THE GROVE

"The Grove is a popular fashion and lifestyle destination offering the best mix of retail, restaurants and entertainment in Los Angeles."

A very famous hotspot in LA is The Grove. This is an open air shopping, restaurant and entertainment mall. You can find anything here: from Zara and Topshop, to Chloé and Apple - every possible store, from low to high end is found here. I ended up doing some shopping at Zara, Brandy Melville and the Apple store, and ordered a café latte and pasta from the restaurant called La Piazza. The Grove is definitely a nice place to visit if you want to do some shopping, but I would not recommend spending a lot of time here.

You can find more info about The Grove here.

Address: 189 The Grove Dr, Los Angeles, California.

CARRERA CAFE

"Carrera Cafe is a charming European style Cafe with delicious salads and Italian subs. Fine espresso based drinks and lovely people."

If you're looking for the coolest and most Instagrammable coffee, Carrera Cafe is the place to go. Have you always dreamt of having your favorite quote or Ryan Gosling's face on a latte? Carrera Cafe can actually make those dreams reality. They are able to "print" an image as real latte art on any cup of coffee - this is called the ripple effect. I ended up going for a latte with Boss Lady on it and some delicious waffles with strawberries and whipped cream. Not only has Carrera Cafe one of the best lattes I've tried since moving to the US, their interior is also Instagram worthy af!

You can find more info about Carrera Cafe here.

Address: 8251 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles, California.

MADE IN LA WALL

"If you have ever wondered where all the LA it-girls find the perfect artsy walls to take their Instagram ootd pictures, this is one of the hottest spots."

Visiting a hotspot for the perfect Instagram picture is one thing, but finding that Instafamous wall for the perfect pic is another. Before I visited LA, I knew I wanted to take some wall art pictures for my Insta feed, because I've seen so many of my favorite Instagrammers do the same. Kal and I ended up visiting the Made In LA wall, a super cool wall that will look good on any more minimalistic Instagram feed. You can find the exact address down below, so you're able to visited as well. You're welcome. 😉

Address: Cisco Home 8025 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, California.

SANTA MONICA PIER

"Santa Monica Pier celebrates and honors the birthplace of Southern California's iconic beach culture through competition, awareness and entertainment."

If you want to have a chill day in LA, go to Santa Monica Pier. Not only is this an iconic place in LA, it also has a lovely relaxing yet uplifting atmosphere. Unfortunately Kal and I didn't have time for a full beach day, so we decided to do something more active instead. We rented a bike from one of the local bike shops and did a bike trip from Santa Monica Pier all the way to Venice Beach. It was a lovely ride and I would highly recommend it to anyone that is going to Los Angeles!

You can find more info about the Santa Monica Pier here.

Address: 200 Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica, California.

CAFÉ GRATITUDE

"Café Gratitude is a collection of plant-based restaurants specializing in gourmet cuisines. We strive to create a menu and environment that supports health and sustainability for both our community and the planet."

Café Gratitude was a hotspot I heard so much about, so it was definitely a place I wanted to visit during my trip to LA. Café Gratitude is a completely vegan or plant-based restaurant with lots of healthy and tasty dishes to try out. As a vegetarian, I love trying out places that are focused on vegetarian and vegan cuisine. I ordered a juice and a pasta. Personally, I did not love the juice. It was the Succulent / Energy, and it was made using spinach, cucumber, celery, pineapple, ginger, and lime. I thought the taste of ginger was too strong - however, it is really good for you, so I did finish it. However, the pasta I ordered was amazing. It was called the Liberated / Raw Pesto Kelp Noodles, and it was the BEST vegan pasta I've ever tried. It was made with heirloom cherry tomatoes, basil hempseed pesto, olives, arugula, cashew ricotta, and brazil nut parmesan. I literally couldn't taste that it wasn't made using any dairy products, because it was that smooth and creamy. I would highly recommend visiting Café Gratitude during your LA trip, just skip the ginger in the smoothies and juices. 😉

You can find more info about Café Gratitude here.

Address: 512 Rose Ave, Venice, Los Angeles, California.

Griffith's Observatory

"Southern California’s gateway to the cosmos! Visitors can look through telescopes, explore exhibits, see live shows in the Samuel Oschin Planetarium, and enjoy spectacular views of Los Angeles and the Hollywood Sign."

If you are into stars, galaxies, and other wonderous things like that, you have to go to Griffith's Observatory during your stay in Los Angeles. As the name suggests, Griffith's Observatory is an observatory that lets you planet and stargaze through their telescope. It's located on the top of the hill, close to the Hollywood Sign, and with a beautiful view looking down on LA. I definitely had a great time here enjoying the sunset. However, make sure you bring a warm sweater or jacket with you - it gets super cold during the nights!

You can find more info about Griffith's Observatory here.

Address: 2800 E Observatory Rd, Los Angeles, California.

The Butcher's Daughter

"The Butcher’s Daughter is a plant-based restaurant, cafe, juice bar and “vegetable slaughterhouse." We treat fruits and vegetables as a butcher would meat: We chop, fillet and carve fresh produce into healthy vegetarian dishes and press them into pretty juices."

If you have read my New York City Instagram Hotspot Guide as well, you will have known that I've already been to The Butcher's Daughter in NYC. The Butcher's Daughter is a vegetarian restaurant only, meaning that for all fellow vegetarians like me, this place is a must visit! I especially recommend their smoothies, but their pizza was also really good. Furthermore, the interior if this hotspot is to die for: You can find pretty sitting boots, cute cacti, and rose gold accessories everywhere!

You can find more info about The Butcher's Daughter here.

Address: 205 Abbot Kinney Blvd, Venice, California.

JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL PARK

"Two distinct desert ecosystems, the Mojave and the Colorado, come together in Joshua Tree National Park. A fascinating variety of plants and animals make their homes in a land sculpted by strong winds and occasional torrents of rain."

Even though I did not find LA as amazing as everyone said it was, Joshua Tree National Park is a completely different story. It was magical. The day I've spend there felt like a movie adventure - arriving early in the afternoon and leaving after watching the stars. During our trip, we visited Hidden Valley (must visit for the best pictures + animal spotting), Baker Dam (nice too, but not as good as Hidden Valley), Skull Rock (the famous skull-shaped rock, but it was kind of disappointing in my opinion), and Keys View (often quite misty, but still a beautiful place to watch the sunset or sunrise from). Joshua Tree was definitely the highlight of my trip, and I cannot wait to go back there soon. I am obsessed with all the cute lizards I've seen during this roadtrip, and I felt like I was in a real life nature documentary when I spotted the rattle snake. Definitely an adventure I will never forget, and I will recommend to anyone visiting LA or Cali.

You can find more info about Joshua Tree National Park here.

Address: 74485 National Park Drive, Twentynine Palms, California.