World City Guide

Key Attractions

Downtown

El Pueblo de Los Angeles (and Olvera Street)
The birthplace of Los Angeles, just north of the financial district with its huge skyscrapers, is now a state historic park. In 1781, Father Junipero Serra, founder of many of California’s Spanish missions, and Don Felipe de Neve journeyed north from Mexico and established a pueblo here on the site of a former Indian village. Its name – El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de Los Angeles de Porciuncula (The Town of Our Lady Queen of the Angels of Porciuncula) – outweighed its size and it was soon shortened to Los Angeles. The 27 historic adobe buildings date from the early 19th century and pay tribute to the city’s Spanish heritage. They include the Avila Adobe, the city’s oldest home; the Old Plaza Church and the Sepulveda House, which now serves as the El Pueblo Visitor Information Center. The heart of the district is Olvera Street, a lively place with strolling mariachi bands, stalls selling Mexican handicrafts and good Mexican restaurants, some still run by the original families.

North Alameda and Spring Streets
Tel: (213) 628 1274.
Transport: Metro Red Line Union Station/Gateway Transit Center.
Opening hours: Daily 1000-1900; Mon-Sat 1000-1500 (Visitor Center).
Admission: Free.

Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA)
Housed in a striking red sandstone building designed by Japanese architect Arata Isozaki, this celebrated art museum showcases the work of leading modern artists. The permanent collection features the likes of Piet Mondrian and Mark Rothko, while temporary exhibitions highlight contemporary themes and artists of international renown. Pyramid skylights enhance the bright galleries, while the courtyard sports an attractive fountain. MOCA has a secondary site, which is located close by and accessible by free shuttle, called Geffen Contemporary, which hosts changing exhibitions in an old warehouse. MOCA’s newest third venue is at the Pacific Design Centre in West Hollywood, which focuses on contemporary architecture and design.

California Plaza, 250 South Grand Avenue
Geffen Contemporary, 152 North Central Avenue
Pacific Design Centre, 8687 Melrose Avenue, West Hollywood
Tel: (213) 626 6222.
Website: www.moca-la.org
Transport: Metro Red Line Pershing Square.
Opening hours: Mon, Fri 1100-1700 , Tues, Wed closed, Thurs 1100-2000, Sat, Sun 1100-1800.
Admission: US$8, Thurs free.

Southwest Museum
Los Angeles’ first museum, established in 1907, contains one of the foremost collections of Native American art and artefacts in the nation. Enlightening exhibits on tribal life are well presented and there are fine examples of kachina dolls, native dress and ceremonial costumes, musical instruments, ceramics, weapons, everyday objects and a large display of basketry. The museum lies just north of Downtown, on a hillside beyond Dodger Stadium.

234 Museum Drive
Tel: (323) 221 2164.
Website: www.southwestmuseum.org
Transport: Metro Bus 81 or 83 or the Gold Metro Line, Southwestern Museum station.
Opening hours: Tues-Sun 1000-1700.
Admission: US$7.50.

Walt Disney Concert Hall
The stainless steel ribbon-like exterior of the LA Philharmonic’s new home shimmers and sparkles in the sunlight. Architect Frank Gehry has outdone himself with this US$270-million, steel masterpiece which took 16 years to construct. The sleek, 2,265-seat building is said to have one of the world’s most highly developed acoustical systems. Most noteworthy is its huge organ containing 6,134 pipes ranging from pencil size to as large as 9 ¾ metres (32 ft) high.

111 South Grand Avenue
Tel: (323) 850 2000.
Website: http://wdch.laphil.com
Transport: Red Line – Pershing Square.
Opening hours: Non-matinee days 0900-1500; matinee days 0900-1030.
Admission: Self-guided audio tour are US$10; concessions available.

