West Coast Road Trip
Los Angeles ---> Las Vegas ---> Phoenix
My family and I decided to take a little trip out west. My siblings and I had never been to California before, so we flew into LAX on a Tuesday, stayed Wednesday & Thursday night in Los Angeles, and then got a rental car and drove to Las Vegas. We stayed in Vegas Friday night and woke up early, and drove to Phoenix, stopping at the Grand Canyon along the way. It was a blast!
My first time seeing the desert!
In the desert it was hot AF so I wore this lightweight black lace dress. CLICK HERE to shop - it's less than $25!
The scenery in Phoenix was stunning!
LOVE this dress from Free People that I wore to dinner on our last night of the trip. This dress is super comfortable and flattering, plus super long and flowy. CLICK HERE to shop.
Los Angeles - Day 1
Hiking Runyon Canyon
After waking up super early to catch our flight, and spending a few hours stuck on a plane, I had to get outside and do something to stretch my legs. So, we decided to try hiking Runyon Canyon. It was super hot and very dry, but we brought lots of water & the view was well worth it. I definitely recommend wearing shoes that have a good grip on them, as we were sliding when we started to walk downhill on the unpaved parts of the trail.
I wore this pink legging/tank top set that I got from Yogalicious. Check it out HERE
Dinner in Beverly Hills
After hiking we had definitely worked up an appetite. We ate at an upscale Mexican restaurant in Beverly Hills called Toca Madera. I loved how spicy their salsa was & the chicken tacos were great. For dessert, we got a Churro Ice cream sandwich that was SO GOOD! My sister is obsessed with churros and she loved this.
Los Angeles - Day 2
Griffith Observatory + Hiking
On day 2, we woke up SUPER early and got breakfast at a cute place near our Airbnb, called Green Table Cafe. Then we caught an Uber to Griffith Observatory where we walked around a bit and then took one of the trails about halfway until we saw the Hollywood Sign. After that we were tired of hiking, so we took a few photos with the Hollywood Sign & turned around! For some reason I got very sick the first day of our travels and the dry heat didn't help at all, so it was really hard for me to breathe the majority of this trip - it made hiking kind of difficult.
Hollywood & Beverly Hills
After our mini-hike, my family got lunch at In-N-Out burger for the first time. I tried their french fries and was not impressed, so I walked down the street to Chick-fil-A! We took a little walk around the Hollywood Walk of Fame and saw a few of the stars on the ground which was cool. This area reminded me a lot like Times Square, which I hate, so I wanted to leave immediately. Thank goodness we didn't stay there long. We then took an Uber to Rodeo Drive, which was more my scene. We explored a bit and window shopped. I definitely recommend not getting a rental car if you're ever visiting L.A. It was way more convenient to just get dropped off by an Uber wherever we went, and we were able to walk to a lot of places as well.
I'm SO IN LOVE with these black mesh bike shorts that I wore on the second day of our trip. They're on sale for less than $9 --> CLICK HERE
Dinner & Dessert : Melrose Ave.
After a long day, we were starving, so we checked out Bludso's Bar & Que. We ordered family style and the chicken I had was amazing! We also got cornbread & mac & cheese. For dessert we hit up one of my favorites, Milk bar, where I got cereal milk ice cream topped with frosted flakes. I also got WAY too many treats to take home, but I shared with Brian when we got back so that's okay, right? Their birthday cake truffles are my favorite & I LOVE their compost cookies.
Los Angeles - Day 3
Santa Monica Pier
On day 3 I grabbed breakfast with a friend who lives in L.A. We went to Republique and everything we ordered was tasty. From the fresh squeezed juice, to the lemon poppyseed bread and the yogurt parfait topped with fresh fruit, it was the perfect breakfast. I then met back up with the fam., and we Ubered to Santa Monica. We rented bikes and rode around a bit, and then grabbed lunch on the pier. Riding bikes was my favorite - I hadn't been on a bike in years & it was fun! I almost crashed into a few people, but I got the hang of it towards the end!
El Matador Beach
We wanted to see the Pacific ocean and relax but it was so crowded in Santa Monica. We hit up Google and found this amazing beach, El Matador, just outside of Malibu. It was about a 35 minute Uber from where we were but it was totally worth it. El Matador beach had caves that you could explore and it was beautiful with all of the rocks in the water. You had to walk down a steep staircase off the side of a cliff to get down to the beach, and it was so awesome.
I wore this yellow dress as a swimsuit cover-up and it was SO PRETTY! It would be perfect for a photo shoot, or to wear on a date. CLICK HERE for the dress. It's less than $28.
Day 5: Seven Magic Mountains & The Grand Canyon
Seven Magic Mountains
We saw this beauty driving in to Las Vegas from L.A. and I knew we had to come back in the morning to take a few photos. I literally only came here for the gram (sorry not sorry) but it was pretty cool to see in person! Seven Magic Mountains is a desert art instillation that's become an Instagram/blogger hot-spot. We got there just in time too, because towards the end of our visit here, tons of cars started pulling up so I definitely recommend getting there as early as you can!
The Grand Canyon
It was about a 4 hour drive from Las Vegas to the South rim of the Grand Canyon but it was totally worth it. I could have stayed there and stared at the canyon all day - it was so amazing & it was my first time seeing it!
I wore this grey legging set from Yogalicious - CLICK HERE
Phoenix
We stayed at the Sanctuary Camelback Mountain Resort and the views were stunning.
This resort was SO BEAUTIFUL. Our room was so spacious, equipped with a living room, balcony with a panoramic view of the mountain, and the biggest, most luxurious bathtub.
The Infinity Pool
They actually had 3 pools to choose from, but of course I chose the infinity pool to catch a few rays, and even a beautiful sunset. The vibe here was so relaxing and the staff working here were super nice.
CLICK HERE for this super cute, boho printed swimsuit
The Gorgeous View
Camelback mountain was just stunning. The resort sits on 53 acres, with hiking trails and plenty of activities. For dinner we checked out their restaurant, Elements, that had an Asian-inspired menu and everything was delicious! Their menu was curated by their executive chef, Chef Beau MacMillan, who has starred on multiple Food Network shows! We started with the Island Creek Oysters, I had the Wild Isles Salmon which was SO GOOD, and we finished our meal with the Roasted Banana Cake, which I'm still drooling over.