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Delta Airlines Flights from Portland (PDX) to Los Angeles (LAX)
Orbitz is pleased to offer airline tickets on Delta Airlines, which operates 2 regularly scheduled daily non-stop flights from Portland (PDX) to Los Angeles (LAX), departing between 7:00am and 7:00pm. Usually an Embraer RJ is flown for this route. The average travel time from Portland, OR to Los Angeles, CA is 2 hours and 32 minutes.
During your Los Angeles vacation, don't miss these great establishments and attractions:
Universal Studios Hollywood & CityWalk
Believing that filmmaking itself is a bona fide attraction, Universal Studios began offering tours to the public in 1964. The concept worked: Today Universal is more than just one of the largest movie studios in the world -- it's one of the largest amusement parks as well. By integrating shows and rides with behind-the-scenes presentations on movie-making, Universal created a new genre of theme park, stimulating a number of clone and competitor parks.The main attraction continues to be the Studio Tour, a 1-hour guided tram ride around the company's 420 acres. En route you pass stars' dressing rooms and production offices before visiting famous back-lot sets that include an eerily familiar Old West town, a clean New York City street, the famous town square from the Back to the Future films, and newer sets such as Curse of the Mummy's Tomb, Jurassic Park III, and The Grinch. Along the way, the tram encounters several staged "disasters," which I won't divulge here lest I ruin the surprise (they're all very tame). Though the wait to board might appear long, don't be discouraged -- each tram carries several hundred people and departures are frequent, so the line moves quickly.Other attractions are more typical of high-tech theme-park fare, but all have a film-oriented slant. The newest ride, Revenge of the Mummy, is a super-high-tech indoor roller coaster that's enhanced with animatronics, motion picture technology, and lots of really creepy Warrior Mummies that drop down and scare the crap out of you. Back to the Future is a virtual-reality ride within a bucking simulation chamber (similar to Star Tours at Disneyland). You're a guest in Doc Brown's lab and get caught up in a high-speed chase in a time-traveling DeLorean through a million years (try to count how many times Biff says "butthead"). Jurassic Park -- The Ride is short in duration but long on dinosaur animatronics; riders in jungle boats float through a world of five-story-tall T-rexes and airborne raptors that culminates in a pitch-dark vertical drop with a splash ending. Terminator 2: 3D is a high-tech cyberwar show that combines live action along with triple-screen 3-D technology, explosions, spraying mists, and laser fire (Arnold prevails, of course). Shrek 4D is one of the park's best attractions, a multisensory animated show that combines 3-D effects, a humorous storyline, and "surprise" special effects -- the flying dragon chase is wild.There are also several live shows performing daily. Waterworld is an entertaining, fast-paced outdoor theater presentation (and far better than the film that inspired it) featuring stunts and special effects performed on and around a small man-made lagoon (most performances are sold out, so arrive at the theater at least 15 minutes before the show time listed in the handout park map). In Backdraft, guests move from theater to theater amid realistic ruptured fuel lines, melting metal, and scorching warehouse scenes. Spider-Man Rocks! is a high-energy rock 'n' roll musical with lots of song, dance, acrobatics, loud noises, and pyrotechnics. Animal Planet Live! stars trained monkeys, pigs, hawks, and other animals doing various entertaining tricks (well, most of the time). Tip: Straight ahead of the park's main entrance on Main Street is the TV Audience Ticket Booth, where you can obtain free tickets to join the audience for any TV shows that are taping during your visit (subject to availability).Universal Studios is an exciting place for kids and teens, but just as in any theme park, lines can be brutally long; the wait for a 5-minute ride can sometimes last more than an hour. In summer, the stifling Valley heat can dog you all day. To avoid the crowds, try not to visit on weekends, school vacations, and Japanese holidays. If you're willing to pay extra money to save the hassle of standing in line, the park offers a "Front of Line" pass with -- obviously -- front-of-the-line privileges, as well as VIP passes (essentially private tours). You can also save time standing in line by purchasing and printing your tickets online. Log onto the website for more information.Located just outside the gate of Universal Studios Hollywood is Universal CityWalk (tel. 818/622-4455; www.citywalkhollywood.com), Universal Studio's version of Downtown Disney, complete with throngs of bored-looking teens. If you have any money left from the amusement park, you can spend it at this three-block-long pedestrian promenade crammed thick with flashy name-brand stores (Billabong, Fossil, Skechers, Vans), dorky nightclubs (Blues at B. B. King's, Howl at the Moon dueling piano bar, Rumba Room Latin dance club), chain restaurants (Hard Rock Cafe, Daily Grill, Jerry's Famous Deli), a six-story 3-D IMAX theater, an 18-screen cinema, a 6,200-seat amphitheater, NASCAR virtual racing, and even a bowling alley (Take that, Disney!). Entrance to CityWalk is free; it's open until 9pm on weekdays and until midnight Friday and Saturday. Tip: The sushi at the Wasabi at Citywalk restaurant (tel. 818/622-7224) was surprisingly good and very reasonably priced.
