Michael Juliano

With 70-degree-plus days nearly year-round, Angelenos are spoiled with things to do outside. Whether it’s January or July, L.A.’s best hikes (including hikes with waterfalls) are rarely off the table—and the same can even be said for beaches, too. Now, you might not exactly want to actually go in the water (even in late summer, the ocean temperature barely hits 70), but you’ll certainly want to be by the water. And with miles of picturesque coastline from Malibu to the South Bay, the best beaches in Los Angeles are aplenty for outdoor enthusiasts, surfers, families, sun worshippers and beach bunnies (and at a couple of dog beaches, for pups). If you’re new to L.A., there are a few oceanfront weather basics you should know: On hot days, the beach is typically 10 degrees cooler than central parts of L.A. and 20 degrees cooler than the Valley. (The exception: Long Beach tends to be in lockstep with L.A. temps.) Sometimes—particularly toward the beginning of summer—you might have clear blue skies inland but the beach is all fogged in; that marine layer tends to burn off in the afternoon, but sometimes it sticks around all day. From Venice and Santa Monica to Manhattan Beach and Playa Vista, here are the best beaches in L.A. to sunbathe, surf and play at. RECOMMENDED: See the best things to do in Los Angeles Just a heads up: Pacific Coast Highway is currently closed from Chautauqua Boulevard in Santa Monica to Sweetwater Canyon Drive in Malibu—meaning that all of the Malibu beache

Looking forward to L.A. Pride? Well now you have two blockbuster events to look forward to, with a pair of parades and festivals in both West Hollywood and Hollywood. Here’s the deal: The L.A. Pride Parade, the long-running LGBTQ+ event produced by Christopher Street West that traces its history back to the 1970s, moved east into Hollywood starting in 2022 (and even farther east with a ticketed festival at L.A. State Historic Park). Meanwhile, back at the event’s familiar location from the past few decades, West Hollywood now stages its own inclusive festival, WeHo Pride, complete with a parade and a ticketed festival at West Hollywood Park. Here we’ll be focusing on the L.A. Pride Parade—but if you want info on WeHo Pride, we have a separate guide dedicated to that fest. Each one takes over a separate weekend, so you thankfully won’t have to choose one over the other. With that bit of intro info out of the way, here’s everything else you need to know about this year’s L.A. Pride Parade. RECOMMENDED: Our full guide to L.A. Pride

One of our favorite things about L.A.—aside from, you know, all of the things to do in L.A.—is that you can leave its urban sprawl at a moment’s notice and quickly find yourself surrounded by nature. Sometimes that means setting aside time for a whole weekend getaway (hello, Vegas or Big Sur) while a few others are even within day trip territory (maybe Joshua Tree?). But regardless of many miles you’re willing to put in, this list has a destination for every kind of traveler. We’ve also specifically settled on spots that make for great road trips—meaning the journey is just as important as the things to see and do at each destination. That’s specifically the case for some of the bigger destinations in this list; we have entire guides dedicated ti nearby desert and Bay Area cities(which we link to below), so we’re instead suggesting where road-tripping Angelenos should stop along the way. (Oh, and if you want to ditch your car entirely, we also have a separate story on our favorite train trips from L.A.) So hop in the car, crank up the tunes and take your pick of scenery: Forest, beach, desert and mountain landscapes all make up these gorgeous road trips from L.A. Happy travels!  RECOMMENDED: The best day trips from Los Angeles This article includes affiliate links. These links have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, click here.

Whether your tastes run classic or contemporary, there’s a delicious sandwich for you in Los Angeles. After all, it’s not hard to stumble across a decent sandwich at a burger stand, farmers’ market, food truck or grocery store—but what about the truly great between-bread experiences, from the crunchy-soft baguette of a budget-friendly banh mi to the wonders of sliced rye, our preferred vehicle for pastrami delivery? Though not all of these shops specialize in a traditional, counter-style sandwich shop experience, these standout L.A. sandwiches are all worth a try in their own right. Some menus run large, others small; others are tried-and-true, while others run more artisan new-school than anything else. Over two years of continuously updating this guide, I tried over 175 sandwiches from 65 different purveyors—so you can trust that I've seen it all when it comes to all things nestled between two slices of bread. Without further ado, here are L.A.’s very best sandwich shops (excluding the bagel and fried chicken varieties, which deserve lists all of their own)—because the humble sandwich is worth celebrating every day of the year.  Editor’s note: I’ve added two new outstanding sandwich shops for 2025: Dan’s Super Subs in Woodland Hills and Mamie in West Hollywood.