Hollywood

Grauman’s Chinese Theatre and the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Built by showman Sid Grauman in 1927, this is the most famous of the flamboyant picture palaces along this stretch of Hollywood Boulevard. As part of the development of the area (see Hollywood and Highland below) the theatre has been extensively renovated; the inside has been opulently restored, while the exotic oriental façade is resplendent in its pastel greens, crowned by a red pagoda roof. The ticket booth has been moved from the forecourt – which remains the main attraction here. It is where the hand and footprints of Hollywood celebrities are embedded into the cement. This signature parade started quite by accident, when actress Constance Talmadge tripped and stepped in wet cement at the grand opening. Among the more unusual signatures are Jimmy Durante’s nose and the hoof prints of Roy Roger’s horse Trigger. All kinds of characters hang out at Grauman’s. People, just looking to make a couple of bucks, dress like famous characters such as Michael Jackson, Sponge Bob Square Pants, Spiderman, Elmo and Marilyn Monroe. VIP backstage tours are about 35 minutes long and include a short film. The cinema still shows first-run movies, another way to see its lavish interior. Other Art Deco theatres nearby worth a look are Pacific El Capitan, The Egyptian and Pantages.

The Hollywood Walk of Fame passes outside the front of the Chinese Theatre. This trail of bronze stars embedded in the paving stones runs 5.5km (3.5 miles) along Hollywood Boulevard between La Brea and Gower Streets, and along Vine Street between Yucca Street and Sunset Boulevard. It honours artists in the film, television and music industries and the first star imbedded in the pavement in 1960 was one for Joanne Woodward. Today, they number well over 2,000.

Grauman’s Chinese Theatre
6925 Hollywood Boulevard
Tel: (323) 464 8111 or 323 463-9576 for tour times.
Transport: Metro Red Line Hollywood/Highland.
Opening hours: Daily 24 hours (forecourt).
Website: www.manntheatres.com/chinese
Admission: Free (forecourt); tours US$10; concessions available.

Hollywood Walk of Fame
Website: www.explorehollywood.com

Hollywood and Highland
Built around the Chinese Theatre, as part of a US$615-million plan to revitalise Hollywood Boulevard, this massive retail and entertainment complex, which opened in 2001, is known as Hollywood and Highland because of its location above the Hollywood and Highland subway station. The open-air, five-storey complex includes shops, restaurants, nightclubs, theatres, cinemas, a hotel, a ballroom and the Hollywood Motion Picture Collection. It is also home to the Kodak Theater, also known as the Academy Awards Theater as it has become the new permanent venue for the Oscars ceremony. The complex’s observation tower showcases a panoramic view of the famous Hollywood sign.

6801 Hollywood Boulevard
Tel: (323) 467 6412.
Website: www.hollywoodandhighland.com
Transport: Metro Red Line Hollywood/Highland.
Opening hours: Mon-Sat 1000-2200, Sun 1000-1900.
Admission: Free; attractions cost.

Hollywood History Museum
The Max Factor Building has been restored to its original 1935 state and now houses the Hollywood History Museum. The museum features a wide array of exhibits, including costumes and props used in Hollywood films, photographs, posters, scripts, awards and more. Displays begin with the Silent Era and work their way through Hollywood’s Golden Era, to state-of-the-art technology and the future of the industry. Particularly impressive are the special events at the museum, where the presentations on Hollywood history are given by those who actually helped to forge that history. The site will also feature a Mel’s Drive-In, a retro diner that is an example of pure Americana, made famous in the George Lucas film American Graffiti.

Max Factor Building
1660 North Highland Avenue
Tel: (323) 464 7776.
Website: www.hollywoodhistorymuseum.org
Transport: Metro Red Line Hollywood/Highland.
Opening hours: Thurs-Sun 1000-1700.
Admission: US$15; concessions available.

Universal Studios Hollywood
Part film and TV studio, part theme park, Universal Studios is one of the most popular attractions in Los Angeles. A behind-the-scenes tram tour of film sets has a simulated flash flood and collapsing bridge, as well as surprise attacks by the shark from Jaws and by King Kong. Revenge of the Mummy, a roller coaster thrill ride and Van Helsing: Fortress Dracula, which attempts to make the movie come to life, are the park’s newest offerings. With stunt shows, musical entertainment and a variety of thrill rides, such as Back to the Future, it is a lively day of Hollywood at its best.

