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- Historic Sites
- Museum Exhibits
- Unusual Things to Do
- Offbeat Activities
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- Things to Do Around Los Angeles
- Things to Do Near Chinese Theater - Hollywood
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1. Griffith Observatory
Made world-famous in the film Rebel Without a Cause, Griffith Observatory's bronze domes have been Hollywood Hills landmarks since 1935. Closed...
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2. Union Station
Union Station, completed in 1939, is one of the finest examples of California mission-style architecture and one of the last of America's great...
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- Landmarks
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3. Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)
For more than 50 years LACMA has been one of the finest art museums in the nation, housing a 110,000-piece collection that includes works by Degas,...
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- Art Museums/Galleries
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4. The HOLLYWOOD Sign
These famous 50-foot-high white sheet-metal letters have come to symbolize the movie industry and the city itself. The sign was erected on Mount...
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5. L.A. Central Library
This is one of L.A.'s early architectural achievements and the third-largest library in the United States. The city rallied to save the library...
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6. Hollyhock House
- Frank Lloyd Wright, a famed architect, built Hollyhock House for Aline Barnsdall in 1923. The heritage house was handed to the city in 1927, and... read more
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7. Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA)
- Japan's top architect, Arata Isozaki, built this museum in 1986. The series of bright galleries with exposed vaults display some of this century's... read more
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8. Grauman's Chinese Theatre
This is one of the world's great movie palaces and one of Hollywood's finest landmarks. The theater was opened in 1927 by impresario Sid Grauman,...
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9. Huntington Library, Art Collections & Botanical Gardens
The Huntington Library is the jewel in Pasadena's crown. The 207-acre hilltop estate was once home to industrialist and railroad magnate Henry...
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10. Angels Flight Railway
- The Angels Flight funicular is piece of historic Los Angeles that dates from 1901 when Bunker Hill was an upscale neighborhood. Since that time... read more
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The Best of NileGuide
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Los Angeles is a huge and diverse area that offers something to do for most anyone out there. This list gives a run-down of some of the more popular and well-known destinations. This is just a starting point, the fun is in discovering the quirkier sites that are perfect for you.
This list does not give very good coverage to the nearby amusement parks, which are often located farther afield in the Los Angeles/Orange County area. The big attractions are Disneyland, Six Flags, Knotts Berry Farm, and Universal City.
Griffith Observatory is an Art Deco landmark that was recently renovated and re-opened in 2006. There are a lot of fun science exhibits inside, as well as the observatory and some cool period murals. For more Art Deco goodness, check out this Los Angeles Art Deco guide. Additionally, here is a more general L.A. Architecture guide.
If you are interested sites that help reveal the storied past of the Los Angeles area, check out this L.A. Heritage guide.
A number of the larger and more fabulous Los Angeles museums are mentioned on this list. For more options, check out the top ten L.A. Museums list and Art Museums list.
Whenever I have guests visiting, I always ended up driving with them to a city park or into the nearby countryside to embark on some great walking and hiking trips. If this sounds like a viable plan for you, check out the L.A. Walking guide and Hiking guide.
Finally, we have compiled this very long L.A. Offbeat guide to you help find some Los Angeles gems that are little bit less mainstream.