There’s this charmingly corny old PBS special, Things That Aren’t Here Anymore, that reminisces about when seemingly everything in L.A. used to cost a nickel. As Los Angeles has gotten frustratingly more expensive in recent years, I’ve found myself slipping into that same nostalgic trap: Remember when dollar tacos actually cost a dollar? Or when Griffith Observatory parking was free? But then I stop and think about this city’s wealth of free museums and its miles of public coastline, and I remember that there are plenty of incredible free things to do in L.A.—perhaps even more so here than in any other nearby city I can think of. Sure, we may live in a celebrity-driven town where indulging at the best restaurants and bars, working out and pampering ourselves are the norm, but we still jump at the chance for free things (or nominally priced items, like L.A.’s best cheap eats). Read on for the best free things to do and places to visit across L.A., for tourists and locals alike. In addition to this all-the-time list, lots of fun, free events are always popping up. Make sure to check out our monthly selection of free things to do. RECOMMENDED: Full guide to the best things to do in Los Angeles

Memorial Day weekend? Must mean summer. Even in a place that’s blessed with perpetually pleasant weather, the long weekend seems to signal a change of seasons with the sudden onset of even more outdoor movies and concerts. Whether you’re looking to spend some time on the beach, at a music festival, at a fun fair or even indoors at a new museum exhibiton, you’ll find plenty to do during the three-day weekend with these Memorial Day events in Los Angeles. RECOMMENDED: See more things to do during Memorial Day weekend in Los Angeles

So you want to be in close proximity to L.A.’s best beaches? Or maybe within a short drive of as many must-see Los Angeles attractions as possible? Or why not both? These hotels in Los Angeles are the perfect place, and regardless of what your plans are, a trip spent exploring one of the best cities in the U.S. means you’ve got to have an equally great place to rest your head for the night.  A budget-friendly hotel is a great option for those looking for cheaper alternatives (hello, extra spending money) but—if your travel planning allows—a place as gorgeous and exciting as Los Angeles deserves to be experienced as decadently and comfortably as possible. These accommodations manage to check those marks and more—and have earned a spot in our list of the very best hotels in Los Angeles. RECOMMENDED:🏨 Check out the most unique Airbnbs in Los Angeles💰 Discover the most luxurious Airbnb rentals in Los Angeles❤️ The most romantic hotels in Los Angeles This guide was written by L.A.-based writer Michael Juliano. At Time Out, all of our travel guides are written by local writers who know their cities inside out. For more about how we curate, see our editorial guidelines. While we might not stay in every hotel featured below, we've based our list on top reviews and amenities to find you the best stays. This article includes affiliate links. These links have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, see our affiliate guidelines.

Looking for the best things to do in Los Angeles? We have you covered with the very best that L.A. has to offer. I’m a Los Angeles native and have lived here all my life, and take it from me: There’s always more to discover and explore. Whether you’re a culture vulture, an outdoorsy type or simply a lover of our fine city, you’ll find more than enough here to keep you busy. Even lifelong Angelenos can find something new to add to their to-do list, between the city’s landmark attractions, an ever-changing inventory of the best restaurants in Los Angeles, essential L.A. museums and even some off-the-beaten path secrets. How many of the best things to do in Los Angeles will you try? May 2025: It may not be summer yet, but all of the city’s best alfresco events are already popping up. Cinespia is back in action, kicking off its season of programming over Memorial Day weekend, as are several other of the city’s outdoor film series. The L.A. County Fair offers more outdoor fun, and Pasadena plays host to three genre-spanning music festivals in May. And perched a mile high in the San Gabriel Mountains, the Mount Wilson Observatory has a full calendar of talks, concerts and film screenings starting this month. Note: In the wake of the Los Angeles wildfires, we’ve temporarily removed the Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine, Temescal Gateway Park and Eaton Canyon Falls from our list, as at press time the beloved L.A. attractions were still closed. You can also find out more about 

It’s not too tricky to score an invite to the Magic Castle, Hollywood’s members-only magician clubhouse. Since 1963, the century-old Victorian mansion has served as the sort-of-secretive home base for the Academy of Magical Arts. Step inside—reservations and formal dress are required, and no photos, please—and you’ll find performance parlors, secret doors, mysterious illusions and—well, we don’t want to ruin all of the surprises in store. Instead of spending years practicing your craft as a wannabe magician, you can gain access to the Magic Castle via these ways below (ranked from easiest to most difficult).  

