Where to stay in Los Angeles

Hollywood Boulevard's stars and movie palaces, the Metro B line and the city's cheapest central rooms. Gritty after dark; the hills and the views are just above it.

The Broad, Disney Hall and Grand Central Market, with the Arts District's warehouses and restaurants to the east. Good-value hotels and the hub of the Metro; the streets are quiet at night outside the bars.

The pier, the beach path and the shopping streets, with the Metro E line to downtown. The most walkable base in Los Angeles, cool by the sea and expensive.

Muscle Beach and the boardwalk, the canals a few blocks inland and the restaurants of Abbot Kinney Boulevard. Bohemian and busy; stay a block or two back from the sand.

East of Hollywood around the reservoir: coffee shops, small restaurants and record stores, with Griffith Park and the Observatory on the doorstep.

The Beverly Hills Hotel, the gardens of the Hotel Bel-Air and Rodeo Drive, between the Getty and West Hollywood. Calm, green and entirely car-dependent.