100 Universal City Plaza
Tel: (800) UNIVERSAL (864 837725)
Website: www.universalstudios.com/hollywood
Transport: Metro Red Line Universal City.
Opening hours: Vary from month to month; between 1000-1800 and 0800-2200.
Admission: US$49.75 (one-day pass), Front of the Line Pass eliminates waiting for rides and gives visitors the best seats for shows, US$89.75. VIP Experience also includes a behind-the-scenes tour, US$135.

Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
This classic 12-storey 305-room hotel celebrated its 75th diamond anniversary in 2002. The oldest continuously operating hotel in Hollywood, the Roosevelt Hotel is listed in the National Registry of Historic Places and is a Hollywood Historic Site. It was founded by a syndicate of Hollywood luminaries in 1927 and was actually the birthplace of the Academy Awards, as the first Oscars ceremony took place here on 19 May 1929. Recently restored to its Spanish Colonial splendour, it is one of the key attractions on Hollywood Boulevard.

7000 Hollywood Boulevard
Tel: (323) 466 7000 or (800) 950 7667. Fax: (323) 462 8056.
Email: reserve@hollywoodroosevelt.com
Website: www.hollywoodroosevelt.com
Transport: Metro Red Line Hollywood/Highland
Admission: Free.

The Westside

Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits
Smack in the middle of LA, the La Brea Tar Pits are a fascinating survival from prehistoric times. They have yielded more than four million fossils (one of the largest caches in the world) from the Pleistocene Era, dating back 40,000 years. Inside the museum are the skeletons of long-extinct animals, such as the imperial mammoth, giant sloth, sabre-toothed tiger and dire wolf, who became trapped and preserved in the thick black tar, or ‘brea’, that seeped up through the ground. Visitors can watch palaeontologists cleaning and cataloguing fossils and see excavations from viewing stations beside the tar pits.

5801 Wilshire Boulevard
Tel: (323) 934 PAGE/7243.
Website: www.tarpits.org
Transport: Metro Bus 20, 21, 22 or 217.
Opening hours: Mon-Fri 0930-1700, Sat and Sun 1000-1700.
Admission: US$7; free admission the first Tuesday of each month.

Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Housed in four main buildings around a courtyard, this outstanding collection of art and artefacts forms (over 150,000 of them) is one of the leading art museums in the United States. In the enormous Ahmanson Building, art, sculpture and decorative arts from Asia, Europe and the Americas are on display. Highlights of the collection include the Indian and Southeast Asian art collection, regarded as the finest in the West; the Western Art galleries and pre-Columbian artefacts from Latin America. There is a special Japanese Pavilion, the striking, modern Robert O Anderson Building and the Bing Theater.

5905 Wilshire Boulevard
Tel: (323) 857 6000.
Website: www.lacma.org
Transport: Metro Bus 20, 21, 22 or 320.
Opening hours: Mon, Tues, Thurs 1200-2000, Fri 1200-2100, Sat and Sun 1100-2000.
Admission: US$9.

UCLA Hammer Museum of Art and Cultural Center
The main collection at this museum is an impressive display of Old Masters, Impressionist and post-Impressionist paintings, which were acquired by the late industrialist Armand Hammer. This collection is shown on a rotating basis and includes works by Constable, Rembrandt, Van Gogh and Monet, as well as a room full of lithographs by Honoré Daumier. Run by UCLA, the museum also displays exhibitions from the Grunwald Center for the Graphic Arts, which cover graphic art from the Renaissance to the present day. There is also a distinguished outdoor Sculpture Garden, as well as special exhibitions and programmes.

10899 Wilshire Boulevard
Tel: (310) 443 7000.
Website: www.hammer.ucla.edu
Transport: Metro Bus 20, 21 or 22.
Opening hours: Tues-Sat 1100-1900 (until 2100 on Thurs), Sun 1100-1700.
Admission: US$5; free Thurs.

