David Gordon Travel Features: Los Angeles -can it be done in a day?

I suppose I should answer the question posed by saying it really depends what you want to do!

If, like me, you want to get an overview of the main sights in Hollywood & Beverley Hills and dip your toe in the Pacific Ocean, then yes. It gets complicated when you start to include the theme parks (Disney, universal et al)

I figured out the best way to see as much as possible was to use the hop-on hop-off city tour. The red route starts right outside the Dolby theatre in the centre of Hollywood. I got on the bus at 11.30am and At stop 7 (near the famous Rodeo Drive ) I got off and transferred to the yellow route which takes passengers straight to santa Monica. There by 12.45, I was able to recreate the famous Forrest Gump scene, snap the end of Route 66

And get a burger and strawberry shake at Pier Burger! (It really had to be done...research...)

I raced back to the bus stop and continued the yellow route back to stop 7, where I to the red route for stops 8-15. Sounds more complicated than it was.

I was a bit disappointed that I didn't see the famous Hollywood sign close up, but if you look really closely you can see it in the pic above.

I also took the chance to visit Madame Tussaud's, which is half an hour I'll never get back.

Though I did sit and chat to Forrest Gump for a while.

I used the Metro subway to get around from my hotel to Hollywood. At $5 for a 24hr travel pass, it is excellent value for money.

The hotel was the Millennium Biltmore, one of the oldest and grandest in the Los Angeles area.

It has had it's fair share of celebrity names coming through its doors, so my arrival didn't appear to ruffle too many feathers!

It is used nearly on a weekly basis as a location for tv shows ( like west wing, 24 etc), movies (like Ghostbusters, independence day etc) and music ideas (like janet jackson "son of a gun" and Britney Spears "overprotected" ) and you could find yourself mingling with all sorts of famous folk.

The health club has been in use since the1930's and is a stunning area designed like a cruise ship. i had the entire place to myself for a refreshing swim.