Visiting the US

[Privateer]

Thanks Privateer, I'll look them up!

i have to admit I dont know much about LA besides its huge. I figure best to stay a little inland to lower travelling times and get the most out of it. Its gotta be better than staying Venice Beach right?

I don't live in LA proper, I live in Orange County so I can't really say.  Maybe some of the LA hooligans can chime in.

While you might have longer drive times, you may also find that near the coast everything tends to be closer together.

A lot of it depends on what you want to do or see.  There are so many different experiences you can try, it's tough to say one way or the other... beach, urban, mountains, rural, desert... name it, we have it in LA, OC, IE, or San Diego.

If you just want some site-seeing type stuff, I'd for sure suggest Hollywood but also Griffith Observatory.  If you're here during the right time of year you could take in a concert at hollywood bowl or pacific amphitheater, a musical/play/opera at any number of places, ice hockey, basketball, baseball, horse racing, pro soccer(football), American football, arena football, indoor lacrosse, supercross, surfing tournament(?), car shows, lowrider shows, bike shows, ... i'm sure there's more.

tl;dr: need more details about your time frame.