Bikes and Hikes

I did the sunset hike at Griffith Park with Eric at Bikes and Hikes — I had such a great experience and would absolutely recommend this tour for anyone who wants to see LA from atop. Hike was manageable for all skill levels and Eric was an amazing guide — he was very knowledgeable about LA and gave me countless stories and histories of Griffith Park, the Griffith family, the Observatory, the Hollywood Sign, movies that were filmed in or near the park and so much more. I learned a great deal, while getting my workout on. Eric was super informative and entertaining, as well as professional. The hike gave stunning views of LA during the hike and I highly recommend it!

My boyfriend and I were in town for the Rose Bowl (visiting from Dallas) and while we had both traveled to LA previously for work, we wanted a fun way to see the entire city. I originally read about this tour in Vogue, and did subsequent research. I didn’t read a single bad review, and now I know why. This company provides a unique, fun product with EXCELLENT service!
We did the LA in a day tour, which is a comprehensive tour of LA — starting in Beverly Hills, to Bel-​Air, to Brentwood, to Santa Monica (uhhhh why can’t I live here!!!) to Venice Beach, Marina del Rey, and Culver City. Our tour guide couldn’t have been nicer. He was knowledgeable and comfortable to be around. I feel like we got to see all of the highlights, with bonus color commentary.
One suggestion I have is I wish they offered different tours based on your level of physical fitness. Granted, I am a triathlete so I know I ride a bike more than most, but it was frustrating at times to have to wait for one woman in particular. She was older and doing this tour on her own (which I think is awesome — props to you!!!) but not only did I feel slightly inconvenienced, I could tell that she felt bad/​was a little embarrassed she held up our tour at each and every check point. Perhaps if there was an «advanced» and «beginner» tour everyone might be better off. Overall this was an amazing experience and this minor point did not hinder our enjoyment too much.
Throughout the tour, every time we passed a double-​decker tour bus, I couldn’t help but snicker to myself — why on earth would you choose to submit yourself to such mediocrity when you could experience LA the way the cool kids do?

Thoroughly enjoyed our bike tour of Hollywood with Eric… not only a great way to see the «real» neighbourhood but so much fun and way more informative than what we imagined — definitely recommend this to family and friends ten out of ten «Bikes and Hikes» keep up the great work!

Excellent excursion. We had been to the Griffith Park area of LA before, but did not know of all the trails in the surrounding mountains. Thanks to our great guide from «Bikes and Hikes» we got to explore those, hear about the extremely interesting history and stories concerning the park, and topped the evening off with a great visit to the Griffith Park Observatory. I highly recommend this, and my wife seconds that emotion !!

Amazing! Loved our adventure with Eric! Very professional and energetic! Full of information! I’m very happy with our 32 mile 8 cities tour! I survived!

This was one of the best experiences I have ever had on vacation!
They really do a great job of getting in all of the landmarks anyone would want to see while visiting California!
Stephen was a phenomenal tour guide as well!
A+ experience overall!

What a fun way to spend the day. Our guide SJ was fantastic and even though most of us were born and raised in LA we learned so much about the history of our neighborhoods. Great bikes, great guide, great locations to visit all made our biking adventure a blast. Everyone was so helpful and accommodating. Couldn’t ask for a better experience. Definitely recommend!!!

The thirty year old woman and younger twenty year old woman who greeted us were so friendly, and were very accommodating in adjusting our bikes so that we felt comfortable. There was a little miscommunication with one of the women when I called before we came, but no biggie.
We just rented a couple bikes for 2 hours – it was only $ 8.50 an hour, and I got a free water bottle by checking in through Unilocal!Was happy with the price for renting. Also that water bottle was a lifesaver for me and my sis. The seats on our bikes didn’t have much padding, but we had a fun time biking through West Hollywood and Beverley Hills.

I decided to get bike from there because it was closer to ciclavia in Culver city m they were really nice and they even had a small map of how to get there and everything was ready. Then the girl who was showing me the bike I couldn’t help but notice was probably from Netherlands and I told her how I went there and loved the small cities and she was actually from one of them… I just got all the nice memories from there (everybody day there is much better than ciclavia), so I even wish I would go on tour with her then ciclavia… so I guess this is a surprisingly nice place and vice people :)

The good — really nice people and very responsive online and by phone. They will drop the bikes off — again — customer service is strong here. If you’re not a big biker — this shop will be ok.
The no-​so-​good — the bikes — two mountain bikes we received were really low-​end and heavy — more of a ride to the corner store while curb-​bashing hybrid than anything you’ll enjoy taking on single-​track. And they are old — most rentals turn over every year. These are tanks and kept for the long haul.
The helmet they gave me had no adjustment knob — broken off.

