation? We have used Ayres for our staff and they have been happy with the quality.
Days Inn would be lower as would EconoLodge properties. I was always happy with La Quinta and Embassy Suites but they were a bit more expensive.
 
Look at Motel 6 as well. You have to allow for taxes and exchange rates which may be lousy.
Citi debit card works well in California to get you fair exchange rates.
It can be done.
Avoid East LA and parts of Hollywood to stay safe.
 
TA.

i am trying to avoid staying in LAX, and flying in and out also. Plan is roughly to fly BNE to HNL - o/night in HNL.

then fly to SAN, collect hire car that night or next day and maybe stay in SAN, and then move into my abode the next day.

Look at Motel 6 as well. You have to allow for taxes and exchange rates which may be lousy.
Citi debit card works well in California to get you fair exchange rates.
It can be done.
Avoid East LA and parts of Hollywood to stay safe.
 
You must consider whether there is a hire car drop charge which can be hexxy if you don’t return the car to the place you hired it.
We really enjoy driving the coast road between Los Angeles and San Francisco. Monterey is a great place to stop. San Diego is a lot of fun so that is a good pick.Parking can get expensive.
We tend to use the toll road to bypass a lot of traffic snarl when heading south from about Costa Mesa to get past Seizure World and Mission Viejo. Seizure World is really Leisure World In El Toro as you head south towards Carlsbad/SanDiego.
We actually enjoy Los Angeles and we have lived in Irvine, Laguna Beach and Marina del Rey and enjoyed all of these places.
Hotels tend to be reasonably expensive around San Diego but I feel sure there can be a good deal somewhere.
 
Last edited:
TA.

i am trying to avoid staying in LAX, and flying in and out also. Plan is roughly to fly BNE to HNL - o/night in HNL.

then fly to SAN, collect hire car that night or next day and maybe stay in SAN, and then move into my abode the next day.

Out of interest, any reason why you're trying so hard to avoid LAX?
 
Just the perceived congestion is guess. And also i have no real resaon to go there ? I heard it is easier to clear immigration, etc in HNL and then fly to where you are going to the USA. I plan on flying with Hawaiian so that i can get their Comfort Plus seats - the old Biz -Lite as such. I also plan to mainly holiday south of LA.

Out of interest, any reason why you're trying so hard to avoid LAX?
 
Just the perceived congestion is guess. And also i have no real resaon to go there ? I heard it is easier to clear immigration, etc in HNL and then fly to where you are going to the USA. I plan on flying with Hawaiian so that i can get their Comfort Plus seats - the old Biz -Lite as such. I also plan to mainly holiday south of LA.

Fair enough.

LAX imho wins the most improved award, I can usually be through there in about 30 minutes. So it's no longer one to be avoided, and I certainly wouldn't choose to stay at an airport hotel somewhere just to avoid it.

But if you're plans get you better than Y, then that's understandable.
 
Thanks for your advice - and to everyone else so far.

Fair enough.

LAX imho wins the most improved award, I can usually be through there in about 30 minutes. So it's no longer one to be avoided, and I certainly wouldn't choose to stay at an airport hotel somewhere just to avoid it.

But if you're plans get you better than Y, then that's understandable.
 
If you are driving and you are by yourself then it is better to avoid LAX.If 2 of you the equation changes as you can use the HOV lanes mostly and bypass the parking lots.
 
We make this trip quite often, as I grew up in California (San Diego and college in Long Beach).

We always book using rentalcars.com - We usually are planing well enough in advance that we book about 10-11 months out, and then have the ability to monitor the pricing. Most of the time we are paying less than half what the car companies are charging. All of the insurances are included, except maybe personal injury (for yourself, which your travel insurance would cover). At the counter, they even say "you are fully covered so no need to pay for insurance" as opposed to the usual up-sell. We did a one way rental, and had no return fee from San Diego, a lot of the companies need to get cars BACK to LAX. The worst we've paid is $100.

As for where to stay, is there any reason you don't want to just go from A to B to C and stay along the way, as opposed to going back to base each time. California rush hour is practically all day... Despite having to pack up each morning, it might be more relaxing than driving back for 1-2 hours after a day of sightseeing.

If staying in San Diego, I always try to stay somewhere within walking distance of the Old Town Trolly . It is a great way to get around to the touristy areas, and not have to drive, park, etc. Usually we are meeting up with friends at places along the route anyway.

If you go out to Mission Valley, you might find lower hotel rates than downtown San Diego.

Going north, if you like wine, consider Temecula, they have some lovely wineries around, and you can find some decent hotels (My parents are grey nomads based out of an RV resort about 20 minutes from Temecula, so we stay there when we visit).

If you want to avoid LAX, but still be in the general area, Marina Del Rey is a nice area and close to LAX. We usually stay in West Hollywood of Beverly Hills though, as we usually only go to LA for dining or shopping.

Another consideration is fly to Seattle from HNL and drive down the coast. 10 days is a bit quick, but you could see some great spots like Sequoia National Park, Portland, Napa, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, San Diego.
https://www.trolleytours.com/san-diego
 
My 0.1 cent contribution:


LAX is not the only airport in Los Angeles area
Consider SNA and the smaller ONT, PSP.
Obviously price, frequency and timings come into play
 
Fear not QS - ALL contributions are welcome.

i have been thinking of doing some kind of SOCAL circuit - the A to B to C thing, and not just basing myself in one stop are branching out from there. it seems to make a lot of sense - as I'll be on my own and with minimal luggage - so regularly moving is not that much of an issue.


