Photo Credits: Krista. Collage created with LiPix iPhone app. March 29, 2015 Disneyland Tour of Downtown L.A. with Charles Phoenix.

Southern California is world-famous for its weather, entertainment, and architectural icons. I’m a native Californian – I lived in Ventura County (north of Los Angeles) for over three decades before moving to San Diego – and I enjoy being a tourist in my own backyard. Growing up so close to L.A., I have visited some of the landmark locations often – historical sites, museums, eateries – and thought I knew this city so many call home and millions come to visit each year. However, I recently went on a guided walking tour of downtown L.A. that took me to new places and gave me a different perspective of Los Angeles (a.k.a. The City of Angels).

I first learned about Charles Phoenix through a friend on Facebook. She would share his FB posts and I would see his updates on her timeline. If you haven’t heard of Charles Phoenix, his website (http://www.charlesphoenix.com/) describes him as a showman, author, humorist, and Ambassador of Americana. I checked out his website and started to follow his posts on FB, Instagram, and Twitter. Charles is known for posting lots of great photos of vintage cars, retro neon signs, unique culinary creations from his kitchen, and very dapper clothing ensembles. He travels around the U.S. hosting retro slide shows and other live shows that feature iconic Americana music and stories.

When I met Charles Phoenix at Dapper Day in early March (Dapper Day to be shared in a future post), he mentioned there were still spots available on his Disneyland Tour of Downtown L.A. for later in the month. Right then I decided that’s what I wanted to do to celebrate my birthday which is also at the end of March.

At first when I mentioned this L.A. walking tour to my husband, he was puzzled by my choice since he knew I had grown up going to L.A. and seeing the sites. Why in the world would I want to go there for a tour? But since this was what I wanted to do for my birthday, he was a good sport and bought the tickets.

“Rediscover Downtown Los Angeles as I have,” says your tour guide Charles Phoenix, “it’s just like a theme park! Experience the charm of MAIN STREET USA, exotica of ADVENTURELAND, wilderness of FRONTIERLAND, magic of FANTASYLAND, and future of TOMORROWLAND – all in the heart and soul of the city! You will never see downtown L.A. the same way again!”

On the morning of our tour, we drove up to L.A. from San Diego and made sure we got to Union Station with time to spare. We met the group in front of Union Station – Charles was easy to spot because he was wearing his Mickey Mouse ears. He went around and met everyone individually and then the tour got started. We started inside Union Station and from there went to Chinatown, Olvera Street, and other stops along the way. There was a lot of walking – be sure to wear comfortable shoes – but we traveled from spot to spot in a chartered bus. Along the way we did visit a couple of legendary L.A. landmarks I had seen before, but most of the tour included places I had never had the opportunity to visit previously. True to his storytelling nature, Charles had anecdotes about the places we toured and included memories about growing up in southern California. Most of his stories had elements of truth, but keep in mind he is also described as a humorist so his stories also tended to seem legendary and larger than life at times.

Future dates of Charles Phoenix’s L.A. Tours are posted on his website. He has a tour scheduled for the end of June, but it recently sold out. This is often the case for Charles’ tours, so don’t delay in getting your tickets when new dates are posted. The tour happens rain or shine and the itinerary may change without notice. At the end of the tour, I bought a keepsake book that Charles Phoenix authored called Southern California in the ’50s: Sun, Fun and Fantasy.

We had an enjoyable time on our walking tour of downtown L.A. with Charles Phoenix and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys Disney, Americana, and wants to see the City of Angels in a way you’ve never seen it before – even if you grew up in Southern California like me.

Does Charles Phoenix ever take his Mickey ears off? Krista met Charles at Disneyland’s Dapper Day in March 2015. Later that month we went on Charles Phoenix’s L.A. Tour as part of Krista’s birthday celebration. Photo credits: Lloyd. Collage created with LiPix iPhone app.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”