Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
320
(PST), it's 7am in Honolulu (HST),10am
in D enver (MST ), 11am in Chicago
(CST), noon in N ew York City (EST ),
5pm in London (GMT ), and 2am the
next day in Sydney.
Daylight saving time
is in effect fr om
1am on the second S unday in M arch to
1am on the first S unday in N ovember,
except in Arizona, Hawaii, the U.S. Virgin
Islands, and P uerto Rico. Daylight saving
time mo ves the clock 1 hour ahead of
standard time.
TIPPING
In hotels, tip
bellhops
at least
$1 per bag ($2-$3 if you have a lot of lug-
gage) and tip the
chamber staff
$1 to $2
per day (more if you've left a disaster ar ea
for him or her to clean up). Tip the
door-
man
or
concierge
only if he or she has
provided y ou with some specific ser vice
(for example, calling a cab for y ou or
obtaining difficult-to-get theater tickets).
Tip the
valet-parking attendant
$1 every
time you get your car.
In restaurants, bars, and nightclubs, tip
service staff
and
bartenders
15% to 20%
of the check, tip
checkroom attendants
$1 per garment, and tip
click on “ Visas.” Or go to one of the fol-
lowing websites:
Australian
citiz ens can obtain up-to-
date visa information fr om the
U.S.
Embassy C anberra,
Moonah P lace, Yar-
ralumla, A CT 2600 (
&
02/6214-5600
)
or b y checking the U.S. D iplomatic
Mission's w ebsite at
http://canberra.us
embassy.gov
.
British
subjects can obtain up-to-date
visa information by calling the
U.S. Embassy
Visa Information Line
(
&
0891/200-290
)
or by visiting the “ Visas to the U.S.” section
of the American E mbassy London's website
at
www.usembassy.org.uk
.
Irish
citizens can obtain up-to-date visa
information through the
Embassy of the
USA D ublin,
42 E lgin Rd., D ublin 4,
Ireland (
&
353/1-668-8777;
or by check-
ing the “ Visas to the U.S. ” section of the
website at
http://dublin.usembassy.gov
.
Citizens of
New Z ealand
can obtain
up-to-date visa information b y contacting
the
U.S. Embassy New Zealand,
29 F it-
zherbert T errace, Thorndon, Wellington
(
&
644/472-2068
), or get the informa-
tion dir ectly fr om the w ebsite at
http://
wellington.usembassy.gov
.
VISITOR INFORMA TION
The
Los
Angeles Convention and Visitors Bureau
(or
L A INC.;
&
800/228-2452
or
213/624-7300; www .discoverlosangeles.
com) is the city's main source for informa-
tion. In addition to maintaining an infor-
mative w ebsite, answ ering telephone
inquiries, and sending free visitors kits, the
bureau provides two
walk-in visitor cen-
ters:
Downtown at 685 S. F igueroa St. at
West 7th Street (Mon-Fri 9am-5pm), and
in Hollywood at the H ollywood & High-
land Center , 6801 H ollywood B lvd. at
Highland Avenue (daily 10am-11pm).
Many Los Angeles-ar ea communities
also hav e their o wn information centers
and often maintain detailed and color ful
12
valet-parking
attendants
$1 per vehicle.
As for other ser vice personnel, tip
cab
drivers
15% of the far e; tip
skycaps
at
airports at least $1 per bag ($2-$3 if y ou
have a lot of luggage); and tip
hairdressers
and
barbers
15% to 20%.
TOILETS
You won't find public toilets
or “restrooms” on the streets in most U.S.
cities but they can be found in hotel lob-
bies, bars, r estaurants, museums, depar t-
ment stores, railway and bus stations, and
service stations. Large hotels and fast-food
restaurants are often the best bet for clean
facilities. Restaurants and bars in resorts or
heavily visited areas may reserve their rest-
rooms for patrons.
VISAS
For information about U.S.
Visas go to
http://travel.state.gov
and
