driving from sunset boulevard to LAX in the morning??

We are thinking of staying in a hotel at sunset boulevard BUT we have to be at LAX in the morning around 9-10am. How%26#39;s driving in LA at that time of morning (say around 8:30)? Would it be a safer bet to stay at a LAX airport hotel?

We%26#39;e only staying 1 night %26amp; have a guided tour planned of LA.

driving from sunset boulevard to LAX in the morning??

You%26#39;ll be fine. Leave your hotel around 8:30 and take La Cienega - avoid the freeway. The hotel will give you directions.

driving from sunset boulevard to LAX in the morning??

Traffic is not all that bad. Assuming you have to return a rental car, make sure you allow enough time to drive to the rental car lot (around 45 minutes if you know exactly where to go), check in the car (some rental car agencies do this very fast), wait for and take a shuttle bus to the terminal, then as in any very large airport you have the check-in process for your flight.

Allow yourself 1-1/2 hours for the drive, rental car dropoff and transfer into the airport. Be sure to stay off the freeways. Just drive Las Cienega Bl south into the airport area and follow the map below. (I am assuming that you are staying on the portion of Sunset Bl known as the Sunset Strip:

The map shows the route from the corner of La Cienega Bl %26amp; La Tijera Bl (in the airport area) to the airport. The starting point of your trip will be north of the starting point on this map near the intersection of La Cienega BL %26amp; Sunset Bl.

http://tinyurl.com/396qgx

Good luck!

We were 2-minded of staying either at the elan modern hotel (near sunset blvd) OR the airport hotel renaissance montura. As a tourist we would prefer elan modern because of location. For peace of mind of traffic in the morning it would be renaissance montura.

We have to drop off our car at LAX %26amp; the RV rental company is going to pick us up there to take us to their office for a rv rental. So we don%26#39;t have to catch a plane or something.

Still 2-minded but thanks for all the info already!!

yogachik and HopSkipJump are right on about taking LA Cienega all the way to La Tijera and taking the back way in. It%26#39;s not so bad there, but my experience is that Sunset itself is horrific in the morning. I%26#39;ve never driven from Sunset, but I%26#39;d say it would take at least an hour but as the others advised, 1 1/2 hours is probably safer. If you want to experience LA, it%26#39;s probably worth it to stay in the middle of things. The Elan Modern is in a neat area and looks nice on the outside.

Elan Modern is on Beverly Blvd, right? Not Sunset. And it%26#39;s near La Cienega (which is where the Beverly Center is, mentioned at the top of their web site). It%26#39;s a much better location than any airport hotel -- I know this area very well, my mother lives a few minutes from Beverly Center. And I absolutely agree to take La Cienega to La Tijera.

Sorry i didn%26#39;t look up the address from Elan modern. Beverly blvd it is then.

It%26#39;s on Beverly, but you%26#39;ll still be quite close to Sunset. It%26#39;s a great neighborhood, close to Beverly Center mall (if mall%26#39;s are your thing), The Grove/Farmers Market, not far from Hollywood, easy access to the beaches (my favorite way is to take La Cienega soutth to Venice Blvd, turn right straight to Venice the beach, about 20 min away.) Or, instead of Venice, take Pico Blvd straight to Santa Monica Beach.

I can%26#39;t tell you how many times I%26#39;ve taken La Cienega in that neighborhood at the time you%26#39;re talking about. On a weekday, it will take you no more than 50 min to get from your hotel to the rental drop off, and probably only about 35 min. On a weekend it will take 30 min.

Also, when you return your rental, you can wait until you turn onto La Tijera Blvd to top off your gas tank. There are several stations right after you make the turn. That%26#39;s what I do. You%26#39;re only a 1-2 miles away from the rental agencies at that point.

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I%26#39;ll give a special recommendation to you, since you have a car. For a spectacular drive in the Hollywood Hills take La Cienega Blvd north towards Mt. Hollywood. At Sunset Blvd the street will appear to dead end but you%26#39;ll see a residential street ahead and to your left, leading up into the hills. This is Miller Drive. TAKE IT. You can see this if you go to www.google.com/maps and type in ';la cienega and sunset blvd los angeles'; as your search string

The street will wind all over -- AT EVERY INTERSECTION TAKE THE TURN GOING UP THE HILL. Keep going. You will see houses built right into the sides of the hills, many on stilts! Most will be ';normal'; looking houses, a few will be mansions, one will look like a fortress! You%26#39;ll also see some great views of the city.

YOU CANNOT GET LOST. At some point you%26#39;ll decide that you%26#39;ve had enough or you%26#39;ll reach the crest of the Mt. Hollywood. Reverse your journey but going down (ie, at every intersection take the turn which goes DOWN. In short order you%26#39;ll be back on Sunset Blvd, probably just a few blocks from where you started.

I%26#39;ve given these directions to 2 sets of European travelers and they both said it was the highlight of their stay in LA.

Have fun

Thanks all!! To %26#39;livesinnewjersey%26#39;: i%26#39;m going to print your route %26amp; take it with me. We%26#39;ll certainly try that!

We%26#39;re also going to take a guided tour (with starline i think, not sure yet) but this will make a nice extra tour. Was a bit 2-minded about the guided tour but seeing as we only have good half a day i thought this would be the best way to see a lot in a small amount on time!

And....i%26#39;m surely into malls!! :-) Shame we only got half a day though!

The beverly center is fine but I dig the Grove and the Farmers Market. Not that far from the Beverly Center. Also shopping on Melrose is pretty unique as well. There are some eateries on 3rd that are great. Breadbar and Toast. Doughboys. All fine places. And pretty good chances of celeb spotting if you are interested.

Give yourself some time for LAX check in. It can be spotty. Sometimes I fly right through it, sometimes I don%26#39;t. I hate that part of the trip...so stressful. Also a drive up around Mulholland is fantastic and if you have time to hit the beaches drive up through Malibu Canyon Rd. Great cliffs. HUGE houses. And the beach. What more can you ask for.