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The best places to visit in San Andreas - An essential and detailed tourist guide
A SAN News article
Date: 20/08/2018
Tag(s): Tourism, Attractions
Deciding what to visit in Los Santos can be a complicated task. Indeed, visiting every single one of world-famous attractions would take weeks. This brief tourist article brings to you, the reader, the most essential places to visit. Without further ado, here are the most visited and significant locations in San Andreas.
The Lighthouse
Recently, in 2015, they installed a Scuba Diving zone, where you can dive (with an assisting expert for newbies), and see the jellyfish. However, this feature is only available during the weekends of June, July, and August.
From left to right: Front nocturnal view of the Lighthouse, the ground floor with "Clams and Mussels", rear view with the scuba diving booth, and a rear diurnal view of the lighthouse
The "Fairground dock"
In Santa Maria Beach, near the Lighthouse, you can visit this big dock, with plenty of booths that sell fast food, and the famous Ferris Wheel. The Ferris Wheel is a 25 meter wheel, that will make you see the entire beach of Los Santos. We had the opportunity to talk with the owner of the bar and grill next to the ride.
Q: So, how's working in this bar?
A: I have worked here for 25 years. Times are demanding, so we must work with professionalism and speed.
Q: How many tourists come here?
A: It depends on the season. We close from November to April. The first two and last two months of this season, the work rate has been low, about 100 customers per day. In summer, tourist numbers can reach 1000, even 1500.
Q: Simply put, do you earn a fair amount of money with this business?
A: About 300000$ per year. This place is really strategical and profitable thanks to the position and the facilities.
In conclusion, if you stop for a coffee after a ride on the Ferris Wheel, be ready to wait for hours if it's August.
From left to right: Ferris Wheel, "The Brown Starfish Bar", a typical booth, a view of all of the 3 from the beach
The Little Mexico exibition center
Estabilished in 1990, this new building hosts every kind of exibition, from art, to sculptures, to filmography. There is also a flea market the 3rd Sunday of every month. Outside the hall, there is a little refreshment area. Just go up the escalators, and you're there. We took photos of the internal hall, where the exibition-staff were disassembling the statues.
Disclaimer: The statues may resemble pornographic scenes. Viewer discretion is advised.
From left to right: Nocturnal view of the refreshment area, the glass ceiling of the exhibition center, the stautes being disassembled, the plaza (accessible by the rear door of the exhibition hall)
The shopping center
In the market district, near the hospital, lies the biggest shopping center in the entire city of Los Santos.
Here you can find everything necessary for shopping: Clothing stores if you want a T-shirt with a "I LOVE LS", 24/7's if you need various objects, all kinds of restaurants (from home-cooked to fast food), and even a couple of gun stores. Basically, you can buy everything necessary for a holiday.
From left to right: The entrance, diagonal side view of the ground floor, View of the 1st floor, and view of the red towers, a symbol of the mall.
The mayor's house
The mayor's house is located on a hill, in Verdant Bluffs.
Certainly, our mayor is the richest person registered as a resident in Los Santos; just take a look at his enormous mansion. There even is an observatory.
We sat down for a little talk with the mayor of the city, to learn more about the building.
Mayor: "The house was built a couple of years ago on the base of an observatory. This is an official house where the mayors of Los Santos live. [...] Certainly, I would run for the mayor again; not just for the satisfaction of serving the people, but also because of the house itself!"
Mount Chiliad
If you want to see a more natural tourist attraction, well, Mount Chiliad is what you are looking for.
Standing at 1328 meters tall, it's a must to see. It now features a bmx park, and the possibility to spend the night at the top of the mountain, if you have a camper or caravan. Parking tickets can be bought at the town of Whetstone beneath the mount.
Every day, there are buses which go up the mountain. Tickets for them can be bought at the same places where you pay a ticket for the camping on top of the mount. They usually start at the bottom of Mt. Chiliad at 8:30 a.m., and come back every 2 hours. The last ride from the mountain to the town is at 7:00 p.m.
Every Sunday, you can climb the mountain with your personal vehicle, but you have to be sure that it's strong enough to go up the mountain. You will require a 4WD vehicle at the very least.
The ascent can be also made on a bicycle. If you wish to try this, however, you must be an expert, as the terrain is sloped and rough.
At the top of the mountain, you can see a wooden patio, with a commemorative plaque that talks about the discovery of the mountain, and the first climb up to the peak.
From left to right: View of the mountain at 0/600 meters, the sign at the top of the mountain with network director Strickland laying on it, and a beautiful view from the peak.
Credits and notes
Credits to: John Strickland and Jack Garrison for most of the images, owner of "The brown starfish bar" for the interview, the mayor of Los Santos for the pictures at the mansion.
Notes for the viewer
- As a digital article, you can click on the images to make them appear at fullscreen
- The Mount Chiliad photos have been taken by experts. Please refrain from doing it yourself, if not experienced
