Are you staying in town for the holidays? If so you are in for a treat. Los Angeles becomes a ghost town and the city can be your oyster – I wonder if is that how the name for the London travel pass came about? This is the time to take advantage of the empty freeways and explore Southern California. You really can go skiing in the morning then watch the sunset over the ocean on the same day. I am happy to report that we are expecting a lot more rain. This is not only good news as we are still in a severe drought, but it also means snow fall on the mountains. Wrightwood’s Mountain High resort (http://www.mthigh.com/ ) is a 90 minute drive from Hollywood – whilst it might not be the best ski conditions California has to offer, the fact that you can easily do it all in one day is a blessing. I have been a couple of times and it really is an simple journey. If you have never attempted to ski you can book a lesson and they will have you on the slopes in no time. For an over night trip check out Big Bear resort (https://www.bigbearmountainresort.com/). Costco, AAA and even Ralphs often have deals on lift tickets so make sure to check before you purchase. Even closer to home is Snow Day LA by Dodger Stadium at The Old Lodge – they don’t offer skiing but they have 10,000 acres of fake snow, tubing lanes, giant snowmen and an hourly snow blizzards!
Visit http://www.snowlosangeles.com/ and check out their offers section for an extra 15% off tickets.
if you would rather be beside the seaside visit goldstar.com . They have brilliant discounts on tickets for whale watching, beach Segway tours and for most of the events on the Queen Mary including Chill; Alice in Wonderland for $20!
If you are a new subscriber use this link (http://tinyurl.com/GoldstarBiLA )and Brits in LA get a referral fee too.
We have received a lot of messages asking for restaurant recommendations over Christmas – many restaurants do stay open on Christmas Day however all the best ones are usually booked weeks in advance – the simplest way to find a last minute reservation is to go to opentable.com where you can type in your preferred location and time and they will instantly tell you what is available. If you just fancy a walk and a pint after you have watched the Queens Speech (available on the official British Monarchy YouTube channel http://tinyurl.com/BritishMonarchyYouTube) a few bars and pubs will be open including The Fox and Hounds in Studio City, The Pikey in Hollywood. Rock & Reilly’s Irish Pub are hosting an ‘orphan’ Christmas for those of you at a loose end, and apparently everyone will get a present! They have locations in DTLA and New York too – for more details visit http://rockandreillys.com
if you are looking for volunteer opportunities give Kimberly Moore of AdoptALetter.org as she always needs help packing and delivering gifts to the less privileged children in and around Los Angeles.
If you have need a last minute gift idea why not grab a pair of concert tickets. Lots of British acts coming to town including Richard Ashcroft, Craig David, Midge Ure and Mogwai – visit our Brits on Stage page at www.britsin.la and keep an eye out on our Facebook page as we will be hosting ticket giveaways too!
Email us at britsinla@gmail.com if you have any fun events you want us to share on our Facebook page and use our members forum too as everyone is usually really helpful on there.
Hope you all have a wonderful time wherever you are and a Happy New Year to all!
Christmas Cheers!
Eileen