Outdoor movies combine two things we love about L.A.: an appreciation of movie-making and spending as much time as possible outside. Alfresco screenings usually start to surge across the city in the early spring and continue into the fall and holiday season, be it atop rooftop bars, at L.A.’s best parks or even at a Hollywood cemetery. Most of our favorite outdoor series fall into two formats: Alfresco screenings where moviegoers bring their own chair or blanket and can pack together some picnic food, and rooftop ones where you’ll be offered a seat and some on-site snacks as you catch films both old and new. (If you’re looking for a fun date idea, this one takes the cake.) Be sure to check back all year long for updates on the list, as new screenings are always being added. Looking to see a new movie any night of the week? Check out the best movie theaters in L.A. or the few remaining old-school drive-in movie theaters. And for some at-home inspiration, you can always catch up on the best L.A. movies of all time. For screenings with multiple movies on a single night, each film is separately ticketed unless otherwise noted. Also, unannounced schedule changes tend to occur, but we’ll do our best to keep the list below updated on at least a monthly basis.

What happens when an orphaned sea lion pup is stranded on the shore? Or when animal actors reach the end of their careers? These wildlife sanctuaries in and around Los Angeles rescue and rehabilitate animals and sometimes reintroduce them into the wild—and welcome visitors and volunteers, too. If you’ve ever wanted to pet cute animals like a fennec fox or groom a baboon, set course for these sanctuaries tucked into canyons by the beach, mountain valleys and suburban backyards. Just note that about half of these spots are in the San Fernando Valley or between Santa Clarita and the Antelope Valley—in other words, they get hot in the summer, so keep that in mind before you plan a visit.

Each year, the Coachella lineup manages to mix together familiar music festival headliners, out-of-left-field reunions and under-the-radar buzz bands. Get the rundown of every artist playing the fest with the full Coachella 2025 lineup—and the schedule info for both weekends of the fest. RECOMMENDED: See everything else you need to know in this year’s Coachella guide Find epic Airbnbs to rent near Coachella Who’s headlining the Coachella 2025 lineup? Lady Gaga, Green Day, Post Malone and Travis Scott will headline 2025’s festival, with additional sets from Missy Elliott, Charli XCX, the Original Misfits, Megan Thee Stallion, Zedd and more. This year’s fest takes place April 11 to 13 and 18 to 20. When will the Coachella set times be released? They’re here—and they’ve arrived considerably earlier than the past couple of years. The schedule for both weekends was shared a few days before the start of the fest (we’ve since removed the first weekend from this page), and you’ll find them below. With three days of sets across eight main stages (plus two side ones, Heineken House and Do LaB), there’s a lot of music, so here are the times you’re probably most interested in knowing about: Lady Gaga plays at 11:10pm on Friday; Charli XCX starts at 7:20pm on Saturday followed by Green Day at 9:05pm and Travis Scott at 11:40pm; and Post Malone performs at 10:25pm on Sunday. Also of note: Weezer was added as a surprise last-minute addition to weekend one’s Saturday schedule (3:10pm), but E

Everyone’s favorite NPR member station has a hand in a slew of summer concert slates at public plazas and beloved museums, and this summer’s schedule is reliably packed. Familiar KCRW DJs and local buzz bands will be providing free, open-air tunes on select nights from June through September at Union Station, CAAM, Descanso Gardens, Bowers Museum, Wende Museum, the Autry, Benny Boy Brewing, Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes, California Plaza and—our favorite—the party-till-midnight bashes at Chinatown Central Plaza. The details slightly differ at each spot, but you can typically expect a bunch of food trucks, beer gardens and after-hours museum admission. This year, there’s even a kid-oriented installment at the Kidspace Children’s Museum, where DJ Lance Rock of Yo Gabba Gabba is the special guest. Regardless of the location, you really can’t go wrong with any evening spent at Summer Nights. (Note: The kickoff June 7 event at Benny Boy Brewing and Aug. 29’s Descanso Gardens event are only for KCRW members).

This epic (and free) outdoor concert series features live performances by artists from around the world at the totally overhauled California Plaza stage in DTLA, where the shallow water separating the stage from the audience has been replaced by a proper event lawn. Don’t miss a diverse and highly intriguing mix of bands, DJ sets and dance parties. Saturday nights from June 14 through August 23 you’ll find free concerts (though you should RSVP ahead of time to reserve a spot)—highlights this year include a 30-year anniversary show by Grand Performances mainstay Ozomatli and tributes to John Coltrane and Dr. Dre. And on Friday nights, you’ll find a mix of poetry, film and classical music during Fridays in the Amphitheater. 