Getty Center
From the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains, the marble terraces of the Getty Center afford spectacular panoramic views of the city, the mountains and the ocean. The unique buildings designed by architect Richard Meier employ simple forms, such as squares and circles. They contain not only J Paul Getty’s painting collection (interesting but hardly top rank), but a centre for the study of archaeology, culture, art history and humanities. The changing exhibitions vary from Byzantine art to American photographers. The galleries display sculpture, photographs, drawings, furniture and more than 100 illuminated manuscripts. Lectures, concerts and educational programmes are also held here. The Getty Center is surrounded by beautiful gardens with rare and native plants and trees. The handheld electronic Getty Guide, a self-guided audio tour, is worth the US$3 charge. Visitors should plan to stay for a whole day.

1200 Getty Center Drive
Tel: (310) 440 7300.
Website: www.getty.edu
Transport: Metro Bus 561 or Santa Monica Big Blue Bus 14; or free shuttle tram from car park on Sepulveda Boulevard and Constitution Avenue.
Opening hours: Tues-Sun 1000-1800 (until 2100 Fri and Sat).
Admission: Free.
On-site parking: US$5 (reservations essential).

Museum of Tolerance
Visitors should allow at least two hours to experience this thought-provoking museum and last entry is, in fact, two hours before closing time. The main part of the museum is devoted to the Holocaust and is a moving journey from the Jewish ghettos to Hitler’s death camps in an hour-long timed tour. The museum contains high-tech, interactive exhibits that explore racism and bigotry in America through events such as the LA riots of 1992, while the Tolerancenter focuses on major intolerance issues in daily life. Upstairs are archives and a multimedia learning centre.

9786 West Pico Boulevard
Tel: (310) 553 8403 or (800) 900 9036.
Website: www.museumoftolerance.com
Transport: Metro Bus 3, Santa Monica Municipal Bus 5 or 7.
Opening hours: Mon-Thurs 1130-1830, Fri 1130-1700, Sun 1100-1930. Fri closes 1500 Nov-Mar. Last admission 2 hours before closing time.
Admission: US$10; pre-paid admissions are advisable.

Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens
In one visit, it is virtually impossible to fit everything on this lavish estate. The former home of railroad tycoon Henry E Huntington is filled with French porcelain, tapestries, American paintings and a remarkable collection of British and French art from the 18th and 19th centuries. Famous highlights are Gainsborough’s Blue Boy and Lawrence’s Pinkie. Among the four million items in the Library are rare books and manuscripts: a Gutenberg Bible, an early 15th-century manuscript of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales and early editions of Shakespeare. Visitors should save some time to stroll in the beautiful Botanical Gardens, whose 81 hectares (200 acres) include a Japanese garden, desert garden, rose garden and changing landscapes.

1151 Oxford Road, San Marino
Tel: (626) 405 2100.
Website: www.huntington.org
Transport: Metro Bus 401 from Downtown to Pasadena, then 20-minute walk. Metro Gold Line-Allen Station.
Opening hours: Tues-Fri 1200-1630, Sat and Sun 1030-1630.
Admission: US$15.

Norton Simon Museum
This renowned collection of European art ranges from the Renaissance to the 20th century. There are works by Rembrandt, Picasso, the Impressionists, a collection of Degas’ sculptures, as well as leading works by Rodin. The sculptures from Southeast Asia and India, spanning 2000 years, are breathtaking.

411 West Colorado Boulevard, Pasadena
Tel: (626) 449 6840. Fax: (626) 796 4978.
Website: www.nortonsimon.org
Transport: Metro Bus 401 from Downtown to Pasadena, then bus 180 or take the Metro Gold Line to Del Mar Station.
Opening hours: Daily except Tues 1200-1800 (until 2100 Fri).
Admission: US$6; self-guided audio tours US$3.

