Working in Los Angeles United States of America
The largest city in California and on the west coast of the United States, Los Angeles has a population of 3.8 million people and 18 million in its greater metropolitan area. Known as the City of Angels, It is the second most populated metropolitan area in the United States behind New York City.
Los Angeles was once part of Mexico before it joined the United States in 1848 following the Mexican-American War. Today, the city remains an ethnically diverse destination known as the entertainment capital of the world. Los Angeles experiences a sub-tropical-Mediterranean climate where average temperatures are above 20 °C in each month of the year and rainfall is limited.
- Airport
- Railway Station
- Transportation
- Cost of Living
- Accommodation
- Shopping
- Emergency
- Insurance and Healthcare
Location
Tourism Video
Airport
Los Angeles International Airport
One of the busiest airports in the world, Los Angeles International Airport (or LAX) handles close to 64 million passengers on an annual basis. It is located south-west of the city centre and consists of nine terminals. To reach LAX, passengers can use local buses, the FlyAway bus service, Metro rail, taxis or private shuttles.
Los Angeles also has several other airports including Bob Hope Airport, John Wayne Airport, Long Beach Airport, LA/Ontario International Airport, and Palm Springs International Airport.
Railway Station
Union Station
The main railway station in Los Angeles, Union Station was opened in 1939 and now handles about 60,000 passengers a day. It services national rail carrier, Amtrak, to destinations throughout the United States. It is also a key station for commuter trains, several subway lines in Los Angeles and is a major bus depot.
Transportation
Los Angeles isn’t exactly highly regarded for its public transport system. It is actually better known for its traffic congestion. However, public transport does exist in Los Angeles in the midst of this car-centric city. Public transport in Los Angeles features a metro, rail and bus network.
The metro in Los Angeles, which opened during the 1990s, consists of eight lines sparsely covering this massive city. It services areas including downtown, Koreatown, Hollywood, North Hollywood, Chinatown, Pasadena, and Long Beach. The bus network is much stronger and will take visitors to all parts of Los Angeles, albeit at a snail pace during certain periods of the day. If public transport is your thing in Los Angeles then invest in a day, weekly or monthly pass to save cash.
Cost of Living
The cost of living in Los Angeles is high by western standards for expats. According to online cost of living database Numbeo (http://www.numbeo.com/), prices for typical items on current exchange rates (June 2013) are as follows:
| Food | |
| Cheap meal (inexpensive restaurant) | $13.00 |
| Three-course meal for two at mid-range restaurant | $54.20 |
| Domestic beer (500mL) | $5.40 |
| Coke (330mL) | $1.40 |
| Milk (1 litre) | $1.15 |
| Loaf of bread | $2.70 |
| Eggs | $2.20 |
| Transport | |
| One way ticket (local transport) | $1.60 |
| Monthly pass | $81.40 |
| Petrol (1 litre) | $1.15 |
| Rent (monthly) | |
| One bedroom apartment (central area) | $1620 approx |
| Three bedroom apartment (central area) | $3000 approx |
| Accommodation | |
| Hostel bed (one night) | $30 |
| Five star hotel room (one night) | $365 |
| Average monthly salary (after tax) | $3820 |
Accommodation
Los Angeles has hundreds of accommodation options located in all parts of the city. These range from budget hotels and hostels to some of the finest hotels in the United States. The most popular areas to stay include Downtown, Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Westwood, Venice Beach and Santa Monica.
A few options top consider for your stay in Los Angeles include:
Budget
Hollywood Youth Hostel
HI-Los Angeles – Santa Monica
Same Sun Venice Beach
Mid-range
The Westin Long Beach
Almost Perfect
Élan Hotel
High-end
JW Marriott Los Angeles L.A. LIVE
The Ritz-Carlton
The Huntley Hotel Santa Monica
Shopping
Los Angeles is an excellent shopping destination for a diverse range of goods and services. The city is well-known for its mall culture that is visited by locals and tourists after up market products as well as bargains. Without a true centre to the city, much of Los Angeles’s shopping experience is fixed to the suburbs. The most popular areas for shopping include the Hollywood & Highland mall, the Grove, Westfield Century City and the Beverly Center. Los Angeles also has a large range of department stores such as Bloomingdale’s and Macy’s.
Emergency
Emergency numbers
Police / Fire / Medical emergency 911
Australian Consulate-General, Los Angeles
2029 Century Park East, 31st Floor
Los Angeles, California 90067
Telephone: 1 310 229 2300
Facsimile: 1 310 299 2380
Consular jurisdiction: Alaska, Arizona, southern California, Colorado, New Mexico, southern Nevada and Utah.
Insurance and Healthcare
Health care in the United States consists of public and private sectors. The public sector is generally provided by the government and funded by taxes. Public health care programs in the United States include Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. The system is rated highly on a global scale by the World Health Organisation, but there is a high percentage of Americans not covered by health care. The WBO also rates the quality of health facilities in the United States as excellent.
There is a higher focus on the private sector than public in the United States. This provides expats with a large number of options when choosing a health care plan in the country. Costs for private health treatment in the United State are comparable to those in Australia.
Despite a high standard of health facilities in the United States, DFAT recommends all Australians travelling to the country take out comprehensive travel insurance to cover any overseas costs.