Hilltop sunset views and rising bands combine to make this Getty tradition a worthy destination for Angelenos on both sides of the 405. This year’s lineup of free Saturday-night shows includes SML (May 31), Madi Diaz (July 12), Empress Of (July 26) and Emile Mosseri (Aug 23). Tip: Avoid the traffic and the crowds and arrive early, preferably after 3pm when the parking price drops to $15 (though it’s actually free if you wait until the show starts, after 6pm). You’ll get to visit the exhibits, which stay open until 8pm on Saturdays, and beat the dinner rush.

It isn’t summer in L.A. until the first cemetery screening brings hoards of movie-lovers to Hollywood Forever Cemetery, toting folding chairs, picnic blankets, snack spreads and lots of booze. Each year, Cinespia brings classic cult favorites to the hallowed resting place of such Hollywood greats as Rudolph Valentino and Bugsy Siegel. The series typically releases its slate one month at a time, with summertime screenings at the cemetery and a few off-site ones on either end (usually at L.A. State Historic Park). For each evening at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, pack a picnic (yes, booze is allowed), pose in the photo booth and enjoy DJ sets, dance parties and all sorts of other magical mischief that’d otherwise be strictly forbidden behind the cemetery gates. The outdoor screenings are an L.A. rite of passage, a quintessential summer experience and one of the best film venues in the city. Just be sure to get your ticket early, arrive early, pee early… it’s a popular affair, to say the least.

What if there was a scare-free version of Halloween Horror Nights for fraidy cats (like me)? That’s the quickest way I can sum up Universal Fan Fest Nights, a new after-hours event at the L.A. theme park. The open-till-2am specially-ticketed series runs on select nights from April 25 to May 18 and brings together an unexpected mix of franchises for walk-throughs (Back to the Future, Dungeons & Dragons, Star Trek), character photo ops (One Piece, Wicked) and screenings (Jujutsu Kaisen). The Wizarding World of Harry Potter has a new castle projection show, “Hogwarts Always,” for the occasion, along with appearances from the platypus-esque Niffler and serpentine Occamy. And Super Nintendo World sees the debut of meet-and-greets with Yoshi.  The clear standout, though, is the Back to the Future experience, an interactive recreation of Hill Valley in 1955 on the very same section of the backlot where the 1985 film was shot. Hop aboard the studio tour tram and you’ll be whisked down to Courthouse Square, where you can roam around on foot as familiar scenes spontaneously play out around you (and actors may even chat you up in-character). It’s just an absolute delight, and I’d definitely encourage you to spend enough time down here to see every possible scene from Marty McFly, Doc Brown and the rest of the lead characters. Elsewhere, the Dungeons & Dragons walk-through looks mostly cool (particularly an excellent Xanathar puppet crafted by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop), though a bit of

BTS, Minions and cute plush in one store? Meet the new LINE FRIENDS SQUARE at Universal CityWalk Hollywood. Born out of messaging app emoji, the Korean store already has a Hollywood location stuffed with cute plush. But this new one is full of CityWalk-only items, like headbands, hats, keychains and some old-school Universal mascots (think: Woody Woodpecker, Felix the Cat, Casper) that you can pin onto the brand’s Coller line of customizable bags. The main selling point here, though, is the signature K-pop group tie-ins, including BT21, a group of adorable characters inspired by the members of BTS. The shop plans to roll out limited-edition lines for other K-pop groups about twice a year, and expect those items to sell out very quickly. You’ll find the store, interestingly enough, right across from the Sanrio shop and café.

Listen to classical and jazz in a dome more than a mile above L.A. during this mountaintop concert series. The Mount Wilson Observatory is hosting monthly concerts this summer inside the dome of its 100-inch Hooker telescope, which was the largest telescope in the world for much of the first half of the 20th century. Tickets cost $60 (that also includes access to the exhibit at the observatory) and it’s highly recommended that you buy them in advance since seating is limited. You’ll need to be able to climb 53 steps to reach the dome, and children under 12 aren’t permitted. 

Pasadena certainly doesn’t come up short when it comes to green space. But among all those parks and plazas, Arlington Garden is—surprisingly—the only public garden in the city. Walk among sycamores and succulents in this Mediterranean-inspired sanctuary and navigate a seven circuit labyrinth. Once a staging ground for the scrapped extension of the 710 freeway, it’s now a community space (for people and on-leash pets alike) filled with native Southern California flora. The water-conscious plantings here look well-maintained without feeling overly manicured; the result is a serene escape mere blocks from some of Pasadena’s busiest areas. Look out for meet-ups for environmentally-minded folks plus yoga classes and sales of the garden’s grown-on-site sweet orange marmalade.

