Things to do in Los Angeles today

Stroll through a mile-long trail filled with all things pumpkins, including an illuminated forest of jack-o’-lanterns, during Descanso Gardens’ annual Carved. For three weeks this fall (Oct 3–30), the event lines a loop of the botanical garden with pumpkins in all sorts of forms: as a sea monster rising from a pond, in thick clusters on the ground and cobbled together into a house. For the 2025 edition, Carved is introducing a new route, as well as new vignettes on the Pumpkin Trail, treats at Harvest Acres and new ghostly characters carved from logs by chainsaw. The gardens’ model trains will also be illuminated during the event, and the popular neon-hued Rhizome light sculpture will return. Tickets ($27–$45, kids $17–$30) are on sale now. Look out for the expanded Día de los Muertos ofrenda altar near the entrance on your way to the two main jack-o’-lantern areas. The first is a forested section lined with expressively carved (but fake) pumpkins, some of which have been arranged into wonderfully whimsical characters (a crow-like scarecrow and a pumpkin holding its own head, among them). Meanwhile, there’s a pavilion in the rose garden with real gourds whose designs are inspired by pop culture characters (plus a station where you can see them being carved). There are a few familiar sights if you’ve ever attended Descanso’s other holiday tradition, Enchanted, but tweaked for Halloween (stomp along the trunk-encircling platforms in the oak grove, and you’ll hear shrill...

The masters of alfresco rooftop movie viewing have returned for another season of screenings to LEVEL in Downtown L.A. Known for excellent film choices and a steady supply of snacks and booze, Rooftop Cinema Club is your snazzy, comfortable and less stressful alternative to other outdoor movie screenings. You don’t even need to bring your own camping chair—Rooftop Cinema Club provides you with your very own comfy lawn chair (with optional blankets for purchase to up the coziness). And instead of listening to the movie over loudspeakers, you’ll get a set of wireless headphones so you never have to miss a word. Find the full schedule on their site, or in our outdoor movie calendar.

The Hammer Museum’s excellent, ongoing series of biennial exhibitions ups the ante with each edition of its spotlight on emerging and under-recognized L.A. artists. This October’s exhibition—the seventh such show—will bring together works from 28 artists, spanning film, painting, theater, photography, sculpture and video, that engage with the city of Los Angeles.

This haunted Griffith Park hayride once again returns to the mid-’80s fictitious town of Midnight Falls, which borrows a little bit of the road culture of Sons of Anarchy and the isolation of Twin Peaks. And this year the Mistress of the Dark herself, Elvira, is taking up residence. The Griffith Park tradition, which has been running for 17 years now, centers on a relatively lengthy hayride, which runs on select nights from September 19 to November 2. The premise: A witch has summoned creatures that’ve hidden themselves among Halloween decorations in the town’s foothills. This year’s event promises new Elvira–themed takes on the Scary-Go-Round and Trick or Treat attraction, as well as a cozy lounge where apple cider and doughnuts provide a respite from the scares. The event’s various other attractions will be centered around the jack-o’-lantern–filled Midnight Falls Town Square, with a Janelle Monáe-headlined party manor as well axe throwing, water balloon–based paintball (or “Zombie Splat”) and the Hellbilly Halloween maze. Can I wear a costume? No. Costumes, face paint and props are not allowed. Where do I park for the Haunted Hayride? Prepaid parking is available but limited in the trio of nearby lots (Merry-Go-Round lots 1, 2 and 3). You can also park for free in the much larger L.A. Zoo parking lot and take a shuttle from the lot’s northwest corner to the event. Note: While the hayride used to take place at the Griffith Park Old Zoo, in recent years it’s moved...

West Hollywood’s chic restaurant and rooftop bar, E.P. & L.P., is serving much more than handcrafted cocktails and modern American bites. The spot also hosts Melrose Rooftop Theatre, an outdoor screening series that runs much of the year on the rooftop space attached to its open-air bar, L.P. (During the spring and summer, you’ll find a roller rink there instead.) Its all-VIP seating setup means everyone gets their own bean bag to watch a mix of cult classics and newly released films, with the audio piped in to provided sets of wireless headphones. Opt for the dinner-and-a-movie package and you’ll get a pre-show starter, main and dessert—or you can skip it and just opt for a cocktail during the movie.

This traveling horror-themed Halloween cocktail pop-up will have three locations in L.A. this year: Melrose Umbrella Club in Beverly Grove, the Corner Door in Culver City and the Ordinarie in Long Beach. Halloween lovers can sip expertly mixed cocktails amid metal music and goth decor, including the famous 12-foot-tall skeleton from Home Depot. Drink highlights include the Corpse Flower (tequila blanco, ube syrup, Giffard Banane, lime juice, sherry) and the Creature’s Curse (rice-washed rye and rum, sherry, sweet potato or pumpkin syrup, bitters). Non-alcoholic options will also be available.

The Angel City Jazz Festival presents every type of jazz you can think of over two weeks at a handful of venues across the city. Innovative jazz musicians from both the local scene and around the world will perform; the festival presents established artists as well as lesser-known emerging talent, with a focus on West Coast creative styles from some super cool cats. There are a couple of free shows on the lineup, while tickets for the rest range from $20 to $48.

Like a Halloween version of its Yuletide Cinemaland series, Street Food Cinema will turn Heritage Square Museum into a spooky, cinematic playground. On the movie side, you can catch a different double feature each night (picks include American Psycho, Ready or Not and Scream 2, among others) while embarking on Victorian home tours and adult trick-or-treating and perusing food trucks, a bar and market vendors. 

Don’t go in the water, but do go to the Academy Museum to see the largest exhibition ever dedicated to Steven Spielberg’s original summer blockbuster, Jaws—which is celebrating its 50th anniversary. The museum was already home to the last surviving model shark from filming, but now you can go behind the scenes and see some 200 original objects from the film across multiple galleries. Some highlights: a re-creation of the Orca fishing boat, the dorsal fin used both in Jaws and its sequels, costumes worn by the central trio and a room full of vintage film posters and merch promoting the film. There are interactive elements, too: You can have your own Chief Brody dolly-zoom moment (and see the lens used to film the famous shot), play the iconic John Williams two-note score and control a replica of the mechanical shark.

Walk across the grounds of the scenic King Gillette Ranch in Calabasas as the Santa Monica Mountains hideaway is illuminated with thousands of hand-carved jack-o’-lanterns. (Fun fact: Calabasas has a pumpkin-filled history—it’s actually named after the Spanish word for the gourd: “calabaza”.) Night of the Jack returns with an on-foot, mile-long trail this year, plus live pumpkin-carving, food trucks and a “Spookeasy,” too.  For 2025, the family-friendly Night of the Jack promises its biggest season yet, with new themed environments and multisensory experiences that make use of projection mapping.  Timed tickets are required each night. As is the case with all similar experiences, they’re not cheap and fluctuate ($29–$63) depending on the day of the week and time of night. Expect to spend an hour to an hour and a half there, though that could double on weekends (and closer to Halloween) when the entry crowds and food truck lines tick up.