City in USA most like Los Angeles? (rent, hotels)

[elchevere]

This !

Originally Posted by qxrt

I've lived in SF, LA, south bay San Jose area, and Las Vegas, all for at least a year if not much longer, and also was born near San Diego and visited there multiple times, so I am probably more familiar with the combination of all of these cities than most. None of these cities are like LA. LA is its own unique beast. Las Vegas feels more like a small desert town outside of the strip even with its recent population growth. San Jose honestly doesn't even feel like a metropolis befitting its position as one of the biggest cities in the country. And San Diego also feels significantly sleepier and slow-paced compared to LA. SF is nothing like LA.

[Logicist027]

My guess would be Miami. Second would be SD, Houston or Phoenix. That's the closest you'll get. I do think LA is a unique beast. Of course no city in the world is quite like LA.

[RisingAurvandil]

Originally Posted by As Above So Below...

Yeah. I honestly dont get the LA/Miami comparison at all. Miami feels more like San Juan or Panama City, Panama than it does LA.

As for Houston, Im not crazy about the Houston/LA comparison either. Its too simplistic. It blows out of proportion the things they do have in common while ignoring that its only parts of LA that are similar to Houston, certainly not the whole.

For me, the Houston of today reminds me of LA (50+ years ago). I think it's because Texas of today reminds me of California (50+ years ago). They occupy a spot in the American imagination, where you can(could) easily achieve a good suburban life in a sunny clime.

- Both attract(ed) large numbers of people from the middle America. And both are gateway cities for immigrants.
- Both are(were) driven by oil industries and shipping
- Both are extremely diverse and energetic
- Both are warm weather Sunbelt cities
- Both are known for their sprawl and freeways
- Both are near the ocean and have subtropical temperatures
- Both are the largest city of the largest states, and the largest on their coasts

They have major differences though, no doubt. LA has matured into global city. Houston is still nascent. But for the average family looking for a new life, that ethos ertainly echoes from the past.

[elchevere]

Aside from the commonality of being high energy oceanfront cities with palm trees along with the glam lifestyle and all that comes with that (celebrities/athletes, luxury cars, boats, luxury real estate, plastic surgery, fashion cities/models, high end shopping) there are parts of both cities that have a similar vibe:

Santa Monica : South Beach (including 3rd St Promenade: Lincoln Road)
Century City : Brickell
Pasadena: Coral Gables
Naples (Long Beach) : Miami Beach barrier islands
Venice Beach : Hollywood, FL
Silver Lake / Echo Park / Arts District : Wynwood
Two Rodeo / Design District

Originally Posted by As Above So Below...

Yeah. I honestly dont get the LA/Miami comparison at all. Miami feels more like San Juan or Panama City, Panama than it does LA.
.

[SDAirportAPM]

Originally Posted by elchevere

Aside from the commonality of being high energy oceanfront cities with palm trees along with the glam lifestyle and all that comes with that (celebrities/athletes, luxury cars, boats, luxury real estate, plastic surgery, fashion cities/models, high end shopping) there are parts of both cities that have a similar vibe:

Santa Monica : South Beach (including 3rd St Promenade: Lincoln Road)
Century City : Brickell
Pasadena: Coral Gables
Naples (Long Beach) : Miami Beach barrier islands
Venice Beach : Hollywood, FL
Silver Lake / Echo Park / Arts District : Wynwood
Two Rodeo / Design District

I grew up in Greater LA. There's much more to LA than celebs. Outside Hollywood LA is largely blue collar. LA/Long Beach is the largest container port in the world outside of Asia.

And if you're going to base the image of LA off Hollywood we might as well base Las Vegas' image off the Strip. In that regard Vegas is much more similar to LA than Miami is. Both Vegas and LA are entertainment destinations, both heavily tourist economies. Vegas has massive amounts of Angelenos moving there. Miami attracts a lot more Northeasterners than Californians.
LA isn't as hot as Miami or Vegas, but when it gets hot it's a dry heat like Vegas. LA doesn't have hurricanes like Miami. LA has mountains, so does Vegas. Miami is pancake flat.

I actually don't think LA is fast paced compared to say, NYC or San Francisco. Movie stars with a lot of time on their hands to play and party is not the same as Silicon Valley or Wall Street power brokers working hard.

[elchevere]

Whoever said celebrities represent 100% or the larger portion of the LA population?….Miami has a large blue collar population as well. Miami also has a port, a much smaller scale (cargo) though Miami is also the cruise capital of the world. Can add these similarities even if it’s not an exact carbon copy—which no other city is, including Vegas which might have mountains and dry heat but not an ocean.

Originally Posted by SDAirportAPM

I grew up in Greater LA. There's much more to LA than celebs. Outside Hollywood LA is largely blue collar. LA/Long Beach is the largest container port in the world outside of Asia.