Beach Cities

Santa Monica
Long and wide, Santa Monica Boulevard, if followed to its western end, comes out on Santa Monica itself. It sits at the crossroads of Pacific Coast Highway (Route One) and California Interstate 10. With its village feel, its cafés, shops and restaurants, it is one of the more people-friendly areas of Los Angeles – it has the only pedestrianised street in the city, for example. The place is famed for its 42km (26-mile) beach which includes Muscle Beach, a 1.214-hectare (3-acre) outdoor gym which sparked the fitness craze. Another famous landmark, the Santa Monica Pier, juts out into the Pacific from a wide sandy beach. It is one of the most nostalgic spots in LA. The original fishing pier was built in 1909 and another one for strolling was added in 1921, but by the 1970s both were in a shabby state. In the 1980s, a restoration programme rejuvenated the pier. Besides the original arcades (now Playland Arcade) and the carousel dating from 1916, there is now an aquarium, the UCLA Ocean Discovery Center, and Pacific Park, an amusement park with rides, a Ferris wheel, a small rollercoaster and a new tower ride which rises to 12 metres (40 ft). During the summer, there is dancing and live music on Thursday nights. A good time to go is towards the end of the day as the sunsets can be fabulous, especially at the very western end of Sunset Boulevard (obviously enough).

Santa Monica Convention & Visitors Bureau
520 Broadway, Suite 250
Tel: (800) 544 5319.
Website: www.santamonica.com

Colorado and Ocean Avenues
Tel: (310) 458 8900.
Website: www.santamonicapier.org
Transport: Metro Bus 4, 20, 22, 33, 320 or 434.
Admission: Free.

Playland Arcade
Tel: (310) 451 5133. Fax: (310) 394 1587.
Website: www.playlandarcade.com
Transport: Metro Bus 4, 20, 22, 33, 320 or 434.
Opening hours: Sun-Thurs 1000-2400, Fri and Sat 1000-0200. Changes seasonally.
Admission: Free.

UCLA Ocean Discovery Center
Tel: (310) 393 6149. Fax: (310) 393 4839.
Website: www.odc.ucla.edu
Transport: Metro Bus 4, 20, 22, 33, 320 or 434.
Opening hours: Tues-Fri 1400-1800, Sat and Sun 1230-1800.
Admission: US$5.

Pacific Park
Tel: (310) 260 8744. Fax: (310) 260 8748.
Website: www.pacpark.com
Opening hours: Sun-Thurs 1100-2300, Fri and Sat 1100-2430. Changes seasonally.
Admission: Free; plus individual rides. Unlimited wristbands: US$9.95/19.95 depending on height.

Venice Beach
Further south along the coast is the slightly more bohemian Venice Beach. Its Boardwalk, a path alongside the beach, is one of the liveliest places to view LA joie de vivre. Buskers, mime artists, painters, cyclists, palm readers and rollerbladers all mingle here, chilling out, hustling, cruising the sands, wearing colourful attire and often very little at all. There are shops, stalls and cafés for people-watching. The notorious Muscle Beach, which relocated here after the Santa Monica Pier closed in 1959, is where male and female weight lifters pec-flex in the sun. It is the place for ogling.

Marine Street to the Venice Pier
Tel: (310) 392 4687, ext 6.
Transport: Metro Bus 33.
Website: www.westland.net/venice

Marina del Rey
To the south of Venice, 40km (25 miles) from Los Angeles, are the beaches, watersports, bike and walking trails, shopping and restaurants that comprise the heart of this seaside resort town. Most activities centre around its huge man-made marina, the nation’s largest. The marina is a haven for more than 5,300 pleasure boats, so if you want to sail, fish, whale watch or cruise, this is the place.

Marina del Rey Convention & Visitors Bureau
4701 Admiralty Way
Tel: (310) 305 9545. Fax: (310) 306 6605.
Website: www.VisitTheMarina.com
Transport: Metro Bus 33.

Pasadena

Except for New Year’s Day, when all eyes turn to the Tournament of Roses Parade and Rose Bowl football game, Pasadena is a quiet place. Nestled at the foot of the San Gabriel Mountains, its tree-lined streets and open-air shopping districts, like Paseo Colorado, Salt Lake Avenue and the quaint Old Pasadena, make it a lovely place for a stroll.