I’m travelling to LA over Christmas.

[Barry.b]

Hi guys I am travelling from Ireland to LA for a very short trip over Christmas and I am wondering if you could recommend some stuff to do.
I am only there for 3 days and I am travelling with my wife and 3 daughters so they have me out numbered and honestly I really only might get like a half of a day to try and fit in some car stuff the rest of the time will be family time.
So I am wondering if you guys could recommend anything that might be open or on over Christmas like a car meet or a museum or something.
I would appreciate any advice as my time there is very short.
Thanks.

 

[Bmachine]

The Petersen museum is certainly a must see. It is near lots of other cool stuff for the family, like Hollywood blvd, the Chinese Theater, so they could go there while you are at the museum.

www.petersen.org

If you want something more hands on, the Porsche driving experience is awesome. The family could head down to Long Beach from there to the Queen Mary area.

On The Track | Porsche Experience Center - Los Angeles, CA

www.porschedriving.com

What are the exact dates of your trip?
And what area are you staying in? There might a Cars n Coffee if the dates and location permit.

 

[TedS]

The Griffith Park cars and coffee is the last Sunday of the month-- Xmas day. Not sure how that will look. Really nice area, though.

 

[lip277]

I second the Petersen.

 

[Barry.b]

The Petersen museum is certainly a must see. It is near lots of other cool stuff for the family, like Hollywood blvd, the Chinese Theater, so they could go there while you are at the museum.

www.petersen.org

If you want something more hands on, the Porsche driving experience is awesome. The family could head down to Long Beach from there to the Queen Mary area.

On The Track | Porsche Experience Center - Los Angeles, CA

www.porschedriving.com

What are the exact dates of your trip?
And what area are you staying in? There might a Cars n Coffee if the dates and location permit.

We are staying near Redondo beach
And we will be there on the 24th ,25th and the 26th.
So hopefully I can get to see some good car stuff.
Thanks so far for the advice !!

 

[Strato102]

A Southern California car cultural experience would be a trip up the Angeles Crest Highway or the canyon roads in Malibu. That probably won't fly with the fam. On the other hand, going from 70 degrees and shorts to a snowball fight 15 minutes later would be cool for a kid. Or, hunting for movie star's houses in the Maibu canyons either.

 

[andyleonard]

If you only have one car day, hit the Petersen. It's world-class, fun, and they have stuff for the kids.

 

[jmackro]

There may not be a lot of in-person events right around Christmas. The Peterson is great, and it is child-friendly, but check their schedule for days around the holiday. The Automobile Driving Museum in El Segundo doesn't come close to the Peterson in scale or glitz, but it is closer to Redondo Beach, and you could sneak in a visit if you only had a few hours to spare.

Why don't you squeeze in a trip this coming Saturday and visit the SoCal Vintage BMW gathering at Woodley Park in Van Nuys?

 

[jmackro]

.

 

[jefflit]

Hello @Barry.b I am in Manhattan Beach (2 beaches North). You got good recommendations from the others. You can PM me if your girls go shopping and leave you stranded in town and you want to see E9 CSEs (Tesla EV conversions) for an hour or so.

 

[Barry.b]

Hello @Barry.b I am in Manhattan Beach (2 beaches North). You got good recommendations from the others. You can PM me if your girls go shopping and leave you stranded in town and you want to see E9 CSEs (Tesla EV conversions) for an hour or so.

Hi there
I will know a bit more closer to the trip so I can’t nail anything down yet .
Thanks for your kind offer , I really do appreciate it . !!
And thanks again to everyone for the helpful advice
I am interested in the museums obviously but I am also sorely tempted to see what a cars and coffee stateside would be like.
My last car show in the states I went to was the New York motor show about 18 years ago, I hadn’t even planned on doing any car stuff, we had been in Hawaii on our Honeymoon and Traveling back to Ireland we stopped off in New York for 3 days and on our trip around the Hudson Bay and out to see the Statue of Liberty I spotted a sing saying that the motor show was on , and better still my wife was happy enough to fit in a car show on her honeymoon .
So we got to see that .
Then the last car show I attended previous to that was years ago , I was on holidays in San Francisco in the summer of 1991 and my brother and I went to a custom car and monster truck show in a show grounds near San Francisco. ( I can’t remember the name of the place )
It was amazing, I was only 17 at the time and was super impressed by everything there , we had nothing like it in Ireland .
When I got home to Ireland I had so many cool car photos to share with my friends.
Anyway I’m getting lost in my memories now.
Thanks again guys .

