I´m going to LA with a buddy. Where to stay? (Pasadena: apartment, rental)

[Dave009]

Yeah so we are two buddies in our 30´s and we want to rent an AIR BNB apartment.

Where to stay? Which neighborhoud.
We like to be close to the beach, but also near down town/ nightlife area.

[ryanms3030]

Nightlife is all over LA not just downtown How long are you staying, what is on your agenda? Are you renting a car? These would all determine where you should stay

[LamarOdomsDealer]

Santa Monica

[Stevedore]

Manhattan Beach south of Rosecrans Ave.
The best beach, hot chicks, good food and bars and not too far from the upper westside.

[Statz2k10]

I've stayed in West Hollywood area two times now. It's near metro station. Night Life. Interstates.

It's got faults too. Homeless, tourists, trashy areas.

But you can probably find some good deals on that site (I've used it 5 times now).

I've also stayed in Silver Lake which was beautiful but it's not walking distance to a metro. It's near some night life but not like other areas in LA.

I'd suggest you use the filters in airbnb and find about 10 that you like then come back and ask people about the areas.

[saybanana]

Downtown LA is 15+ miles from the nearest beach, Santa Monica/Venice. Santa Monica and Venice have their own nightlife. Santa Monica city has stricter restrictions on AirBNB.

Other major nightlife areas are Koreatown, West Hollywood (Sunset Strip or Boystown), Hollywood and Downtown LA, Old Town Pasadena which have dozens of bars of different types and many restaurants to choose from in a more concentrated area, . Of course there are lots of smaller places that are places with a few bars and restaurants like in Los Feliz, Silver Lake, culver City, Highland Park, Melrose, NoHo, and others.

It depends on what else you want to see. If a lot of stuff you want to do are touristy and in Hollywood like walk of fame/Universal/movie studios, TV taking, celebrity stuff, then staying in Central part like West Hollywood/Hollywood would be better. If you want to see sports games, museums and ethnic and cultural stuff Downtown is better.

[Spikett]

Santa Monica Air B&B rental are illegal unless you are renting a room in a house where the owners will be present. Booking one is a good way to lose your money. I believe other cities within LA County also have restrictions. Owners will not tell you this - many illegal properties are still listed.

[Statz2k10]

FYI..if you plan on going to Dodger Games and do not have a car. You can take the metro to one of the main stations then take the Dodgers Express bus before & after game.

[Statz2k10]

Originally Posted by Spikett

Santa Monica Air B&B rental are illegal unless you are renting a room in a house where the owners will be present. Booking one is a good way to lose your money. I believe other cities within LA County also have restrictions. Owners will not tell you this - many illegal properties are still listed.

I know they are beginning to add fees. I booked my last booking at the right time because there was a note in the apartment that said something like "please include 10 dollars per day for city tax" "Unless you booked before X date".