I know right now traveling is a touchy topic and everybody has different opinions about whether we should travel or not during a pandemic. To be honest, in the past 6 months I have been on both sides. First I was all about not traveling but now I think differently. I believe we are going to be living with this pandemic for a while (1+ years) so we cannot stop our lives and we have to learn how to live with it. I am not saying to be irresponsible and not follow your country’s guidelines but if I know that I am taking all the precautions and following the rules, I do think we should start traveling. Currently, the travel industry is pretty affected and it will take YEARS to bring it back so in a way we need to help it. For me traveling is my therapy, I work a 9-5 job, and my way of disconnecting and enjoy life is by traveling. I will continue to do it and keep supporting this industry that has given me so much.
How are COVID19 restrictions in Los Angeles?
Like many places, California does not have everything opened and they are taking all the precautions to stop the spread of the virus. One thing that impressed me the most about LA and made me feel safe was that everyone is wearing a mask (and not complaining). You also see signs EVERYWHERE where it encourages you to keep wearing a mask and thanking all essential workers. I believe being visual and in your face is key for making people follow the rules and keeping everyone safe.
So what is opened or closed?
- When I visited, restaurants could only do take out or you need to be seated outside.
- If you are looking to hike, this website is a good resource https://www.laparks.org/covid-19 to see which trails are open and which are closed.
- The beaches are all open and you can sunbathe if you want.
- Venice beach boardwalk is opened including stores and restaurants.
- Santa Monica pier is opened including the restaurants except the arcade park they have.
- LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) is closed but their park and outside exhibitions are opened. For example, the famous LACMA urban lights are opened and you can take pictures there.
- Malls are closed but free standing stores are opened. For example, most stores in Rodeo Drive are open.
Overall, I do believe you could travel to LA right now and enjoy it and have the full experience.
Where I Stayed?
As always when looking where to stay, we wanted to be somewhere central. LA is huge and depending on what you want to do, places can be pretty far from each other. After we had an idea of what we wanted to do and see, we chose West Hollywood to stay since it was as most central as we could get. Since we were dividing everything by three we knew we could spend a little more a night in a good hotel and still be on budget.
We stayed at Best Western Plus Sunset Plaza Hotel and paid $145 a night which included breakfast and parking (parking is an additional $22 a night, so if you do not have a car you will save that money). Our stay felt pretty safe, the rooms were cleaned, and capacity did not feel at 100%. Our rate included breakfast which currently due to the pandemic is pretty limited and it is only pre-made and not fresh. You get fruits, bread, yogurt, granola, coffee, and juices. You cannot eat in their breakfast area since it is indoor but you can go to your room or go to their pool area and have breakfast outside. I would 100% recommend this hotel. If you are looking for a cute hotel with budget prices and close to everything, this is the place for you.
How to get around?
LA is so big that you need a car to get around. Currently, with the pandemic, we knew that we did want to get into Ubers or buses to get around so we needed a car from the day we landed on the day we left. We rented an SUV from Fox Rent a Car which gave us the best rate. We paid $42 a day (divided by three is $14 a day), this included everything except insurance since the credit card we paid with covers it. Since originally our trip was to start in LA and end in San Francisco the fare had an additional $80 for dropping in another location.
#LaMariaTravelsTip: when renting a car in LA do not get unlimited tolls pass because there are NO tolls in LA. The guy at the rental place tried to sell it to us and we thankfully said no because it was an additional $11 a day for it. Usually, people at these places try to sell you every single service they have but I recommend you say no to all of them and just stick to the essentials!
**Overall, my recommendation is to do your own research before traveling and make the decision based on your own situation/life. Be smart and take all the precautions possible and do not travel with American Airlines (they are booking FULL flights and when boarding they are not taking all precautions possible to maintain 6-feet distance). Also, remember the current situation is always changing and I am just talking about my own experience while I was in LA at the beginning of September.
***Also, if you can take a test before and after your trip, just to be safe and for your peace of mind!