And if you're going to base the image of LA off Hollywood we might as well base Las Vegas' image off the Strip. In that regard Vegas is much more similar to LA than Miami is. Both Vegas and LA are entertainment destinations, both heavily tourist economies. Vegas has massive amounts of Angelenos moving there. Miami attracts a lot more Northeasterners than Californians.
LA isn't as hot as Miami or Vegas, but when it gets hot it's a dry heat like Vegas. LA doesn't have hurricanes like Miami. LA has mountains, so does Vegas. Miami is pancake flat.

I actually don't think LA is fast paced compared to say, NYC or San Francisco. Movie stars with a lot of time on their hands to play and party is not the same as Silicon Valley or Wall Street power brokers working hard.

[SDAirportAPM]

Originally Posted by elchevere

Whoever said celebrities represent 100% or the larger portion of the LA population?….Miami has a large blue collar population as well. Miami also has a port, a much smaller scale (cargo) though Miami is also the cruise capital of the world. Can add these similarities even if it’s not an exact carbon copy—which no other city is, including Vegas which might have mountains and dry heat but not an ocean.

You might not have said celebs represent all the LA population but you kept talking about plastic surgery, fancy cars, etc and not really mentioning that LA is actually quite blue collar outside of Hollywood. I get LA is one of the plastic surgery capitals of the US, but I don't know if it's at South Korean levels of plastic surgery consumption.

[elchevere]

Both LA and Miami do attract “dreamers” who relocate to those 2 cities as a result of celebrities and pop culture. Many fail to fulfill their “dream”.

Not sure if LA is So Korea level of plastic surgery but Miami is definitely close to South American levels.

other similarities between the 2 cities I just thought of: both have their share of “Fast and the Furious” aftermarket modifications types (those who spend $10K for an exhaust system on their Toyota, Honda, Chevy, etc) and both have their share of highway incidents involving chases, attempting to outrun trains, and shootouts (not good things, mind you).

Clearly, there are differences in which the 2 are not alike (topography, climate, other items, etc), but I’m focusing, instead, on what they do seem to share in common (a number of which I have listed).

Originally Posted by SDAirportAPM

You might not have said celebs represent all the LA population but you kept talking about plastic surgery, fancy cars, etc and not really mentioning that LA is actually quite blue collar outside of Hollywood. I get LA is one of the plastic surgery capitals of the US, but I don't know if it's at South Korean levels of plastic surgery consumption.

[Redlionjr]

Originally Posted by elchevere

Aside from the commonality of being high energy oceanfront cities with palm trees along with the glam lifestyle and all that comes with that (celebrities/athletes, luxury cars, boats, luxury real estate, plastic surgery, fashion cities/models, high end shopping) there are parts of both cities that have a similar vibe:

Santa Monica : South Beach (including 3rd St Promenade: Lincoln Road)
Century City : Brickell
Pasadena: Coral Gables
Naples (Long Beach) : Miami Beach barrier islands
Venice Beach : Hollywood, FL
Silver Lake / Echo Park / Arts District : Wynwood
Two Rodeo / Design District

Santa Monica and South Beach have two completely different vibes and crowds. South Beach had more of a spring break Latin vibe to it. A lot more skin and nightlife and day parties on South Beach. Santa Monica felt more laid back with more families out and more clothing. The only similarity they have with each other is the oceanfront but that's where it stops for me. Also Brickell and Century City imo is a stretch. The bay is a big part of Brickell not to mention it's proximity to downtown Miami gives it a completely different vibe and feel compared with Century City. Pasadena and Coral Gables don't see it. Venice Beach and Hollywood Florida feel like a better comparison than Santa Monica and South Beach but where I separate the 2 is the fact that VB nowadays feels a lot more grimier with the influx of homelessness and drug use while Hollywood, FL is much more polished and cleaner. Silver Lake and Wynwood are both artsy hipster type neighborhoods but I feel like every major city has a neighborhood like that. Houston's version of Silver Lake and Wynwood would be Montrose.

Still, in my opinion LA and Miami are generally 2 different to compare. I think if you looked at it on paper or from a Hollywood(no pun intended) perspective than one might consider the 2 to be pretty close but I've been to both and they feel nothing alike. Not even the Beach culture is the same.

What really sets these 2 apart is the ethnic make up and the topography of the 2. I think the people and the look of these metros really play into the character of these cities. Miami feels like an extension of the Caribbean's. Not only in look but the people. Example: On paper Miami and LA have a large Hispanic population. But when you look closer you realize how completely different these 2 metros are.

LA is predominately Mexican followed by El Salvadoran and other Central American nationalities with a small population of Puerto Ricans/Dominicans and other Caribbean Hispanic groups.

