Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
30
good links to Las Vegas and other south-
western cities. Long Beach M unicipal
Airport (LGB; 4100 Donald Douglas Dr.,
Long Beach; & 562/570-2600; www.lgb.
org), south of L AX, is the best place to
land if y ou're visiting Long B each or
northern O range County and want to
avoid L.A. John Wayne Airport (SNA;
19051 Airport Way N., Anaheim; & 949/
252-5200; www .ocair.com) is closest to
Disneyland, Knott's Berry Farm, and other
Orange County attractions. Ontario
International Airpor t (ONT ; Terminal
Way, O ntario; & 909/937-2700; www .
lawa.org/ont) is not a popular airpor t for
tourists; businesspeople use it to head to
San B ernardino, Riv erside, and other
and L.A. 's Westside, take I-405 south
(Hello traffic!); to get to H ollywood, take
California 170 south to U.S. 101 south
(this r oute is called the H ollywood Fwy.
the entire way); I-5 will take you along the
eastern edge of D
owntown and into
Orange County.
If you're taking the scenic coastal route
from the north, take U.S. 101 to I-405 or
I-5, or stay on U.S. 101, follo wing the
preceding instr uctions to y our destina-
tion.
If y ou're appr oaching from the east,
you'll be coming in on I-10. F or Orange
County, take California 57 south. I-10
continues through Downtown and termi-
nates at the beach. If you're heading to the
Westside, take I-405 nor th. To get to the
beaches, take California 1 (PCH) north or
south, depending on your destination.
From the south, head nor th on I-5 at
the southern end of Orange County. I-405
splits off to the w est; take this r oad to the
Westside and beach communities. Stay on
I-5 to reach Downtown and Hollywood.
Here ar e some driving times if y ou're
on one of those see-the-USA car trips:
From Phoenix, it's about 350 miles, or 6
hours (okay, 7 if you drive the speed limit)
to Los Angeles via I-10. Las Vegas is 265
miles nor theast of Los Angeles (about a
4- or 5-hr . driv e). S an F rancisco is 390
miles nor th of Los Angeles on I-5 (6-7
hr.), and S an D iego is 115 miles south
(about 2 hr.).
If you're visiting fr om abroad and plan
to r ent a car in the U nited S tates, y ou
probably won 't need the ser vices of an
additional automobile organization. If you
plan to buy or borr ow a car , automobile-
association membership is r ecommended.
AAA, the American Automobile Associa-
tion ( & 800/222-4357; www.aaa.com),
is the countr y's largest motor club and
supplies its members with maps, insur-
ance, and, most impor tantly, emergency
road service. Note: Foreign driver's licenses
are usually recognized in the U.S., but you
inland communities. H owever, it's conve-
nient if y ou're heading to P alm S prings,
and also a viable choice if you're staying in
Pasadena.
To find out which airlines trav el to Los
Angeles, please see “ Airline, Hotel & Car
Rental Websites,” p. 322.
3
By Car
Los Angeles is well connected to the rest of
the U nited S tates b y sev eral major high-
ways—in fact, L.A. has the highest rate of
bank robberies in the U.S. because it 's so
easy to make a fast getaway . Among them
are I nterstate 5, which enters the state
from the north; Interstate 10, which origi-
nates in J acksonville, F lorida, and termi-
nates in Los Angeles; and U.S. 101, a
scenic route that follo ws the w estern sea-
board fr om Los Angeles nor
th to the
Oregon state line.
If y ou're driving from the nor th, y ou
have two choices: the quick r oute, along
I-5 through the middle of the state; or the
scenic r oute along the coast. H eading
south along I-5, y ou'll pass a small to wn
called Grapevine. This marks the star t of
the mountain pass with the same name.
Once you've reached the southern end of
the pass, y ou'll be in the S an F ernando
Valley, which is the star t of Los Angeles
County. To reach the beach communities
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