Descanso Gardens
Camellias -- evergreen flowering shrubs from China and Japan -- were the passion of amateur gardener E. Manchester Boddy, who began planting them here in 1941. Today his 160-acre Descanso Gardens contain more than 100,000 camellias in more than 600 varieties, blooming under a canopy of California oak trees. The shrubs now share the limelight with a 9-acre International Rosarium, home to hundreds of varieties. This is a very relaxing place, with paths and streams that wind through the towering forest, bordering a lake, bird sanctuary, Japanese Garden & Tea House, and Boddy House art museum. Each season features different plants: daffodils, azaleas, tulips, and lilacs in the spring; chrysanthemums in the fall; and so on. Monthly art exhibits are held in the garden's hospitality house, and the Courtyard Café offers light meals daily from 10am to 3pm. Guided tram tours, which cost $2, run Tuesday through Friday at 1, 2, and 3pm; and Saturday and Sunday at 11am and 1, 2, and 3pm. Picnicking is allowed in specified areas.
Sunset Boulevard & The Sunset Strip
Unless you were raised in a cave, you've undoubtedly heard of L.A.'s Sunset Boulevard. The most famous of the city's many legendary boulevards, it winds dozens of miles over prime real estate as it travels from Downtown to the beach, taking its travelers on both a historic and microcosmic journey that defines Los Angeles as a whole -- from tacky strip malls and historic movie studios to infamous strip clubs and some of the most coveted zip codes on earth. In fact, driving the stretch from U.S. 101 to the Pacific should be a prerequisite for all first-time visitors because it provides so perfectly what L.A. is all about: instant gratification.Bam! From the start, you'll see the original CBS Studios, where The Jack Benny Show emanated; the Hollywood Palladium, where Lawrence Welk and the Dorsey Brothers performed; the Sahara Hotel, of many a movie shoot; the Guitar Center's Hollywood RockWalk, where superstars like Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Santana, and the Van Halen brothers left handprints or signatures; the "Riot Hyatt," where The Doors, Led Zeppelin, and Guns N' Roses crashed and smashed from the '60s through the '80s; and Chateau Marmont, where Greta Garbo lived and John Belushi died.Phew! And you've barely even started. Once you pass the Chateau Marmont, you're officially cruising the Sunset Strip -- a 1 3/4-mile stretch of Sunset Boulevard from Crescent Heights Boulevard to Doheny Drive. The tour continues with The Comedy Store, where Rosanne, Robin Williams, and David Letterman rose to stardom; Dan Aykroyd's ramshackle House of Blues, where the rock stars still show up for an impromptu show; Tower Records, the largest record store in the world; the Argyle Hotel, where Clark Gable, Marilyn Monroe, and John Wayne once lived; the ultra-exclusive Skybar within the Mondrian hotel; Johnny Depp's Viper Room, where River Phoenix overdosed in 1993; Whisky A Go-Go, where The Doors were once a house band; and the Rainbow Bar & Grill, where Jimi Hendrix, Bruce Springsteen, and Bob Marley became legends.Once you emerge from the strip, things calm down considerably as you drive through the tony neighborhoods of Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Brentwood, and Pacific Palisades. By the time you've reached the ocean you'll have seen a vivid cross-section of the city and a pretty good idea of what L.A. is all about.
