Los Angeles
We’ve compiled the best of the best in Los Angeles - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
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1. Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens
If you have time for just one stop in the Pasadena area, be sure to see this sprawling estate built for railroad tycoon Henry E. Huntington in the early 1900s. Henry and his wife, Arabella (who was also his aunt by marriage), voraciously collected rare books and manuscripts, botanical specimens, and 18th-century British art. The institution they established became one of the most extraordinary cultural complexes in the world. The library contains more than 700,000 books and 4 million manuscripts, including one of the world's biggest history of science collections and a Gutenberg Bible. Don't resist being lured outside into the 130-acre Botanical Gardens, which extend out from the main building. The 10-acre Desert Garden has one of the world's largest groups of mature cacti and other succulents (visit on a cool morning or late afternoon). The Shakespeare Garden, meanwhile, blooms with plants mentioned in Shakespeare's works. The Japanese Garden features an authentic ceremonial teahouse built in Kyoto in the 1960s, and will soon see the addition of another historic building. A waterfall flows from the teahouse to the ponds below. The Chinese Garden, which is among the largest outside China, sinews around waveless pools. The Bing Children's Garden lets tiny tots explore the ancient elements of water, fire, air, and earth. Several on-site dining options are available, including the Rose Garden Tea Room, where afternoon tea is served (reserve in advance). A 1¼-hour guided tour of the Botanical Gardens is led by docents at posted times, and a free brochure with a map and property highlights is available in the entrance pavilion. Tickets for a monthly free-admission day are snapped up within minutes online, so plan carefully.
1151 Oxford Rd., San Marino, California, 91108, USA626-405–2100Sight Details
Rate Includes: From $25; free admission 1st Thurs. of every month with advance ticket, Closed Tues. -
2. Norton Simon Museum
As seen in the New Year's Day Tournament of Roses Parade, this low-profile brown building is one of the finest midsize museums anywhere, with a collection that spans more than 2,000 years of Western and Asian art. It all began in the 1950s when Norton Simon (Hunt-Wesson Foods, McCalls Corporation, and Canada Dry) started collecting works by Degas, Renoir, Gauguin, and Cézanne. His collection grew to include works by old masters and impressionists, modern works from Europe, and Indian and Southeast Asian art. Today the museum is richest in works by Rembrandt, Picasso, and, most of all, Degas. Head down to the bottom floor to see temporary exhibits and phenomenal Southeast Asian and Indian sculptures and artifacts, where pieces like a Ban Chiang blackware vessel date back to well before 1000 BC. Don't miss a living artwork outdoors: the garden, conceived by noted Southern California landscape designer Nancy Goslee Power. The tranquil pond was inspired by Monet's gardens at Giverny.
View Tours and Activities411 W. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, California, 91105, USA626-449–6840Sight Details
Rate Includes: $15, Closed Tues. and Wed. -
3. Rose Bowl and Flea Market
With an enormous rose on its exterior, this 90,000-plus-seat stadium is home to the UCLA Bruins and the annual Rose Bowl Game on New Year’s Day, and also regularly sees performances from the biggest recording artists in the world. Set at the bottom of a wide arroyo in Brookside Park, the facility is closed except during games, concerts, and special events like its famed Flea Market, a Southern California institution. The massively popular and eclectic event, which happens the second Sunday of each month (rain or shine), deservedly draws crowds that come to find deals from more than 2,500 vendors on goods including mid-century and antique furniture, vintage clothing, pop culture collectibles, books, and music. Food and drink options are on hand to keep shoppers satiated, parking is free, and general admission is just $9, but VIP/early-bird options are available for a little extra. Crowds tend to peak midday. Bring cash to avoid an inevitable line at the ATM, and feel free to try your hand at haggling.
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4. Descanso Gardens
La Cañada/FlintridgeGetting its name from the Spanish word for "rest," this 160-acre oasis is a respite from city life, shaded by massive oak trees. Known for being a smaller, mellower version of the nearby Huntington, Descanso Gardens features denser foliage, quaint dirt paths, and some hilly climbs that can make for good exercise. It's the perfect place to come in search of wonderful scents—between the lilacs, the acres of roses, and the forest of California redwoods, pines, and junipers, you can enjoy all sorts of fragrances. A forest of California live oak trees makes a dramatic backdrop for thousands of camellias and azaleas and the breathtaking 5-acre International Rosarium holding 1,700 varieties of antique and modern roses. There are also a gift shop, a historic home, and a café.