Miami is like slightly over 50% Cuban followed by Puerto Ricans/ Dominicans/ Central Americans and other various Hispanic groups. Miami has a more diverse Hispanic population.

Even though both have very large and influential Hispanic populations, Miami imo felt more centered around it's Hispanic population than LA. Seriously, I was in several parts of popular areas in the city of Miami where NO ONE spoke english. Or Spanish was their first and preferred language. I expect that going into a predominately Hispanic neighborhood like Little Havana but didn't expect it in Downtown Miami. Literally felt like I was an extra on a Telemundo set. And I mean that with no disrespect.

In LA, I didn't have those same language barriers. And honestly when it comes to the ethnic make up of both cities, Houston feels a lot closer to what LA is than Miami. I don't even think I saw one Asian person in Miami.

LA and Miami are WAY too different to be considered IMO remotely similar.

[elchevere]

I see more similarities with the neighborhoods listed and I have actually lived in both metros—though in what some would consider the more “glam” areas of both which is why I see things in common (yet acknowledge differences also exist).

Santa Monica / SoBe: 3rd Street Promenade : Lincoln Road Mall; Palisades Park : South Pointe Park; both have Beach strands, piers (though Santa Monica’s noticeably larger), trendy upscale areas (Montana Ave : South of Fifth) and sketchier areas. Definite differences as well as you highlighted. Also, FYI, South Beach is a tad more American / Euro mix than the more heavily Latin focused mainland and Venice Beach is the more appropriate comparison to Hollywood, FL IMHO..

Pasadena / Coral Gables: classic Langham Huntington Hotel / Biltmore Hotels and adjoining established wealthy neighborhoods in both.

Century City / Brickell: office/financial areas, Century City Mall : Brickell City Centre (same way I see similarities with NYC’s Battery Park)….sure, Brickell has a bay that CC doesn’t.

Agree with the topography (though, Houston has even less in common given an absence of the ocean/beach culture at its doorstep) and different Latin composition (Cubans and some So Americans are definitely more elitist than their LA Latinx counterparts). You will run in predominantly Spanish in a couple of LA neighborhoods but LA definitely has a more American feel than Miami. Houston definitely has a larger Asian population but so does San Francisco (where I also lived) which does not have much in common either with LA outside of topography.

Originally Posted by Redlionjr

Santa Monica and South Beach have two completely different vibes and crowds. South Beach had more of a spring break Latin vibe to it. A lot more skin and nightlife and day parties on South Beach. Santa Monica felt more laid back with more families out and more clothing. The only similarity they have with each other is the oceanfront but that's where it stops for me. Also Brickell and Century City imo is a stretch. The bay is a big part of Brickell not to mention it's proximity to downtown Miami gives it a completely different vibe and feel compared with Century City. Pasadena and Coral Gables don't see it. Venice Beach and Hollywood Florida feel like a better comparison than Santa Monica and South Beach but where I separate the 2 is the fact that VB nowadays feels a lot more grimier with the influx of homelessness and drug use while Hollywood, FL is much more polished and cleaner. Silver Lake and Wynwood are both artsy hipster type neighborhoods but I feel like every major city has a neighborhood like that. Houston's version of Silver Lake and Wynwood would be Montrose.

Still, in my opinion LA and Miami are generally 2 different to compare. I think if you looked at it on paper or from a Hollywood(no pun intended) perspective than one might consider the 2 to be pretty close but I've been to both and they feel nothing alike. Not even the Beach culture is the same.

What really sets these 2 apart is the ethnic make up and the topography of the 2. I think the people and the look of these metros really play into the character of these cities. Miami feels like an extension of the Caribbean's. Not only in look but the people. Example: On paper Miami and LA have a large Hispanic population. But when you look closer you realize how completely different these 2 metros are.

LA is predominately Mexican followed by El Salvadoran and other Central American nationalities with a small population of Puerto Ricans/Dominicans and other Caribbean Hispanic groups.

Miami is like slightly over 50% Cuban followed by Puerto Ricans/ Dominicans/ Central Americans and other various Hispanic groups. Miami has a more diverse Hispanic population.

Even though both have very large and influential Hispanic populations, Miami imo felt more centered around it's Hispanic population than LA. Seriously, I was in several parts of popular areas in the city of Miami where NO ONE spoke english. Or Spanish was their first and preferred language. I expect that going into a predominately Hispanic neighborhood like Little Havana but didn't expect it in Downtown Miami. Literally felt like I was an extra on a Telemundo set. And I mean that with no disrespect.

In LA, I didn't have those same language barriers. And honestly when it comes to the ethnic make up of both cities, Houston feels a lot closer to what LA is than Miami. I don't even think I saw one Asian person in Miami.

LA and Miami are WAY too different to be considered IMO remotely similar.