We make this trip quite often, as I grew up in California (San Diego and college in Long Beach).

We always book using rentalcars.com - We usually are planing well enough in advance that we book about 10-11 months out, and then have the ability to monitor the pricing. Most of the time we are paying less than half what the car companies are charging. All of the insurances are included, except maybe personal injury (for yourself, which your travel insurance would cover). At the counter, they even say "you are fully covered so no need to pay for insurance" as opposed to the usual up-sell. We did a one way rental, and had no return fee from San Diego, a lot of the companies need to get cars BACK to LAX. The worst we've paid is $100.

As for where to stay, is there any reason you don't want to just go from A to B to C and stay along the way, as opposed to going back to base each time. California rush hour is practically all day... Despite having to pack up each morning, it might be more relaxing than driving back for 1-2 hours after a day of sightseeing.

If staying in San Diego, I always try to stay somewhere within walking distance of the Old Town Trolly . It is a great way to get around to the touristy areas, and not have to drive, park, etc. Usually we are meeting up with friends at places along the route anyway.

If you go out to Mission Valley, you might find lower hotel rates than downtown San Diego.

Going north, if you like wine, consider Temecula, they have some lovely wineries around, and you can find some decent hotels (My parents are grey nomads based out of an RV resort about 20 minutes from Temecula, so we stay there when we visit).

If you want to avoid LAX, but still be in the general area, Marina Del Rey is a nice area and close to LAX. We usually stay in West Hollywood of Beverly Hills though, as we usually only go to LA for dining or shopping.

Another consideration is fly to Seattle from HNL and drive down the coast. 10 days is a bit quick, but you could see some great spots like Sequoia National Park, Portland, Napa, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, San Diego.
San Diego Tours by Old Town Trolley | San Diego Sightseeing Trolley
 
SoCal and LA are places where you will spend a lot of time sitting in your car if you don't have a plan. What are your interests? What places are you most interested?

For me, I'd just arrive into your chosen airport on Day 1, which would be an airport close to your first place of interest. Spend a day or so just soaking up the US of A way of life and local attractions within Lyft distances. Then pickup the car and head off with a plan. (The shorter the holiday, the more you need a plan.)

I most recently stayed Downtown LA and had a good supply of galleries, shows, restaurants etc within walking distance.

I even spent half a day at The Proud Bird Food Bazaar & Events Center just off the threshold of LAX.

Enjoy
 
i guess my main (or should that be only ?? LOL) interest is things military, including military history, generally post WW II and to a slightly lesser extent WW I.

i have for example been to the Boeing Tour in Seattle and the USS Hornet in San Fran on the US West Coast.

i must admit the thing that does interest me is the thing that most people avoid like the plague, driving around on a loosely structured, or non-existent schedule, and just look at the countryside - maybe stopping here or there for a cleansing ale.


SoCal and LA are places where you will spend a lot of time sitting in your car if you don't have a plan. What are your interests? What places are you most interested?

For me, I'd just arrive into your chosen airport on Day 1, which would be an airport close to your first place of interest. Spend a day or so just soaking up the US of A way of life and local attractions within Lyft distances. Then pickup the car and head off with a plan. (The shorter the holiday, the more you need a plan.)

I most recently stayed Downtown LA and had a good supply of galleries, shows, restaurants etc within walking distance.

I even spent half a day at The Proud Bird Food Bazaar & Events Center just off the threshold of LAX.

Enjoy
 
Well here is San diego's list.

Camp Pendleton is just north of Carlsbad and site of the Marines largest West Coast Base/You now need to get permission in advance.details here-

In LA.

And a list of air museums around LA.The one at Camarillo north of LA is good if into WW11

Yes I am into Military history.Been to more Civil War battlefields than most Americans.
 
I don't even know where to start with this one. I've done so many trips all over California from San Diego to San Francisco and out to the Sierra Nevada and beyond.
It's really all going to be down to what you want from your trip. There are so many amazing places to see and stay that you are totally spoiled for choice but you can easily waste your whole time missing them all and spending time in places to avoid.
I always base myself in Long Beach and go from there. It's a really great place that's just out of LA enough to be comfortable. Not a long drive to San Diego and you get get cheap budget hotels etc if you want as they are everywhere. Apart from the beaches though anywhere south of LA tends to be the less attractive parts in my opinion. If you head to the mountains or Yosemite, Seqouia, Mammoth Lakes etc then it's amazing scenery.
The best part of San diego is the Gas lamp district for bars and restaurants and it's a great city.
 
The Frequent Flyer Concierge team takes the hard work out of finding reward seat availability. Using their expert knowledge and specialised tools, they'll help you book a great trip that maximises the value for your points.

AFF Supporters can remove this and all advertisements

Status
Not open for further replies.

Enhance your AFF viewing experience!!

From just $6 we'll remove all advertisements so that you can enjoy a cleaner and uninterupted viewing experience.

And you'll be supporting us so that we can continue to provide this valuable resource :)


Sample AFF with no advertisements? More..
Back
Top