Universal Studios and Universal CityWalk are perched on the hillside adjacent to the 101 Freeway, at the gateway to the Valley. Mission San Fernando Rey de España, the historic mission from which the basin derives its name, is at the Valley’s northernmost border. Vibrant downtown Burbank and Studio City cater to the Industry set. Welcome to “the other side” of the hill.

Universal City
Just north from Hollywood sits Universal CityWalk, a colorful mini-city adjacent to Universal Studios Hollywood with “65 cool things to do,” including an Imax theater, NASCAR Speedway, Hard Rock Cafe, B.B. King’s Blues Club and shops and restaurants. Gibson Amphitheatre is adjacent.

Hip bars and restaurants including Firefly, Minibar and Clear have helped launch a nightlife scene.

The Studios
Headquarters for Warner Bros., NBC and Disney are in Burbank, business center of the San Fernando Valley. Warner Bros. Studios and NBC Studios offer back-lot tours; all of the studios recruit audience members for tapings of sitcoms and talk shows. Ticketing agencies such as Audiences Unlimited are the best means to secure free tickets to tapings; contact NBC directly for tickets to The Tonight Show With Jay Leno. Restaurants including French 75, cater to the studios; the first Bob’s Big Boy diner is a mid-century landmark. Also near the studios is the intimate Falcon Theatre.

Downtown Burbank and NoHo
A vibrant downtown, offering an “urban zen” experience ideal for strolling, is off Interstate 5 at Burbank Boulevard. Ra Organic Spa and Granville are typical of hip new retailers in the area. Tenants at Burbank Town Center include Macy’s, more than 300 boutiques and restaurants and the AMC Theatres. The center screens blockbuster and family films at an outdoor film series in the summer.

Burbank’s dual-terminal Bob Hope Airport is convenient for visitors heading to the Valley as well as nearby Pasadena and Hollywood. North Hollywood, due east of the airport, is the final stop of the Metro Red Line subway, which runs through Hollywood to downtown. The popular new Metro Orange Line busway starts here and runs west across the Valley.

North Hollywood is home to the NoHo Arts District (between Cahuenga, Tujunga and Burbank boulevards and Camarillo Street), a collection of some 20 theaters plus art galleries, dance studios and restaurants.

Glendale
Pleasant downtown Glendale is farther east, along Brand Boulevard and Central Avenue south of the 134 Freeway. Alex Theatre, a restored 1925 movie palace, is now a performing arts center. Biotherm and Swarovski boutiques are among offerings at Glendale Galleria.

Ventura Boulevard
Cahuenga Boulevard becomes Ventura Boulevard in Studio City, just west of the 101 Freeway near Universal Studios. Immortalized by Tom Petty in “Free Fallin’” and the setting for countless films, the iconic, palm-lined boulevard runs through the San Fernando Valley for 20 miles.

Between the 101 and 405 freeways, Ventura Boulevard offers an eclectic mix of boutiques, beauty stops and restaurants. Celeb haunts in Studio City and Sherman Oaks include Belle Gray boutique and Fred Segal-esque Stacey Todd; Kirsten Dunst’s mother owns Belle Visage spa.

When it’s time to nosh, upscale Bistro Garden at Coldwater, hip La Loggia and L.A.’s venerable sushi row—standouts include Katsu-ya, Sushi Nozawa and Teru Sushi—comfortably commingle along the boulevard. It’s rumored that chef Nozawa inspired Seinfeld’s “Soup Nazi.”

Bloomingdale’s anchors Westfield Fashion Square; also there are Sephora, Betsey Johnson and Max Studio boutiques.

Outposts
Farther west, a bevy of restaurants including Roy’s Hawaiian Fusion have opened at Warner Center in Woodland Hills, the end of the Metro Orange Line. Air Force One is permanently grounded in the new Air Force One Pavilion at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum near Simi Valley. Find Six Flags Magic Mountain, roller coaster capital of the world, in Valencia, north of the Valley off Interstate 5.

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