USA Famil - Sam Cure

12-18 March 2010

V Australia were absolutely fantastic – their economy cabin is as good as any economy cabin that I have flown in – it feels as if you get slightly more seat pitch and this is always handy when you’re bored silly on a 13 hour flight and trying to sleep it away!

Everything about V Australia is aimed at a more relaxed, casual and fun experience (even the napkins with dinner have stuff written on them about when a bit of paper is classified as a tissue as opposed to a napkin...)

The other awesomely fantastic thing about VA is their entertainment system – absolutely up to date flicks and TV shows (e.g. I was watching The Blind Side and The Hurt Locker which are still on at some cinema’s) all on a touch screen tv – so no stuffing around with remotes and cords and getting all tangled up. The other great thing about their entertainment systems is that it comes with a USB port – so you can either watch your own movies that you may have on a flash drive, or you can charge up things like iPods which have USB chargers during the flight meaning I could play endless games of Flight Control and Doodle Jump and and other useless time-killing apps that I have on my iPhone – but also listen to my own music without the worry of killing the battery in my phone. I know some portable DVD players and laptop computers also have devices whereby they can be powered by a USB point so it basically works as an in-seat power-point which is unusual in economy class.

The other thing to note is the way the overhead lockers are higher in the cabin meaning tall people can stand up and not feel as if the world is closing in around them which I appreciated.

Hollywood Heights Hotel - this was the first hotel where we stayed and was located just up the road from Hollywood Boulevard. This hotel is a great option for a stay in Hollywood as it is quite a bit cheaper than a lot of all of the other more expensive properties which are less than a 2 minute walk away – so in terms of location it can’t really be beaten (for Hollywood anyway).

Within walking distance was Hollywood Boulevard, Sunset Boulevard, the Hollywood/Highland metro station, Chinese Theatre, Kodak Theatre (where the Oscars are held, and American Idol is filmed) and also some other interesting points like the church where Sister Act was filmed.

The hotel has its own restaurant and bar which were both frequented by our entire group and the bills in both of these places could be charged back to your room inclusive of a 17% tip which some Australians might appreciate rather than feeling the need to dive into their pockets for cash right there on the spot.

As for the actual rooms I am used to travelling in Europe – so the rooms felt quite spacious – we were in rooms with two queen beds, however they do have rooms with one king just at the standard level as well. Some rooms (and these can be requested when booking, however never guaranteed) look over the Hollywood Hills meaning you can see the Hollywood sign from your bed which is kind of cool and corny if it is your first time in LA. Rooms are complete with iPod docking stations and huge LCD televisions as they were only renovated last year – as such everything is pretty new and feels quite modern.

Universal Studios - we were given VIP passes at Universal Studio’s which were absolutely fantastic – and if anyone is a real movie nut this is the only option as their method of visiting Universal Studio’s. With a VIP pass you get the benefit of ‘front-of-line’ access to all attractions (which you also get on a simple ‘front-of-line’ pass) however the real benefit comes if you are a movie nut. If you only went there for the rides then a ‘front-of-line’ pass would suffice in terms of feeling special as you can just turn up to a ride and get on within 2 or 3 minutes which is great.

Where the VIP pass is amazing for a really cool experience is in the Studio Tour – normally this takes 45 minutes and you don’t get off the ‘trolley’ – however with a VIP pass the tour takes 2.5 hours, and you get to get off the ‘trolley’ and walk around the sets (we wandered down Wisteria Lane and through the plane crash scene from War of the Worlds), watch current filming (they were doing some chick show when we were there so I didn’t care – Ghost Whisperer or something...), see a huge cabinet with a heap of Oscars in it, and wander through the props department – which is a great experience as nothing is ever thrown out. We saw a ET doll, the red nose worn by Robin Williams in Patch Adams, the trolley that the guys in Jackass all rolled down the hill in and all sorts of other bits and pieces.

On a VIP pass you also get the benefits of a personal guide all day (who is a good guide and a bit more passionate than the normal 45 minute studio tour guides) who takes you on your tour, takes you to your lunch (included in the VIP pass) and then accompanies you to all of your rides – taking you straight to the front of the line.

The last benefit – which I don’t see as a great one, but it is a little bit cool – is that when you arrive you don’t have to wait around outside the main gate waiting to get in to the park – you are whisked away into an ‘arrivals lounge’ where you can sit back and eat and get some coffee or soft drink or whatever you please whilst watching clips from movies and looking at memorabilia before your studio tour departs.

I would never simply get park entry – at the very least I would get a ‘front-of-line’ pass for the ride enthusiasts – but for the film enthusiasts the VIP pass is really worth it!

iFly Hollywood - is located at Universal City – so just outside the main area of Universal Studio’s and is an ‘indoor’ skydiving experience. Basically what it involves is stepping inside a plastic wind-tunnel which is out in the middle of the street so everyone can laugh at you – and sky-diving.

It was a really bizarre feeling to start with – but some people in our group who have done sky-diving said it was very similar to the feeling you get from sky-diving – you just aren’t so far from the ground so it is nowhere near as scary! You get about 90 seconds in there to emulate a free fall and you have an instructor who does their best to control your movement and they take you as high as 6m or 7m and then spin you around and you fall to within about 1m from the ground and then you are blown back up again.

Don’t tell my mum – but all it made me want to do was jump out of a plane.

