🌙 At night● Now
Street tacos downtownAl pastor and birria stands open in the evening near the Fashion District.
✦ Your self-guided tour
Los Angeles
Discover the city at your own pace, with your route and your trip essentials in one place.
5 stops · about 4 h 21 · audio guide12 languages
Highlights
5 stops · about 4 h 21 · audio guide
Photos
Photos: Wikimedia Commons (each author credited) and Google.
Los Angeles: your route
Pay once. Access is saved on this device and sent by email.
5 stops · about 4 h 21 · audio guideTransport on the route: about US$24.50
Included: the full route, audio guide in 12 languages and the travel tools. Not included: museum and monument tickets, transport tickets.
💡 Good to know in Los Angeles
Practical tips before you step out.
Luggage
Leave luggage at the airport left-luggage desk or a partner storage point on the route (marked ★). Carry only essentials and your passport.
Internet
Outside EU roaming: a US data eSIM is cheap and works straight away. Free Wi‑Fi at airports, cafés and museums.
Payments
Contactless works almost everywhere, including subways and buses (OMNY, Clipper, Ventra…). Prices exclude sales tax (6–10%), added at the till.
Tipping
Tipping is expected: 18–22% at table-service restaurants, USD 1–2 per drink at bars and 15–20% for taxis. Optional at counters.
Water
Tap water is safe and restaurants serve it free with ice.
Safety
Cross only at crosswalks with the walk signal. The city is huge: combine Metro with rideshare and avoid walking at night outside tourist areas.
Sockets
Type A/B sockets, 120 V: you need an adapter; check your charger accepts 100–240 V.
Toilets
Public toilets are rare: use those in museums, malls, hotels, libraries and chain cafés.
ⓘ Practical information compiled from official and public sources in October 2026. Not yet checked on the ground in this city — if something has changed, use “Report a problem”.
Safety in Los Angeles
Emergency numbers, common scams and how to get help. Free for everyone.
Emergency911
Police (non-urgent)311
Hospital and pharmacy search around the city centre — share your location for results near you.
Look for: Pharmacy (CVS · Walgreens)
Common scams and risks
Phone snatching
Thieves on bikes or scooters grab phones from your hand. Step back from the kerb when using maps.
Pickpockets
Crowded trams, metros and queues are their workplace. Bag in front and zipped; phone never in a back pocket.
Photos with costumed people
Costumed "gladiators" and characters pose for photos and then ask for big tips. Agree a price first or decline.
After dark
Stay on busy, well-lit streets and use a taxi or ride-hailing app (Uber, Bolt) for longer trips at night. Keep phones and jewellery out of sight in empty areas.
👜 Watch your wallet in
Hollywood Boulevard (costumed characters charging for photos) · Metro B and D lines · Santa Monica Pier
🌙 At night, take extra care in
Skid Row (east of Main St.) · MacArthur Park · Empty subway stations
Keep a photo of your passport on your phone, carry just one card and some cash, and stick to busy, well-lit streets.
ⓘ Practical information compiled from official and public sources in October 2026. Not yet checked on the ground in this city — if something has changed, use “Report a problem”.
General guidance. If you're in danger, call 911 now. · Los Angeles
Everything in Los Angeles
All the useful things in one place.
🆕 Today in Los Angeles
Thursday 22 October · updated automatically every day
16° – 19°Little chance of rain
Experiences in Los Angeles
Moments, fun and events, picked for you.
Your interests
🌙 At night● Now
A concert at the Hollywood BowlThe 1922 open-air amphitheatre; bring a picnic, June to September.
🌅 At sunset
Sunset at Griffith ObservatoryThe city lights up all the way to the sea; stay for the free public telescopes.
🕐 Flexible — check opening times
Venice Beach and the skate parkMurals, the Muscle Beach outdoor gym and skaters by the sea.
🕐 Flexible — check opening times
The Getty CenterEuropean art, gardens and Pacific views; free entry, paid parking.
🏛️ History & culture of Los Angeles
How the city came to be, in a few minutes of reading.
Los Angeles (often shortened as LA or L.A.) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Southern California. With an estimated 3.87 million residents within the city limits as of 2025, it is the second-most populous city in the United States, behind New York City, and the largest city in the Western United States. The city has an ethnically and culturally diverse population, and is the principal city of a metropolitan area of 12.9 million people (2024). Greater Los Angeles, a combined statistical area that includes the Los Angeles and Riverside–San Bernardino metropolitan areas, is a sprawling metropolis of over 18 million residents.
Read the full history
The modern history of Los Angeles began in 1781 when 44 settlers from central New Spain (modern Mexico) established a permanent settlement in what is now Downtown Los Angeles, as instructed by Spanish Governor of Las Californias, Felipe de Neve, and authorized by Viceroy Antonio María de Bucareli. After sovereignty changed from Mexico to the United States in 1849, great changes came from the completion of the Santa Fe railroad line from Chicago to Los Angeles in 1885. "Overlanders" flooded in, mostly White Protestants from the Midwest and Upland South.
Los Angeles had a strong economic base in farming, oil, tourism, real estate and movies. It grew rapidly with many suburban areas inside and outside the city limits. Its motion picture industry made the city world-famous, and World War II brought new industry, especially high-tech aircraft construction. Politically the city was moderately conservative, with a weak labor union sector.
Since the 1960s, growth has slowed—and traffic delays have become infamous. Los Angeles was a pioneer in freeway development as the public transit system deteriorated. New arrivals, especially from Mexico and Asia, have transformed the demographic base since the 1960s. Old industries have declined, including farming, oil, military and aircraft, but tourism, entertainment and high-tech remain strong. Over time, droughts and wildfires have increased in frequency and become less seasonal and more year-round, further straining the city's water security.
💬 What travellers say about Los Angeles
Tips, experiences and questions from people who've been there.