Make your reservations for discount hotel rooms in the
Los Angeles area, including:
Century Plaza Hotel & Spa
Despite the almost-foreboding scale, I really like this hotel. The guest rooms are more beautiful than you'd expect from a corporate resort hotel, with designer furnishings, gorgeous warm-hued textiles, attractive contemporary prints, big closets with terry robes, and almost universally impressive views from the small deck. The beautiful Italian-tile-and-glass bathrooms are some of L.A.'s best. Westin's celestial Heavenly Bed -- touted as "10 layers of heaven" -- is a treat, and the cushioned headboards are a nice finishing touch. Guest office rooms add a fax/printer/copier, an ergonomic desk chair, glare-free task lighting, a coffeemaker, late checkout, and continental breakfast for a few extra dollars. Breeze, the hotel's beautiful 250-seat restaurant and sushi bar designed by architect-of-the-moment Stephen Jacobs, is extremely popular with the L.A. elite, particularly at lunch.Adjoining the hotel is the 35,000-square-foot, Asian-inspired Spa Mystique, the largest in L.A. Features include an epic menu of traditional and Eastern treatments, 27 indoor treatment rooms and several outdoor cabanas, impressive hydrotherapy features (including two Japanese furo pools), salon services, and a fitness center with cardio machines that let you surf the Web as you pump, plus a meditation garden and alfresco spa cafe. Even if you're not staying at the hotel, it's worth a splurge to pamper yourself at this amazing spa. Tip: Get the Akasuri scrub followed by a Thai massage -- you'll be the cleanest, happiest noodle on Earth.Facilities: Restaurant and lounge; spa cafe; lobby bar; outdoor heated pool and Jacuzzi; Spa Mystique health club and sauna; concierge; Hertz car-rental desk; business center; salon; 24-hr. room service; in-room massage; laundry service; dry-cleaning service; wireless service in lobby.
Hotel Figueroa
With an artistic eye and a heartfelt commitment to budget travelers -- particularly from Europe and Japan -- owner Uno Thimansson has transformed a 1925-vintage former YWCA residence into L.A.'s best budget hotel. This enchanting 12-story property sits in an increasingly gentrified corner of Downtown, within shouting distance of the STAPLES Center and a block from the Original Pantry Cafe, the landmark 24-hour breakfast house.The big, airy lobby exudes a romantic Spanish Colonial-Gothic vibe with beamed ceilings and soaring columns, tile flooring, ceiling fans, Moroccan chandeliers, and medievalist furnishings such as big floor pillows made of Kurdish grain sacks, Persian kilims, and exotic fabrics draped from the ceiling. Elevators lead to equally artistic guest rooms that, though a bit dark and small, are very comfortable. Each comes with a firm, well-made bed with a wrought-iron headboard or canopy and a Georgia O'Keeffe-reminiscent spread, a Mexican-tiled bathroom, and Indian fabrics that double as blackout drapes. My favorite room is no. 1130, a large double-queen with a Spanish terra cotta-print chaise, but you can't go wrong with any room. The Casablanca Suite is a Moroccan pleasure den, ideal for romance. Out back you'll find a gorgeous desert-garden deck with a mosaic-tiled pool and Jacuzzi, and the Verandah Bar, the poolside place to go on warm Southern California nights for a minty mojito.
Raffles L'Ermitage
If the Beverly Hills Hotel symbolizes Hollywood opulence as it once was, L'Ermitage epitomizes what it is today. Each enormous (around 700 sq. ft.), superbly decorated room is done in a contemporary Asian-meets-Scandinavian style that exudes understatement. The real treat is the in-room technology, which includes a CD/DVD player, Bose speakers, a three-line phone system with a whopping five phones throughout the room (including a cellphone you can take with you around town), and "smart" bedside control panels that remember your lighting and climate preferences. The work desk is large, seating is copious and comfortable, carpeting is Berber, fabrics tend to tailored silk, and lighting is soft and on dimmers. The bathrooms feature a soaking tub, a shower for two, and cotton and terry robes. The faultless service includes flexible check-in/check-out and a wealth of freebies that include local and 800 calls, all nonalcoholic beverages in your minibar, customized stationery and business cards with your name and direct-dial phone and fax numbers (very slick), and complimentary DVD lending. Room service is reasonable and carries no automatic service charges. The house restaurant, JAAN, serves modern French-Indochina cuisine in an uberstylish setting. You'll love the rooftop pool as well.Facilities: Jaan Restaurant w/outdoor patio; Living Room for afternoon tea and light meals; Writer's Bar; heated rooftop pool; Amrita spa and health club; 24-hr. concierge; courtesy car; 24-hr. room service; in-room massage; laundry service; dry-cleaning service.
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