My husband and I did the LA in a day tour and WOW! What a super cool thing to accomplish! The best part of our tour is by far our 2 awesome and very knowledgeable tour guides (Russ and Brian). They were so much fun to be with and we very much vibed! They were positive, funny and we recommend them a thousand times! Best tour guides ever! We saw so much in one day!!!

I loved this trip. I ended up being the only person on the LA in a Day trip. My guide, S.J., was great. Very knowledgeable and personable. Even lunch was excellent! Got a great view of some of the most famous neighborhoods in the country. There are some hills on this trip. I didn’t find them to be too difficult. Long, not steep.
I had no problem finding the place. The parking could not have been more convenient. Plus, who parks for $ 5? The bike was really comfortable.
I’d go back again. Only this time I’d do the Hollywood Tour. I originally chose the LA in a Day because it was long and I wanted the exercise. If you want to see the famous landmarks, take the Hollywood Tour.

I took the 3−½ hour bike tour of Hollywood. Loved it! Eric and Nate were knowledgeable and fun, I felt like I was riding through LA history. The group was small — a total of 4 people — so we were able to cover a lot of ground. I live in New York but will definitely take another ride/​hike next time I’m in LA.

I took the LA in a day tour yesterday, with Erick and Kyle as tour guides. They knew a lot about the city and lots of information. Some of the participants were from Argentina and Erick was able to translate everything for them, which was very nice.
Even tough the tour took longer than expected, I had a lot of fun and I saw many neighborhoods in LA. I would recommend this this tour to everyone!

My husband and I did the Hollywood Hills Sunset Hike last weekend. While both of us are LA natives, and had been to the Observatory, neither of us had ever hiked in Griffith Park and we knew nothing about the history of this local treasure.
We booked our hike the same day and ended up being the only ones hiking with Erick. It was like having a private guided tour, but it didn’t feel touristy at all.
Erick was not only knowledgable, but he was also passionate about what he does, which is always great!
The hike was just the right pace for us and we totally enjoyed ourselves! We absolutely recommend it to locals and visitors alike and look forward to our next chance to hike with LA Bikes and Hikes.

My girlfriend and I took a hiking tour through Griffith Park on a Thursday in February and we ended up being the only two on the tour. I’m not sure how it is on weekends or other times of year, but it was a nice surprise to have a private tour.
Our tour guide Eric was very knowledgeable and friendly. We learned a lot about the history of the park’s namesake Griffith J. Griffith. He led a very interesting life to say the least. It was a little foggy, but there were still views of a large part of the Los Angeles area (LA, Hollywood, Glendale, etc.). There are also some good views of the Hollywood sign which we also learned the history of. We also saw some places where movies where filmed. Eric brought along a tablet to show the clips from the movies. We ended the tour with a walk through the Griffith Observatory.
In total the tour took about 3 hours. I would say that it is a pretty easy hike, but bring a water bottle. The guide brought some extra, but bring your own anyway. I would recommend it to anyone with some time in LA.

Wow what an amazing tour and history of LA, Thank you to Andrew and Michael for a grat event on August 23, 2014, I will enjoy doing it again soon.
Thank you…

Leandre was my tour guide and he was awesome. His story telling was lively and entertaining. He has learned a great deal about the artifacts he displays and was great at working with everyone to make sure they are okay.
I would definitely recommend Bikes and Hikes LA instead of one of those tour buses. As a local resident, I have never been to most of the areas that they went. It is totally unique and worth the money. Once in my life I get to be a tourist in my own city.

A friend booked a trip for a group of us for his birthday, and ostensibly paid in advance. At the last minute, he had a family emergency, and I called Bikes and Hikes to tell them what happened and see if there was any way that we could reschedule. The person who called me back was really nice and said yes. Now, my friend has been trying to reschedule, and they haven’t returned any of his calls or emails. I understand that Bikes and Hikes lost revenue the day that we canceled last minute, but of course, we wouldn’t have canceled had there not been an emergency. We shouldn’t have been told that we could reschedule if they had no intention of following through on it.

The location is somewhat secluded and too me a while to find the shop. Once inside I was greeted by a friendly staff who got me test riding a couple of bikes in no time.
Both bikes are decent (they were both hybrid) and I ended up picking a Trek 7.1 model. The gears and brakes seem to be working well and since I got the bike for the next three days I should have a good idea whether the tune — up will last or not!
The place currently has a couple of great deals: rent the bike for two days and the third is free. Also, make sure you mention that you checked in with Unilocal and you’ll get a free water bottle.
While I got a lock and helmet, I didn’t receive a vest (didn’t want it but was mentioned on the brochure) nor a bike map (would have been helpful and I forgot to ask for one in my rush to get riding!).
I’ll most likely revisit this review at the end of my rental period.