 

[jefflit]

The Manhattan Beach Cars & Coffee is the last Saturday of every month but I guess that's the 31st, not the 24th. https://www.instagram.com/carsandcoffeemb/?hl=en
Ruby's Redondo Beach is every Friday at 4:00 but I think it stopped for the winter (not that we have winter weather) and again, you just miss it on the 23rd anyway. https://ridescollective.com/events/rubys-cruise-at-the-beach/
Peninsula Cars & Coffee in Palos Verdes is the first Saturday so you miss that too https://www.pvconcours.org/peninsula-cars-and-coffee
Even the infamous (and IMHO boring) dick-measuring contest Malibu C&C is cancelled for the rest of the year. http://www.malibucarsandcoffee.com/
The days you're here (holidays) are tough time to find a show. I personally have been going to the Compton Majestics New Years Day Lowrider show in Irwindale on holidays but that too is out of your timeframe.

 

[Barry.b]

Hi again
It’s great that you guys have so many options when it comes to getting out enjoying the car scene.
And thanks again for putting it all together here apologies for not replying sooner.
I often think that a lot of decent car shows fall under the radar for those travelling from afar and having local knowledge really is great so thanks again !!

 

[Barry.b]

Hi guys
Realistically, how Many hours should I spend in the Petersen ?
I have seen various estimates online , but they vary quite a bit.
I am hoping to have time for the museum and then hopefully also have time for the vault .
If it was up to me I would probably spend many many hours, but my timelines are a bit tight unfortunately so I might have to hold back a bit .
Just wondering so I can plan for it properly, I know my crew will want to do other stuff too not car related and I believe traffic can be tricky in LA so we are trying to group things on certain days per area , to get the the most out of our short trip.

 

[m73]

Looks like you are already booked but I would suggest the Nethercutt collection -- this is nearer to Jay Leno in Burbank but the cars are top class IMHO

And I have been to the Peterson -- it is a great proximity to your stay.

 

[Barry.b]

Looks like you are already booked but I would suggest the Nethercutt collection -- this is nearer to Jay Leno in Burbank but the cars are top class IMHO

And I have been to the Peterson -- it is a great proximity to your stay.

Thanks for the info
I must have a look into the details.
It looks interesting.
Can people visit Jay Leno’s collection or is that private ?
P.s. I heard he got some injuries in a gasoline fire , I hope he makes a full recovery !!

 

[Barry.b]

Thanks for the info
I must have a look into the details.
It looks interesting.
Can people visit Jay Leno’s collection or is that private ?
P.s. I heard he got some injuries in a gasoline fire , I hope he makes a full recovery !!

I just checked the Nethercutt collection
They are closed for Xmas while I am there.
Thanks for the suggestion anyway !

 

[m73]

That’s unfortunate….the museum is free & worth the gas money IMHO —

The Mullin museum has great cars but you’ll need to drive about 40 miles each way…

Home – Mullin Automotive Museum

mullinautomotivemuseum.com

Peterson is a great venue and location however…

 

[Barry.b]

Hi guys
Thanks again for all your help and advice .
We just booked the Petersen and I am super excited to see it .
All 5 of us are going and then I did purchase one vault ticket for myself.
Hopefully while I am in the vault my wife and kids will get a chance to maybe grab a bite to eat or a coffee or something.
I wonder how many hours does it take to get through the place ??

 

[HB Chris]

1 1/2 hours does the museum, another 1 1/2 is the vault tour as I recall.