1418 Descanso Dr., Los Angeles, California, 91011, USA818-949–4200Sight Details
Rate Includes: $15; often free 3rd Tues. of month -
5. Kidspace Children's Museum
Museum/GalleryStraight out of a Looney Tunes cartoon, this activity-focused playground with oversize replicas of familiar objects offers lessons along with some fun. The whole family can gain tidbits of knowledge on earthquakes, animals, and insects. Explore gravity in the Physics Forest, which features 12 interactive experiences. In the sunny atrium, kids assume the role of ants on their daring ascent. Outside they can run and climb along a running river or take on a tricycle race. The museum is practically designed to wear out the little ones and give parents a much-needed break.
480 N. Arroyo Blvd., Pasadena, California, 91103, USA626-449–9144Sight Details
Rate Includes: $13, Closed Mon., unless promoted for special events -
Recommended Fodor’s Video
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6. Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden
Wander through a re-created tropical forest, a South African landscape, or the Australian outback at this family-friendly arboretum. One highlight is the tropical greenhouse, with carnivorous-looking orchids and a pond full of brilliantly colored goldfish. The house and stables of the eccentric real-estate pioneer Lucky Baldwin are well-preserved and worth a visit. Kids will love the many peacocks and waterfowl that roam the property. The most recent additions include a new forest pathway and the Garden of Quiet Reflection, filled with contemplative quotes, a sundial, and East Asian flora.
301 N. Baldwin Ave., Arcadia, California, 91007, USA626-821–3222Sight Details
Rate Includes: $15; free 3rd Tues. of month with advance ticket -
7. Old Town Pasadena
This 22-block historic district contains a vibrant mix of restored 19th-century brick buildings interspersed with contemporary architecture. Chain stores have muscled in, but there are still some homegrown shops, plenty of tempting cafés and restaurants, and a bustling beer scene. In recent years, a vibrant Asian food scene has popped up in the vicinity as well. In the evening and on weekends, the streets are packed with people. Old Town's main action takes place on Colorado Boulevard between Pasadena Avenue and Arroyo Parkway.
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8. The Gamble House
Built by Charles and Henry Greene in 1908, this American Arts and Crafts bungalow illustrates the incredible craftsmanship that went into early L.A. architecture. The term "bungalow" can be misleading, since the Gamble House is a huge three-story home. To wealthy Easterners such as the Gambles (as in Procter & Gamble), this type of vacation home seemed informal compared with their mansions back home. Admirers swoon over the teak staircase and cabinetry, the Greene and Greene–designed furniture, and an Emil Lange glass door. The dark exterior has broad eaves, with sleeping porches on the second floor. An hour-long, docent-led tour of the Gamble's interior will draw your eye to the exquisite details. For those who want to see more of the Greene and Greene homes, there are guided walks around the historic Arroyo Terrace neighborhood. Advance tickets are highly recommended. Film buffs might recognize this as Doc Brown's house from Back to the Future.
4 Westmoreland Pl., Pasadena, California, 91103, USA626-793–3334Sight Details
Rate Includes: $15, Closed Mon. and Wed. -
9. The Old Mill (El Molino Viejo)
Built in 1816 as a gristmill for the San Gabriel Mission, the mill is the state's oldest commercial building and one of the last remaining examples in Southern California of Spanish Mission architecture. The thick adobe walls and textured ceiling rafters give the interior a sense of quiet strength. Be sure to step into the back room, now a gallery with rotating quarterly exhibits. Outside, a chipped section of the mill's exterior reveals the layers of brick, ground seashell paste, and ox blood used to hold the structure together. The surrounding gardens are reason enough to visit, with a flower-decked arbor and old sycamores and oaks. In summer, the Capitol Ensemble performs in the garden.
1120 Old Mill Rd., San Marino, California, 91108, USA626-449–5458Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free, Closed Mon. -
10. Tournament House (Wrigley Mansion)
Chewing gum magnate William Wrigley purchased this white Italian Renaissance–style house in 1914. After Wrigley died in 1932, his wife Ada lived there until she died in 1958; The Wrigley family then donated the house to the city of Pasadena under the stipulation that it be used as the headquarters for the Tournament of Roses. The mansion features a green tile roof and manicured rose garden with 1,500 varieties. The interior provides a glimpse of the area's over-the-top style in the early 20th century. Tours of the house are every Thursday from 2 to 3 from April to August; fans of the Rose Parade can see the various crowns and tiaras worn by former Rose Queens, plus trophies and memorabilia.
391 S. Orange Grove Blvd., Pasadena, California, 91105, USA626-449–4100Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free
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