EARTH-FRIENDLY BUYS

BEVERLY HILLS

Hollywood

GET THERE: Take the Starline* Hop-On Hop-Off Tour of Hollywood and Beverly Hills (starlinetours.com).

Hollywood is all about stars, from those embedded on the Walk of Fame to the red-carpet-ready luminaries making their entrance to the Academy Awards®. It all revolves around Hollywood Boulevard. Located at the intersection for which it is named, Hollywood & Highland is a buzzing entertainment and shopping hub. Immediately recognizable is its elegant staircase leading to the Dolby Theatre®, where the Oscars® are held each year. Next door is the TCL Chinese Theatres complex. Famous for the celebrity hand and foot imprints at its entrance, the theater has been a Hollywood fixture since 1927. (Get a free ticket in advance at getty. edu.) Next, visit the historic Adamson House & Malibu Lagoon Museum (adamsonhouse.org) to examine a 1929 Spanish Revival–style waterfront estate built on a site once inhabited by the Native American Chumash tribe.

Malibu

GET THERE: Ride the Big Blue Bus (bigbluebus.com).

About four miles north on the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) is the turnoff to the Getty Villa (getty.edu), the J. Paul Getty Museum’s sister location, where a replica of the Villa dei Papiri, a Roman country house buried in the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 A.D., houses more than 44,000 Etruscan, Greek and Roman antiquities from 6,000 B.C. to 600 A.D. Set in a canyon with a view of the Pacific, the tranquil villa grounds include four authentic gardens with fountains, arbors and reflecting pools. A renovation completed in spring 2018 restored the villa, expanded and redesigned galleries, and reorganized antiquities chronologically for a more global perspective of the ancient world.

Marina del Rey

GET THERE: Bike along the scenic beach bike path.

Head south of Santa Monica to see North America’s largest man-made marina, Marina del Rey, and participate in water activities from workouts to romantic cruises. The UCLA Marina Aquatic Center (recreation.ucla.edu) is a one-stop shop for kayaking, stand-up paddleboarding (SUP), surfing, sailing,

EXCURSIONS

DISNEY CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE PARK

rowing and more; rentals and classes are available. For a novel workout challenge, try YOGAqua’s (yogaqua. com) 90-minute classes that combine SUP and yoga, giving new meaning to the word “balance.” Post-workout, savor a cocktail or dinner aboard a Hornblower Cruise (hornblower.com).

Venice

GET THERE: Bike along the scenic beach bike path or take the Santa Monica Circuit shuttle (ridecircuit.com).

This bohemian California neighborhood to the south of Santa Monica is famous for its boardwalk, which comes alive daily with a colorful array of fortune tellers, beach volleyball players, tattoo artists and street performers. Keep an eye out for the historic murals. Travel inland to Abbot Kinney Boulevard to visit art galleries, boutiques and upscale restaurants.

West Hollywood

GET THERE: Take the Metro Rapid Bus (metro.net).

Make your way east (on historic Route 66—aka Santa Monica Boulevard) through West Los Angeles and Beverly Hills until you arrive in West Hollywood. The home of the famous Sunset Strip offers revelry at exclusive clubs and concerts at the legendary Troubadour (troubadour.com) and The Roxy Theatre (theroxy.com). Shop in the stylish Design District, anchored by the 1.6 millionsquare-foot Pacific Design Center (pacificdesigncenter.com). Explore Santa Monica Boulevard restaurants and nightlife with a stop at The Abbey (theabbeyweho.com), one of the most popular gay bars in the United States. ✺

WHERE MAGIC RESIDES

SANTA MONICA HAS ITS OWN WORLD-FAMOUS HUB OF AMUSEMENT RIGHT on the Pier: Pacific Park, home of the Pacific Wheel Ferris wheel, the West Coaster ride, midway attractions and more. But it’s also a great location from which to see outlying Los Angeles–area theme parks. Consult with your hotel staff to arrange for a visit to these local wonderlands.

Ever since a certain mouse set up house in Anaheim back in 1955, fans have flocked to DISNEYLAND . Today, the Magic Kingdom complex encompasses the original park as well as Disney California Adventure Park.

The magic continues at UNIVERSAL STUDIOS HOLLYWOOD TM , where today’s blockbuster films are still made on the studio back lot. Topping the lists of recently added rides and attractions are Jurassic World: The Ride® and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

At SIX FLAGS MAGIC MOUNTAIN , more than a dozen roller coasters carry on the magical theme as they speed along in seeming defiance of physics. Among the thrill rides at the ready is X2, a 5-D roller coaster that spins the cars carrying riders independently on their own axis in a 360-degree arc as they careen around the track.

On the site where the eponymous preserves originated, KNOTT’S BERRY FARM puts a magical spin on the history of the American Northwest with attractions like its Wild West Stunt Show and Native American–inspired, special effects–enhanced Mystery Lodge experience. The latest of its 13 roller coasters is The Hang Time, featuring a 150-foot-high midair suspension, five inversions and a 96-degree beyond-vertical drop.