Overview
A city spread over an incredibly vast area. The tourist spots are a bit rough, but the residential neighborhoods are actually quite nice. Distances are deceptive, what looks like a 15-minute drive on the map takes at least an hour.
What to See
Hollywood is in seriously bad shape. How it became this overrun with homeless people and junkies is beyond me. This is supposedly the most popular area of America's biggest city. The Walk of Fame leading up to the Oscars venue has basically become a walk of homeless. Terrible. That said, Hollywood Forever Cemetery is great, if you have time, swing by.
Beverly Hills, on the other hand, is absolutely stunning. You can't help but be amazed in the opposite direction. The Golden Triangle itself is nothing special shopping-wise, but the homes are incredible. Park the car somewhere and just wander through random streets, it's a real pleasure. You truly see what money can do at its absolute maximum here.
The Warner Bros. studio tour was both amazing and a total disappointment at the same time. Amazing because the sheer scale of the place and the production is genuinely impressive, and you get to see what the working environment looks like. Disappointing because seeing that almost every movie's "New York" is the exact same set just destroys all the magic of cinema. We know most of them are studio films, but seeing it in person hits differently.
Griffith Observatory was closed the day we went. We figured we'd go in the evening for the sunset anyway, but couldn't even find parking. It might be the most crowded spot in all of LA.
Tips & Advice
We couldn't enjoy Santa Monica at all because when we went, an incredible fog had blanketed the entire area. While Hollywood was 30 degrees, the temperature suddenly dropped below 20. Even on the hottest day, bring a light hoodie when heading to the coast.