Santa Monica vs. the Valley

While I can tell you that Santa Monica has its down side, you’re still, in good tourist fashion likely to go there. (The good news is that it has more to offer now than it has in years past.) But allow me, dear reader, to educate you on the benefits of “other side of the Hill” that is, The Valley.

The City of Los Angeles is, this winter, at its cliché best for sunny weather in January. While the East Coast is buried under record-setting depths of snow, we are enjoying unusually warm days without the extreme heat and crowds of the summer tourist season. The San Fernando Valley, or just “the Valley” to locals, is more than just a “bedroom community” adjacent to the City of Los Angeles, it is mostly IN the City of Los Angeles. [If you are not from the United States you should know that the word "city" in this country does not necessarily mean "big commercial center." A city is within a "state" and then within a "county", and is governed under its own charter. Santa Monica is NOT in the City of Los Angeles, but Hollywood is.] The major sites in the Valley are Universal Studios/City Walk, Warner Brothers, and NBC Studios – home of the Tonight Show hosted by Jay Leno.

Although you will absolutely need a car to have any kind of travel experience in the Western United States, you can access a lot from the Valley with less driving than from other points in Los Angeles and, as a happy consequence, less hassle with parking. As of June 2000, you can now take the Metro from Universal Studios into Hollywood and all the way to Downtown. Furthermore, it is very central to major attractions. By car, it is 30 minutes to Magic Mountain, 10 minutes or less to Hollywood, 40 minutes to Disneyland, 15 minutes to Pasadena, 30 minutes to The Getty, 10 minutes to Griffith Park, and about 15 minutes to Downtown. Plus, the basic accommodations in The Valley are likely to be far less expensive than the over-exposed Santa Monica locations.

Now, before you ask me, “What about Santa Monica?” let me offer you a word about the 405 freeway. Except for a few hours around midday, the critical 12 miles of freeway between the Valley and the off ramp for Santa Monica can take an hour, in either direction to get to and then travel! Mostly because of the 405 freeway, I do not recommend staying in Santa Monica unless, of course, your plans call for activities that are mostly in that area. A fine itinerary to be sure, but too lacking in imagination perhaps for the “Boots” crowd.

By contrast, driving times from Santa Monica to the same destinations I mentioned above are on average: 45 minutes to Magic Mountain, 25 minutes to Hollywood, 1 hour to Disneyland, 1 hour to Pasadena, 15 minutes to the Getty, 40 minutes to Griffith Park, and 30 minutes to Downtown. It is worth a mention that in the hotter months (July-September), Santa Monica will be bearable weather-wise, but the San Fernando Valley will seem not unlike an actual furnace, unless you are from a similar climate. Rest assured, however, that there does not exist a business, car, or restaurant in the Valley that isn’t air-conditioned.

As a final note, there is a set of hills (mountains in the minds of some) that divide the City from the Valley. Along the crest of these, starting in Hollywood, runs a fairly well-known winding oasis for motorists called Mulholland Drive. It runs from the edge of Hollywood all the way to the beach. Enjoy the drive and let others pass you when the road widens out.

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