The public transportation is very poor in this mega city.
The best advice is rent a car from the airport!
There is a good Mexican restaurant at Hermosa Beach and you can eat great fish at the pier at Santa Monica Boulevard.

Avoid the heavy traffic times, particularly on the larger roads.

the metro area's huge- bring a good map with you and a specific idea of where you wanna go

I would recommend the obvious one's such as Hollywood Walk Of Fame, The Kodak Theatre, if you like old school movie glamour Hollywood 'MaxFactor' Museum- these are all within walking distance of each other. Santa Monica is a must- great for dining- I can recommend the Lobster for lovely seafood, and the fashion stores are just divine- some major brands are cheaper than U.K. Rodeo Drive is as good as it looks in mags/television. If you want to see Art/Exhibitions visit J.Paul Getty Museum- I personally found it boring! Film and Television Studio Tours was ok. Hire a Bicycle and race along Venice Beach- ain't nothing like it!! For the Kid in you take a trip to Universal Studios, one or two good rides-great for children. I used the Metro Underground Service which was efficient and carriages were clean.Most importantly I didn't feel out of place or threatened. Guys do try to get you to buy things like CD's etc along the Hollywood strip- just politely tell them ur not interested and they'll leave you alone- don't banter with them or lead them on as such unless you are purchasing. Last but not least I would recommend Car Hire as unfortunatley not all these attractions/places are in walking distance. The Travel Guide booklets have great maps for areas and roads-I found these very accurate- so grab one and have a great time!

Ah... the best weather in the world .... if you wanna know why you got to ask me... hehe - You could do anything in the world there...tell me some that you think that you cant do ... and ill prove you wrong

Avoid driving as much as possible. 

Worked there for a couple years (at another motorcycle shop). I've had run ins with: Lawerence Fishburn, Kramer (from Seinfeld), Harrison Ford (previous customer from another shop), Danny Bonaducci, Dante (filipino kid from Biker Boyz), Fabio ('I can't believe its not butter')..... Great experience but tired of the plasticity, superficial stuff. Just Hollywood I guess..... there also is: walk of fame, Mann's Gromman Chinese Theater, Kodak Center, Formosa Cafe(Friday Night hang out), Miss Kitty's, Whisky Pete's, The Roxy, The Ivar, Velvet Margarita, Beauty Bar, The Cat and the Fiddle, The Vanguard, Circus, The Arena, and a slurry of clubs. At the intersection of Hollywood and Highland you can also find: Ripley's Believe It or Not, Wax Museum. Subway station on every street, and buses, but shut down at 2:00am. There are other trendy spots like Birds on Franklin ave.

LA's so big, you will need a car, for sure ! Santa Monica's good place for nightlife. Haven't been to Hollywood. Walk of fame sucks !

If you're visiting the Huntington gardens by foot or cycle, there's no separate entrance for you.  You must enter through the car parks.  Once inside the Library is a must-see!

hilton hotel was the coolest hotel. when you are in LA with a bunch of friends hire a limo its cheap between y'all and its the best way to see the city.