This U.S.-via-France arts-and-culture marathon of performances, discussions and screenings explores the important theme of common ground. Highlights include a walking meditation in the Wende Museum’s garden; stargazing on the rooftop of the Kaufman Cultural Center; panels on literature’s power to transcend borders, L.A.’s upcoming Olympics-hosting plans, and AI and ethics; a line dance party; and a Haitian storytelling session—all for free. 

The history of moviemaking finally has a home in Los Angeles with the arrival of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. Located next to LACMA in the Wilshire May Company buildling and in a new and expanded space designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Renzo Piano, the museum features four full floors of gallery space, two theaters (including a 1,000-seat space in that giant glassy sphere) a restaurant and a gift shop. RECOMMENDED: Check out our full guide to the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. The Academy’s collection includes the sorts of cinematic treasures you’d expect from the people who put on the Oscars: During a visit you might see the Rosebud sled from Citizen Kane, Dorothy’s ruby red slippers, R2-D2 and C-3PO, the Dude’s robe from The Big Lebowski, the sole surviving shark from Jaws and the flowery May Queen dress from Midsommar, among many others. You’ll also find a revolving set of galleries dedicated to specific creators and industry crafts, plus special exhibitions that are swapped out at least once a year.  Timed reservations are encouraged (but not required) and available via the museum’s website. Tickets (which include admission to all exhibitions) cost $25 for adults, $19 for seniors (62 and up), $15 for students, and are free for visitors 17 and younger and CA residents with an EBT card. An immersive installation dubbed the Oscars Experience, where you can hold a real Oscar and practice your acceptance speech, costs an additional $10. Outdoor public

The Hammer Museum’s excellent, ongoing series of biennial exhibitions ups the ante each year with its spotlight on emerging and under-recognized L.A. artists. Though its theme is still to come, this October’s edition—the seventh such show—will bring together works from 27 artists.

Free timed tickets recommended. Infinity Mirrored Room requires a reservation. Three words: Infinity Mirror Rooms. Downtown’s persistently popular contemporary art museum has two of Yayoi Kusama’s immersive, mirror-laden rooms (one that you merely peek into, another more immersive one that you step into). Elsewhere in the free museum, Eli and Edythe Broad’s collection of 2,000 post-war works includes artists like Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Ed Ruscha, Cindy Sherman, Barbara Kruger, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Jeff Koons. Outside, the museum’s plaza features a lovely olive tree grove that sometimes hosts programming. The museum has been an exciting addition to L.A.’s roster of institutions, though its encyclopedic survey of high-priced gallery prizes can feel a little safe at times (with some spectacle pieces mixed in). And though the gallery experience is pleasant, its vault and veil design appears much more opaque and heavier than it should. That said, there’s one design element we just love: the between-floors window that offers a peek into the collection storage. The Broad opened in 2015 with an inaugural exhibition featuring Jasper Johns, Cy Twombly, Kruger, Warhol, Lichtenstein, Keith Haring and more rock stars of the 20th century—plus a whole lot of Koons. Standout installations included Ragnar Kjartansson’s beautiful nine-screen video piece The Visitors and an endless field of LEDs in Kusama’s Infinity Mirrored Room—The Souls of Millions of Light Years Away (which you

We really want to believe that traffic won’t be an issue for Los Angeles’ “no-car” turn at hosting the Olympics in 2028. After all, the city will have more Metro expansions finished by then, a pivotal people mover at LAX and a fleet of Summer Games-specific buses—plus none of L.A.’s traffic fears came to pass during the 1984 Olympics. But, you know, just in case the traffic doomers are proven right, maybe an air taxi isn’t a bad backup. On Wednesday, Archer Aviation announced that it’s been chosen as the official air taxi provider for the LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games, as well as for Team USA. So what exactly does that mean? The San Jose-based company’s electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) vehicles, dubbed Midnight, will transport fans and VIPs and shuttle emergency services to vertiports at SoFi Stadium and the L.A. Memorial Coliseum (as well as all local airports, as outlined in the company’s initial network announcement last year). Expect 10-to-20-minute rides between key Olympics venues. Rendering: Courtesy Archer Aviation Of course, you probably haven’t actually seen Midnight airborne yet; the four-person electric vehicle, which Archer says produces less noise and emissions than a traditional helicopter, was first announced with a 2026 service target, and the vehicles are still in the process of achieving FAA certification. As for pricing? In an interview with the L.A. Times, Archer Aviation CEO Adam Goldstein said the cost would be similar to a high-end r

