Along with many east coast natives, it’d always been my dream to visit Sunny California, and for my 21st birthday, I was finally able to. Being that this was a group trip with a coworker, a full time college student, and a single mom, time was not on our side. In the middle of February, we couldn’t exactly take a week off from our daily routines, so we improvised and settled for a 3 day trip and let me tell you, we really didn’t have to compromise on much at all, and actually found some really amazing deals. Below I’ll discuss my itinerary, how I did it all on a budget, and link some of the places we ate at!
day one- we flew into LAX, and settled into our hotel in Santa Monica. We unpacked, ate dinner and rested up.
day two- we were total tourists in Hollywood and admired the “Walk of Fame” and even took a two hour long tour bus which showed us some celebrity homes and a beautiful overlook of Los Angeles. We had dinner that night at Sur Lounge in Hollywood.
day three- ahhh, San Diego. The drive from our hotel to La Jolla Cove was about 2 hours, and it was worth every second of it. The cove is breathtaking, especially at sunset. We spent the daytime at San Diego Zoo and with all its’ exotic and unique wildlife, it was a really great time! We enjoyed dinner in Santa Monica, and had an early-ish night.
day four- our very bittersweet last day. We spent day four walking the Santa Monica Pier, doing some souvenir shopping, admiring the beaches and watching the sunset before our flight back home.
Accomplishing a trip across the country in just a few days can seem intimidating, but surely it’s doable. We saved money by booking our flights through CheapoAir.com (about $310 round trip from Newark Airport in NJ to LAX in California), and we stayed at the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel near the Santa Monica High School. We also traveled with a group of 5, which helped to split the cost of the rental car, gas, hotel, and groceries while we were there. And being that the time difference between NJ and CA is 3 hours behind, that gave us some extra hours to spend on vacay.
So if you’re thinking of taking a trip across the country but can’t be gone for longer than a couple days, just know that with some planning and researching, it’s surely doable! And if you do find yourself in LA County, CA, be sure to check out some of the places below!
Ultimate Hollywood Tours, located at 6660 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028
http://www.stoutburgersandbeers.com/
https://sandiegozoowildlifealliance.org/
Adventure Tips and Sips 