The heart of LA

Not to be confused with the more raucous Hollywood, West Hollywood offers idyllic hiking, sun and nightlife

- HELENA CARTWRIGHT

GET YOUR BEARINGS

Located at the base of the Hollywood Hills and adjacent to Beverly Hills, the city of West Hollywood is just 1.9 square miles. The city is comprised of three main districts: the world-famous Sunset Strip, Santa Monica Boulevard, and the West Hollywood Design District. If you’re unfamiliar with the area, start with a guided tour. Bikes and Hikes LA (bikesandhikesla. com) offers a wealth of different tours. Choose the ‘celebrity bike tour’, which is an easy, stress-free tour. And with electric bikes, don’t worry about the hills.

Go hiking

If the jet lag hits, stretch your legs in Griffith Park. It’s one of those places where you think you’ll spend an hour or two, but happily end up staying for the day. A gift to the city in 1896 by mining mogul Griffith J Griffith, and five times the size of New York’s Central Park, you have access to more than 3,000 acres and 53 miles of trails.