There’s clearly an insatiable appetite for live film score performances in the Los Angeles area. John Williams has been a fixture at the Hollywood Bowl for decades, as has, more recently, Danny Elfman and a slew of orchestra-backed movie screenings. It’s spilled into the music festival circuit, too; I can very distinctly remember its apparent origin, when the Coachella 2017 crowd lost its collective mind over Hans Zimmer’s performance of his themes from Pirates of the Caribbean and Interstellar. So kudos to award-winning composer duo Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, who are putting together an entire one-day-only festival with some of the coolest and most legendary film and television composers on the lineup. Future Ruins will take over the Los Angeles Equestrian Center on November 8, and it’ll bring with it a blockbuster lineup of folks behind some of your favorite moody movie music, including Danny Elfman, John Carpenter and more than a dozen other composers behind films and shows like The White Lotus, Stranger Things, Joker and many, many more. “There’s no headliner. There’s no hierarchy. This is a stacked lineup of visionaries doing something you might not see again,” say Reznor and Ross in a statement (they’re on the lineup too—though you can also catch them in September at the Forum under Reznor’s more storied Nine Inch Nails moniker). Expect three stages at the outdoor Burbank venue with a mix of electronic, live band and orchestral performances, including appearances fr

Four miles of new subway tracks will completely transform how Angelenos can commute to and from parts of the Westside by the end of this year. The first phase of Metro’s D Line extension, slated to open later in 2025, will extend service underneath Wilshire Boulevard from Koreatown to just past the Beverly Hills border—and eventually as far west as UCLA. But transit riders, particularly those in K-town, will have to tolerate a couple months of commuting pain before we can get there: Metro announced that it’ll temporarily close the entire D Line (formerly known as the Purple Line) for 70 days, starting on Saturday, May 17 at the start of service through the end of service on Friday, July 25, in order to connect its current terminus at Wilshire/Western with three upcoming stations to the west. The D Line is the shortest of Metro’s half-dozen rail lines, and of its eight stops, the six in Downtown L.A. and Westlake are shared with the B Line (Red). Thankfully, that means all of those stations will continue to have rail service during the closure due to the DTLA-to-North Hollywood B Line. In Downtown L.A. specifically, Metro says you can expect trains to increase from every 12 minutes to every 8 minutes (until 7pm on weekdays and after 7am on weekends). Courtesy Metro But it’s a much different story for the two stops west of there in Koreatown: Wilshire/Western and Wilshire/Normandie. With those two stations completely out of service, Metro will instead operate a temporary 855

The Paris Olympics’ riverfront opening ceremony route along the Seine probably had some Angelenos wondering if Los Angeles would alter its own plans for 2028 and try something equally inventive. Alas, you’ll have to keep dreaming as the city’s Olympic organizers have formally unveiled their plans—and they seemingly don’t involve a parade of athletes on the 110-105 interchange à la La La Land. As expected, LA28 announced on Thursday that the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and SoFi Stadium will share hosting duties for the opening and closing ceremonies for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games. How exactly they’ll divide up the blockbuster event remains to be seen. LA28 says that both locations will “feature artistic elements.” But we’ll have to wait for “specific activities to be identified” further on in the development process—inevitably, only one will be able to actually hoist the Olympic flag. (For what it’s worth, L.A. mayor Karen Bass referred to the Coliseum as the “heartbeat” of the Olympics during a press conference on Thursday.) In a bid book from 2017, organizers proposed a “Hollywood-produced program” of live music at the Coliseum; the Olympic torch would then leave that stadium and head toward Inglewood, where SoFi would host the formal ceremonies, including the parade of nations and Olympic oath. But that information is roughly eight years old at this point, back when L.A. was initially bidding for the 2024 Olympics and SoFi was nothing more than a dirt field sti

Oh, Oceanwide Plaza… The trio of Crypto.com Arena–adjacent towers began construction a decade ago, but stalled out in 2019 when its developer ran out of money. Then, early last year, the windows of about 27 floors were tagged with very visible graffiti—and, despite the L.A. City Council initially saying it would clean up the buildings, they still remain all tagged up. Now, these monuments to Downtown L.A.’s slump are about to be immortalized in a video game. The graffiti towers’ appearance is actually part of a much more upbeat announcement: The Los Angeles-inspired level in the upcoming Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 will include a detailed recreation of Miracle Mile’s much-loved El Rey Theatre. Thanks to a collaboration between publisher Activision and promoter AEG Presents, both Goldenvoice and the Roxy will have billboards in the level, as well. But the announcement footage for the El Rey’s inclusion came with one unmissable detail: a graffiti-covered skyscraper looming in the background that looks unmistakably like the beleaguered Oceanwide Plaza buildings. If you’re wondering what a Mid-Wilshire theater is doing next to a DTLA high-rise, the remake of the early-aughts skateboarding game’s L.A. level is kind of a pastiche of local landmarks. (And the original Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 didn’t include the El Rey in that space but an adult movie theater instead.) Pershing Square’s purple tower is immediately recognizable, as is the Biltmore across the street and the ca

