Official Language: English.
Currency: : US Dollar (US$) = 100 cents. Notes are in denominations of US$100, 50, 20, 10, 5, 2 and 1. Coins are in denominations of US$1, and 50, 25, 10, 5 and 1 cents.

Founded in 1781 by Mexican settlers, the city was given the cumbersome name of El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de Los Angeles de Porciuncula (the Town of Our Lady Queen of the Angels of Porciuncula). Since then, it has been called everything from La La Land to Tinseltown but is most commonly known simply as LA. However, Los Angeles itself is actually just the largest of 88 different incorporated cities that make up the greater metropolitan area that we think of as Los Angeles.

LOS ANGELES INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT. The airport is located 24km (15 miles) southwest of Los Angeles.

The turning point in the city’s fame came in the 1920s, when the fledgling film industry realised that it was sunshine that was missing from their film-making in New York City – and so it decamped to the West. And Hollywood, then a simple district, became famous. Today, with major studios located here, such as Paramount, Universal, Fox and Warner Brothers, it is labelled the ‘Entertainment Capital of the World’. However, there is more to LA than Hollywood. Disneyland, America’s famous fun park, which has just celebrated its 50th anniversary, is the area’s most popular site and well worth a visit. The city is also home to many world-renowned cultural institutions, such as the Museum of Contemporary Art, the LA Philharmonic (now based in the striking Walt Disney Concert Hall) and the Getty Museum. Visitors do come to see the huge Hollywood sign in Griffith Park and the mansions of the stars in Beverly Hills, but also to experience the nightlife on Sunset Strip, the beach life, the car culture and just to look at the people. LA is exuberant – there are few places in the world where the phrase ‘Express Yourself’ is taken so literally. From hippy health fanatics to muscled fitness freaks, from Art Deco lovers to devotees of off-beat religions – they all exist alongside the glamorous and the wealthy. From classic cars to silicone, LA represents people’s dreams – and thousands come seeking fame and fortune or just a new life. Los Angeles is the country’s gateway for immigrants from Asia, the Pacific Rim, Eastern Europe, Mexico and Latin America. People from 160 countries, speaking 96 different languages, make up Los Angeles.