Shop, taste, explore, play, sample, soar (hang gliding, anyone?), learn, and see why we love everything L.A.
Trip Time: 3 Days

Day 1
Pasadena. Find treasures at a perfect example of recycling at the Rose Bowl flea market , held the second Sunday of each month. The adjacent Brookside Golf Club has two of L.A.’s finest courses.

Monrovia (11 mi/18 km: 16 min). Every Friday (Mar–Dec), Monrovia’s historic Old Town hosts an open party with food, entertainment, rides for the kids, and a lively farmers’ market. 

Claremont (18 mi/29 km: 25 min). Visit Southern California’s largest garden dedicated to native plants at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden . 

South El Monte (21 mi/34 km: 29 min). Expand your environmental education with a ranger-led tour or bird walk in the woodland oasis surrounding Whittier Narrows Nature Center.

Day 2
Los Angeles (38 mi/61 km: 47 min). Shop for hip apparel and bargain-priced, fashionable treasures along multicultural Santee Alley. Golf at posh Trump National Golf Club overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Eat green at Culver City’s Leaf Cuisine , specializing in delicious vegan cuisine. 

Santa Monica (34 mi/55 km: 41 min). Dig your toes into the sands of Santa Monica State Beach , then slip them into eco-friendly but surprisingly stylish shoes made with recycled materials and natural dyes at El Naturalista’s shop, along the ultimate shopper’s paradise, Montana Avenue.

West Hollywood and Westwood (5 mi/8 km: 11 min). Shop at the chic boutiques along Sunset Boulevard and Melrose Avenue. Discover the lovely, hidden Franklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden on the UCLA campus.

Day 3
Universal City (17 mi/30 km: 19 min). Universal Studios has gone eco: A massive solar panel system provides power for the park. Latest offerings include the raucous The Simpsons ride and an interactive look at the recent movie Coraline. 

Sylmar (17 mi/28 km: 23 min). Watch hang gliders soar off Kagel Mountain, or catch the updraft yourself on a tandem flight with Windsports Hang Gliding . 

La Cañada Flintridge (18 mi/30 km: 24 min). Stroll through irresistibly green Descanso Gardens , with paths leading to a camellia forest, a rosarium, an iris garden, and the Carriage House Art Gallery. 

Free & Easy
Catch a color explosion every evening, courtesy of sunsets at Venice Beach. Discover birds and wildlife on a self-guided nature walk in savannah and woodland habitats at the Audubon Center at L.A.’s Debs Park . The facility is one of the country’s “greenest” buildings: off the grid and run entirely on solar power. Lace up your walking shoes and explore Griffith Park, the largest city park in the country.