We’ve just crossed the year-to-go mark until the opening of LACMA’s new David Geffen Galleries, and as promised, the Miracle Mile museum is offering a pretty unique opportunity to step inside the building’s empty interior. L.A. native, Kendrick Lamar collaborator and all-around saxophone wizard Kamasi Washington will headline three performances inside the new building this June—months ahead of its artwork-filled April 2026 opening. But he won’t be alone: More than 100 musicians will be scattered across 110,000 square feet of vacant gallery space. Washington’s performances on June 26, 27 and 28 will tackle Harmony of Difference, a six-movement suite that he released eight years ago—but that’s never been performed live in its entirety. “I wrote Harmony of Difference in 2017 to celebrate the beauty of humanity’s diversity through a metaphor of music,” Washington said in a statement. “In music it is the combination of different notes, chords and rhythms that create beautiful songs. The same is true in life; most of humanity’s greatest achievements came from the combined efforts of people of different backgrounds with different knowledge and abilities.” Photograph: Christian Bertrand / Shutterstock.comKamasi Washington Washington goes on to elaborate on the Geffen Galleries’ unique acoustic properties; visitors will hear both the direct sounds from nearby musicians as well as the “spirit” of other farther-away groups of performers. If you want to check out the performance inside

Sometimes it feels impossible to find something that truly unites Angelenos, but there’s one fact that we can all agree on: The traffic at LAX is the worst. Getting to—and more so around—the horseshoe-shaped automotive hell in the middle of the airport’s terminals will test your patience, as well as just how much you love your family and friends in need of a ride. Thankfully, there’s a little bit of relief on the way soon for the “getting to” part of that equation: Metro announced that the LAX/Metro Transit Center station, a new light rail stop east of the airport with bus transfers and bike parking that serves both the K and C Lines, will open on June 6, 2025. As for the “getting around” part of your LAX trip, this is still only half of what you’re really waiting for. The station will eventually connect with a stop on the Automated People Mover, a separate 2.25-mile transit line owned by Los Angeles World Airports that will make three stops inside of the central terminal area. But that persistently delayed project won’t open until early 2026. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (@metrolosangeles) So why is this still a big deal now? After all, the C (formerly Green) Line opened a station with “LAX” in its name back in 1995, and it added the Aviation/Century stop with last fall’s expansion of the K (formerly Crenshaw) Line. Well, the short version: way more rail connections and a much more use

Could it possibly be summer in L.A. without spending a night in a cemetery watching classic cinema? That’s right, it’s time for one of our favorite seasonal traditions: The first Cinespia lineup announcements of the year. The beloved series will return to Hollywood Forever Cemetery this Memorial Day weekend with three screenings to wrap up the month: The Big Lebowski (May 24), Clueless (May 25) and, in a tribute to late director David Lynch, Blue Velvet (May 31). If L.A.’s not-as-macabre-as-it-sounds rite of passage has eluded you, here’s the deal: Since 2002, Cinespia has projected movies onto the side of a mausoleum at Hollywood Forever. Thousands of picnickers show up early to claim a spot on the Fairbanks Lawn and dig into their BYO snacks and drinks (yep, including beer and wine). That’s in addition to the hot food, popcorn and beer and wine for sale on the grounds of the outdoor movie series. It’s not just the cemetery environs that sets Cinespia apart: Each screening is preceded and followed by a DJ set, as well as some remarkably elaborate photo backdrops that you can pose in front of for free. For example, when Cinespia screened Clueless a few years ago, it recreated Cher’s bedroom. And for The Big Lebowski, you were able to pose in front of the checker-floored bowling dream sequence (you can see the backdrop from the 2021 event below). View this post on Instagram A post shared by CINESPIA (@cinespia) Expect more monthly screening announcements to c

