Los Angeles

★5.0
Downtown Los Angeles skyline at sunset with Mount Baldy in the background

Downtown Los Angeles sunset with Mount Baldy in the background
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Los Angeles Travel Guide

Largest city in California and the second most populous city in the United States is known for its Mediterranean climate, ethnic diversity, Hollywood entertainment industry, and its sprawling metropolis.

Top Locations

Downtown Los Angeles

★ 4.0

Central business district of Los Angeles covering 5.84 sq mi. divided into districts named for the activities concentrated there now or historically, including the Arts, Civic Center, Fashion, Banking, Theater, Toy, and Jewelry districts

Hollywood Boulevard Commercial and Entertainment District

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Hollywood

★ 5.0

Neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it

★ 5.0

Vibrant commercial street lined with boutique shops, art galleries, restaurants, and cafés known for its creative atmosphere and pedestrian-friendly design.

★ 4.0

Public aquarium featuring a collection of over 11,000 animals representing over 500 different species sees 1.5 million visitors a year

★ 4.0

A steep hillside park featuring a dramatic staircase and winding trail leading to panoramic views of the surrounding basin, coastline, and mountains.

Beverly Hills House

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★ 4.0

City surrounded by the cities of Los Angeles and West Hollywood is home to many celebrities, luxury hotels, and the Rodeo Drive shopping district

★ 5.0

Museum dedicated to African American history, art, and culture, featuring exhibitions that explore the achievements, experiences, and contributions of African Americans in California and beyond.

Echo Park Lake with Downtown Los Angeles Skyline

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★ 3.0

Interactive science museum featuring hands-on exhibits, space artifacts, ecosystems displays, and immersive IMAX films designed to inspire learning and exploration.

California Science Center

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★ 5.0

Interactive science and space museum celebrating innovation, exploration, and the legacy of the Space Shuttle Columbia through hands-on exhibits and educational experiences.

Cerritos Library

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★ 5.0

Award-winning public library featuring innovative architecture, extensive collections, interactive technology, study spaces, and educational resources for visitors of all ages.

Echo Park Lake with Downtown Los Angeles Skyline

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★ 3.0

Urban park centered around a scenic lake with walking paths, paddle boat rentals, lotus beds, and open green spaces for recreation and relaxation.

SR 110 South Academy Road Exit from Elysian Park

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★ 3.0

Expansive urban park featuring rugged hills, scenic viewpoints, picnic areas, and a network of trails that wind through natural landscapes and historic landscaped sections.

SR 110 South Academy Road Exit from Elysian Park

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★ 3.0

Expansive hillside preserve offering scenic trails, native woodlands, and a tranquil pond surrounded by wildlife and educational facilities.

Exposition Park Rose Garden

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★ 3.0

Large urban cultural park featuring museums, sports venues, landscaped gardens, and open recreational spaces designed for education, events, and outdoor activities.

Gamble House

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★ 3.5

Historic Craftsman-style residence showcasing detailed woodwork, handcrafted furnishings, and architectural design elements that exemplify early 20th-century American residential craftsmanship.

★ 5.0

Museum well known for its architecture, gardens, and views overlooking Los Angeles, featuring pre-20th-century European paintings, drawings, sculpture, and decorative arts; and photographs from the 1830s through present day from all over the world

★ 4.0

Recreated ancient Roman-style seaside estate featuring classical architecture, antiquities collections, gardens, and coastal views inspired by historic Mediterranean villas.

★ 5.0

Contemporary art museum featuring rotating exhibitions, collections of modern works, film screenings, and public programs in a minimalist architectural setting.

★ 5.0

Popular fast-food restaurant known for freshly prepared burgers and fries, located near an airport runway with clear views of arriving and departing aircraft.

★ 5.0

Contemporary art museum dedicated to Latin American and Latino art, featuring diverse exhibitions that explore culture, identity, history, and creative expression from across the Americas.

★ 5.0

Mountain overlook park featuring a historic former missile and radar site with sweeping panoramic views of the coastline, valleys, and surrounding peaks.

★ 3.5

Open-air shopping and entertainment complex featuring retail stores, restaurants, a movie theater, and landscaped plazas designed for leisure and social gatherings.

Huntington Library

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★ 4.0

Collections-based educational and research institution houses an extensive art collection with a focus on 18th- and 19th-century European art and 17th- to mid-20th-century American art.

Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area, Los Angeles

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★ 3.0

Expansive urban park offering scenic trails, picnic areas, sports facilities, and panoramic views of Los Angeles.

Korean Bell of Friendship

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★ 3.0

Large ornate bronze bell housed in a traditional pavilion overlooking coastal cliffs, symbolizing international friendship and cultural exchange through historic craftsmanship.

La Brea Tar Pits

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★ 3.5

Group of tar pits formed in urban Los Angeles where tar has preserved the bones of trapped animals. The George C. Page Museum is dedicated to researching the tar pits and displaying specimens from the animals that died there

Long Beach, California

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★ 3.0

Coastal city offering a blend of urban attractions, waterfront recreation, and cultural landmarks centered around a vibrant harbor.