Bubba Gumps - This was probably well and truly the corniest place I have ever been – but I think that fits the whole LA / Hollywood experience well. We had a hosted dinner at Bubba Gumps which is sort of Forrest Gump themed – it is hard to describe what it is like without going there – the wait staff buzz round the room chanting different songs at different tables and there is a hell of a lot of activity. There are plasma screens everywhere showing the main scenes from Forrest Gump and all in all it is a pretty fun time. Especially if you are spending a day at Universal Studio’s it is a good option for dinner as it is right on site and is pretty good fun!

Grammy Museum - In my opinion the Grammy Museum in LA is a must-do on any trip over there. I would not have gone near this place if I had any choice – and I didn’t think I cared about music all that much – however I could quite easily still be there looking through all of their memorabilia.

They also have an area which can best be described as similar to the ‘Silent Disco’ that occurs at the Big Day Out festivals – basically an area where they have a whole range of instruments set up and you can create your own band where you all wear headphones and go mental on all the instruments and you can hear the music through your own headphones but to the outside world there is no noise and you all look ridiculous.

There are also a number of sound booths and mixing studio’s where you can do sessions in how bands record music and have it sounding so good that effectively they then need to go and lip-sync on stage because they sound nothing like their own recordings.

Unfortunately you aren’t allowed to take pictures inside the Grammy Museum but at the moment their two main exhibits are Michael Jackson and Elvis and there is some really cool memorabilia (incl. Wacko Jacko’s hand written lyrics to Beat It) – so it is well and truly worth a visit. Another interesting piece of trivia is that the Grammy’s handed out on stage during the telecast are fake (well its the same one over and over and over again) and they only ever give the real ones to the artists at a later time.

The Grammy Museum is located in an area called LA Live – which also house a heap of restaurants and the Staples Centre complex which hosts NBA, NHL and a whole heap of other sporting and music events (Black Eyed Peas played there recently) so it’s a good fun buzzing area to hang around and people watch.

NBA Game - We went to an NBA game at the Staples Centre which was a great experience – I don’t even like basketball, but this was a great way to experience some ‘American Culture’ and see how they go completely overboard in absolutely everything that they do – and you are guaranteed to see some form of D list celebrity at a sporting event (ours were Turtle from Entourage and Michael Duncan from the movie 'The Green Mile').

Renaissance Hotel - our second hotel was the Renaissance Hotel which was absolutely amazing – all of the rooms either face the Hollywood Sign – or down over Hollywood towards Santa Monica so you get some spectacular views.

The hotel is located in the same building as the Kodak Theatre which is where the Academy Awards are held and American Idol is filmed – all on the mezzanine level of the hotel. So if you are wanting a truly over the top Hollywood experience this is the place to stay as all the American Idol staff and contestants were there at the same time as we were.

The hotel also has one of the more amazing health spa’s I have ever seen (what else would you expect from the building where the Oscars are held?) and the prices were actually very reasonable for hotel guests. The health spa is independent from the hotel (although in the same building) so bookings are important but generally you can find a spot where you can be fit in.

Where the Renaissance loses the value in terms of the nightly rate is that the rooms are effectively the same as the Hollywood Heights – which are great – however you are simply paying to stay in the same building as where the present the little gold man to all the famous people.

As with any big city a Hop-on, Hop-off bus is a great way to get around the city and see the sights – however I would recommend that in LA you stick to the Beverley Hills and Santa Monica loops – there is no need to drive around on an open-top bus in downtown LA – there is nothing to really gawk at, and it is much quicker to get to downtown LA by metro from Hollywood (about 12 minutes) as opposed to taking the open-top Hop-on Hop-off bus (about 70 minutes).

That being said – the Beverley Hills and Santa Monica loops were fantastic allowing you to get off at places like Rodeo Drive, Farmer’s Market, Santa Monica Pier etc and you do get to see some great scenery and some HUUUUUUUUUUUUGE houses on the way around!

Madame Tussauds in Hollywood – I had a great time there but there is something strangely weird and freaky about playing with life size wax figures – but it is great fun. It is also a pretty good way of killing an hour!

Something that I noticed about the Hollywood Madame Tussauds as opposed to the London one is that the Hollywood figures are set up in better scenes and there are actually props where you can either dress yourself up – or the wax person if you wish – which allows you to have a bit of fun rather than just take photos of wax things that look like the real people.

Andaz Hotel - we did an inspection of the Andaz hotel. Andaz is a ‘new’ hotel brand and they are slowly taking over properties all over the US (I think they said they have 7 so far) catering for luxury travellers with a slightly different take on a conventional hotel.

For instance at the hotels there is no reception desk, no concierge, just ‘hosts’ who welcome you at the door with their tablet computer which controls the world – and if you are a busy business traveller and all you want to do is walk to your room and go to bed the host can walk with you and have you checked in before you exit the elevator on the floor of your room. There are little tables and couches in what would be the lobby area where guests can relax should they want to do this – however the management of the hotel wanted to remove the ‘barrier’ of a front desk. Each guest is given the host’s details for their stay and they can be contacted should the guest require anything.

Something to be aware of with the Andaz hotels is that they are tied into the Hyatt rewards and loyalty programs which is handy.

We ate dinner at the Andaz Hotel in their on-site restaurant – RH – which is operated by a French Chef who was worked in a whole variety of Michelin star restaurants in Europe. This was the only meal that I ate that felt semi healthy – however the serving sizes were still so big that it feels slightly wrong!

I recommend this restaurant as a really great place to eat – I looked at the prices on the menu and including drinks and a great meal you could have a really special night out for around $100 USD per person which for the standard of food and fantastic ambience of the venue is really great value.


Sam Cure
Retail Travel Consultant
Phone 03 6224 7444
Email sam@travelstudio.com.au

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