Los Angeles spoils us with all sorts of singular movie screening locations: on a cemetery lawn or the grounds of a Victorian village, not to mention inside intimate screening rooms and century-old movie palaces. Now there’s one more unexpected spot to add to that list: a mountaintop more than a mile above L.A. Mount Wilson Observatory announced that it’ll be hosting a new movie series this summer, Matinees on the Mountain. On select Saturday afternoons, the historic institution will screen a decades-spanning lineup of sci-fi and astronomy-inspired shorts and feature-length films. Unlike the San Gabriel Mountains site’s concert series and stargazing sessions, Matinees on the Mountain won’t take place inside the dome of the 100-inch telescope (pictured below)—the largest telescope in the world for much of the first half of the 20th century. Instead, screenings will take place inside the 256-seat auditorium inside the astronomical museum, the same venue used for the site’s Talks & Telescopes lectures. Photograph: Time Out/Michael Juliano As far as the movies, the lineup so far includes 2001: A Space Odyssey (May 17), a selection of sci-fi silent shorts (June 21), Contact (July 26), astronomical short films (Aug 23), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (Sept 27) and a to-be-announced title (Oct 25). Some events are paired with a history talk or, in the case of Close Encounters, a performance by the Bob Baker Marionettes. Given that the screenings are held during the day, you won

If you’re after party music on the biggest stage possible, look no further than Post Malone’s upcoming Coachella set. The pop-rap-country phenom will close out the music festival this weekend with a show of discography-spanning hits. Here’s everything we know—plus some pretty decent hunches—about Malone’s headlining Coachella performance. What day is Post Malone performing at Coachella? You can catch him during the fest’s second weekend on Sunday, April 20; he already hit the stage during weekend one on Sunday, April 13. What time will Post Malone play the Coachella stage? Post Malone will take the stage at 10:25pm on Sunday. There are a couple of sets on other stages (Polo & Pan, XG, Dixon back-to-back with Jimi Jules) that technically start later, but for all practical purposes, Malone has the honor of closing out Coachella.  Has Post Malone played Coachella before? Yes. Though he’s only officially appeared on the Coachella lineup once before, he’s no stranger to the Empire Polo Club: In 2018 he played the Sahara tent, and he returned in 2023 as an unannounced guest during Bad Bunny’s headlining set. And—given his recent turn toward country pop—he actually played last year’s Stagecoach Festival, held on the same grounds as Coachella and just a week later. Any news on Post Malone’s setlist for Coachella? We don’t know exactly what Posty will perform during his second weekend set at Coachella, but we can certainly look to his first weekend set for a pretty good indication. Fo

Travis Scott’s return to Coachella has been a long time coming. The Auto-Tune–wielding rapper was supposed to top 2020’s canceled edition, and though it seemed all but certain he’d play the music festival’s 2022 return, he didn’t actually end up on that year’s lineup (which was announced only a couple of months after the fatal crowd crush at the rapper’s Astroworld Festival in Houston). But now he’s heading to Indio with a “designs the desert” credit to his name on the fest’s lineup poster. Here’s everything we know—including just what that cryptic tagline means—about Scott’s headlining Coachella performance. What day is Travis Scott performing at Coachella? You can catch him during the fest’s second weekend on Saturday, April 19; he already took the stage for weekend one on Saturday, April 12. What time will Travis Scott play the Coachella stage? Hopefully you don’t mind staying up late: Travis Scott is slated to take the stage at 11:40pm. Though Green Day, who’ll perform on the Coachella/Main stage before Scott, are technically the Saturday night headliner according to the lineup poster, Scott will really be the last to perform on that stage (he essentially has the equivalent of an “and…” credit in a movie or TV show).  Has Travis Scott played Coachella before? Yes, in 2017 he played the Outdoor Theatre—where he arrived on the back of a giant bird puppet. In addition to that very crowded, high-energy set, he appeared as a guest during Kendrick Lamar’s headlining slot that s

Keeping track of the eight main stages plus a pair of fest-within-a-fest stages at Coachella can feel like a lot of work if all you want to do is dance to some of your favorite music. The music festival actually does a pretty excellent job at minimizing set time conflicts, but you’ll still inevitably need to make some decisions about overlapping set times. To make your life a little easier—whether you’re watching underneath the scorching sun in Indio or on your living room couch—we’ve sorted out what you need to know about Coachella weekend two set times, as well as the live stream schedule. How can I stream weekend two? Head to the Coachella channel on YouTube starting at 4pm PDT on Friday, April 18 through Sunday night. The festival will once again be streaming basically all of the sets from six of the main stages after 4pm (plus a vertical YouTube Shorts feed from the dance-focused Quasar stage, with select sets replayed on some of the other stages’ feeds). You can also watch up to four at the same time using YouTube’s returning multiview feature. When the fest wraps up for the day around 1am, the channel will normally go right into a repeat of the first day’s sets. Once the next day’s stream starts, though, you’ll be limited to select highlights from the previous day. The timing of the streams matches up perfectly with the in-person stage schedule, which you’ll find below. You can see the full day-by-day streaming schedule in our larger guide to the Coachella live stream.