★ 5.0

Largest art museum in the western United States attracts nearly a million visitors annually and holds more than 150,000 works spanning the history of art from ancient times to the present

Clothing store on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles, California

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★ 3.5

Shopping, dining and entertainment destination that starts at Santa Monica Boulevard with its most famous section, known as the Melrose District, at the West End through West Hollywood and Hollywood

★ 3.5

Art museum located in Pasadena, California includes European paintings, sculptures, and tapestries; Asian sculptures, paintings, and woodblock prints. Outside sculptures surround the museum, with notable Rodin sculptures near its entrance and other sculptures

★ 4.0

Area of food stalls, sit-down eateries, prepared food vendors, and produce markets is a historic Los Angeles landmark and tourist attraction

Petersen Automotive Museum

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★ 3.5

One of the world's largest automotive museums, the Petersen Automotive Museum is a nonprofit organization specializing in automobile history and related educational programs

Queen Mary in Long Beach, CA

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★ 5.0

Retired British ocean liner that now serves as hotel and museum frequented by travelers looking to learn about its history and get a glimpse into the luxury of the past

Randy's Donuts iconic giant donut sign, Inglewood, Los Angeles

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★ 3.5

Famous bakery known for its giant rooftop donut and wide variety of handmade donuts served 24/7 through walk-up and drive-thru windows.

Rodeo Drive

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★ 4.0

Renown two-mile-long street in Beverly Hills known for celebrity and premiere luxury shopping destination

Mount Baldy Hike in San Gabriel Mountains

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★ 4.0

Mountain range located between the Los Angeles Basin and the Mojave Desert, and lies in, and is surrounded by, the Angeles and San Bernardino National Forests

★ 4.5

Pier at the foot of Colorado Avenue in Santa Monica, California, containing a small amusement park, concession stands, and areas for views and fishing. The pier contains Pacific Park, a family amusement park with its solar panelled Ferris wheel

Sony Pictures Studios Motor Gate

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★ 4.0

Television and film studio complex houses the division's film studios with lot open to the public for daily studio tours

Third Street Promenade

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★ 3.0

Pedestrian mall esplanade, shopping, dining and entertainment complex in the downtown area of Santa Monica considered a premier shopping and dining district

Hogwarts Castle at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Universal Studios Hollywood

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★ 4.0

Film studio and theme park initially created to offer tours of the real Universal Studios sets and is the first of many full-fledged Universal Studios Theme Parks located across the world

A Port Side View of the Battleship USS Iowa at the Port of Los Angeles

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★ 3.5

Maritime museum located at the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro. The museum's main artifact is the USS Iowa (BB-61), lead ship of the Iowa class of battleships

★ 4.0

Labeled as "a cultural hub known for its eccentricities" as well as a "global tourist destination" includes promenade that runs parallel to the beach, Muscle Beach, and the Venice Beach Recreation Center

Venice Canal Historic District

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★ 3.5

Historic district noteworthy for possessing man-made wetland canals, built in 1905 by developer Abbot Kinney as part of his Venice of America

Vista Hermosa Natural Park

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★ 5.0

Urban natural park featuring walking trails, grassy meadows, picnic areas, and scenic skyline views within a thoughtfully designed native landscape.

Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood

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★ 4.0

Guided and walkthrough studio tour of Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank in Los Angeles offers visitors the chance to glimpse behind the scenes of one of the oldest film studios in the world

Wayfarers Chapel

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★ 3.5

Chapel, also known as "The Glass Church", noted for its unique organic architecture and location on cliffs above the Pacific Ocean

★ 3.0

Beach park located in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles extending one and three quarters miles along the coast

Overview

Los Angeles is California’s largest city and the second largest in the United States, a sprawling, sunny, culturally diverse metropolis famous as the capital of the entertainment industry. Visitors come for Hollywood and its studios, the beaches of Santa Monica, Venice and Malibu, world-class museums, celebrity-studded neighborhoods, theme parks, mountains and desert within reach, and one of the country’s best food scenes. Its Mediterranean climate offers sunshine most of the year.

Los Angeles was founded in 1781 as a Spanish pueblo and grew with the arrival of railroads, oil, citrus and, in the early 20th century, the film industry. Hollywood merged with the city in 1910, and by 1921 more than 80% of the world’s films were made here. The city is billed as the “Creative Capital of the World,” hosts the Academy, Emmy and Grammy Awards, and will host the 2028 Summer Olympics.

Top landmarks and attractions include the Hollywood Sign, Griffith Observatory, the Getty Center and Getty Villa, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Hollywood Bowl, Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, the Venice Canal Historic District and boardwalk, Olvera Street, the Watts Towers, the Battleship USS Iowa, Angels Flight and Rodeo Drive. The San Gabriel Mountains, including Mount Baldy at over 10,000 feet, rise just north of the city.

Los Angeles is one of the country’s great sports cities. The Dodgers (MLB) play at Dodger Stadium, the Lakers and Kings at Crypto.com Arena, the Clippers (NBA) at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, and the Rams and Chargers (NFL) at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood. The Angels (MLB) play in nearby Anaheim, and the LA Galaxy, LAFC and Sparks round out the pro scene. College football fans follow the UCLA Bruins and the USC Trojans, a historic rivalry, and the Coliseum will again host the Olympics.

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "Los Angeles", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0

J.smith, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons ; Image Size Adjusted

J.smith, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons ; Image Size Adjusted

J.smith, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons ; Image Size Adjusted

J.smith, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons ; Image Size Adjusted
© Pierre André, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons; Image Size Adjusted