5 Day Trips from Los Angeles, California with Kids - Yahoo Voices - voices.yahoo.com

Los Angeles is a town with many places to explore. For those interested in day trips, there are tons of beaches, attractions, places to shop and eat, nature sites and more. Here are five, fun day trips in Los Angeles, California to take with kids.

Santa Monica

Santa Monica is a fun filled area in Los Angeles County. Start your adventure off at the Santa Monica Pier. There are many places to park in Santa Monica. Parking on the pier deck costs $7 weekdays and $8 on weekends. If you have kids with you, they will love the carnival like rides and games at the pier. Admission is free and rides cost $3.00 or $5.00 each. Buy an unlimited ride wristband for between $15.95 and $21.95. When you are tired from going on rides, walk down the pier to the aquarium. Check out the hours here. There are several fast food type restaurants, a full service soda fountain and some sit down restaurants at the pier. After the pier, walk up to Third Street Promenade for some food, entertainment and shopping. Often times, there are street performers. There are trendy stores like Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie and the Santa Monica Place Mall.

Griffith Park and Observatory

This is an excellent day trip when you have kids. Start off at the Griffith Park at 4730 Crystal Springs Drive. Parking is free. Here, there is a fun little train, horse riding, a carousel and places to have a picnic. Drive up the hill a bit and go to Travel Town. Travel Town opens at 10 am daily. For between $2.00 and $2.50, take a train ride. Or simply check out the museum for free. Go up the hill a bit more and check out the Griffith Observatory. Parking and admission is free and it is open every day except Monday. See the solar system exhibits and educational displays. For a small fee, you can go in the planetarium. The Observatory is located at 2800 East Observatory Road. If you still have some time, check out the Los Angeles Zoo. The Zoo is located at 5333 Zoo Drive. See the cute animals, snack on popcorn and learn about conservation. Tickets cost between $9.00 and $14.00. All of these attractions are very close so it makes a day of jam-packed fun.

The Grove

The Grove is a swanky place full of shops, food and a "dancing fountain." Other highlights include a free trolley that runs down the center of The Grove. For kids, there are free activities like story time and kids club in the park. Every hour the dancing fountain "dances" to a variety of songs. Check out the calendar of events for lots of fun ideas. After shopping, you might want to grab a bite at one of the fantastic eateries like The Cheesecake Factory or the American Girl Café. Located next to the Grove is the original Farmer's Market. The trolley travels here. Get some dessert at The French Crepe Company or ice cream from Bennett's Ice Cream. When done, pick up some farm fresh products, exquisite nuts or specialty teas from the Original Farmer's Market. The Grove is located at 189 The Grove Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90036.

Universal Studios and City Walk

Universal Studios Hollywood is a famous amusement park with the entertaining Universal Studio Tour. General Parking costs $15.00 but see other parking options here. The tour takes you on a tram to see King Kong 3D, the Norman Bates Hotel from Psycho and Jaws. Then, go on run rides like Jurassic Park, The Simpsons and The Mummy. Finally, experience shows like Shrek 4D and more. See tickets options here. After you have gone to Universal Studios, check out Universal Studios City Walk. There are experiences like indoor sky diving and rock and roll bowling. In addition, there are fun stores like Crow's Nest Toys and Sport's Avenue. Grab a quick bite at Pink's Famous Hot Dogs or sit down at the Wolfgang Puck Bistro.

Malibu

Head out from the city and experience the beautiful California Coast Line. Start off your day by doing some hiking at Malibu Creek State Park. This park is four miles south of Highway 101 on Las Virgenes/Malibu Canyon Road. It costs $12.00 for day parking at this site. This park has "15 miles of streamside trail through oak and sycamore woodlands." After doing some hiking and fishing, clean up and head out to Paradise Cove. Located at 28128 Pacific Coast Highway, this is a private Malibu beach. For this reason, it's often less crowded. Another plus to this beach is the delicious Paradise Cove Restaurant. Parking is $25 but it gets validated when you go to the restaurant. Take a walk down the pier, explore the beaches and relax in the sand. Learn about more Los Angeles beaches here.

Sources:

santamonicapier.org
downtownsm.com/visitors
lazoo.org
laparks.org/dos/parks/griffithpk
griffithparktrainrides.com/content/travel-town-railroad
griffithobservatory.org
parks.ca.gov
citywalkhollywood.com
universalstudioshollywood.com
farmersmarketla.com
thegrovela.com
paradisecovemalibu.com/beachcafe/