Free things to do in Los Angeles
24 places in Los Angeles with free entry or no charge, based on guide listings and map data.
Ranked with the travel guide's picks and well-known places first.
Free things to do in Los Angeles
SeeWestGetty Center
The Getty Center, in Los Angeles, California, US, is a campus of the Getty Museum and other programs of the Getty Trust. The $1.3 billion center opened to the public on December 16, 1997, and is well known for its architecture, gardens, and views overlooking Los Angeles. The center sits atop a hill connected to a visitors' parking garage at the bottom of the hill by a three-car, cable-pulled hovertrain people mover.
Tue-Sun 10AM-5:30PM (Sat till 9PM), closed MondaysFree; parking $15
SeeHollywoodHollywood Forever Cemetery
Dating back to 1899, this beautiful cemetery is one of Los Angeles' oldest and is the final resting place for hundreds of film stars, directors, writers, and other influential figures from the entertainment industry. Johnny Ramone, Cecil B. DeMille, Mel Blanc, Peter Lorre, Mickey Rooney, Bugsy Siegel and Judy Garland are but a few of the famous names you'll see here. Interactive kiosks located throughout the cemetery play short documentaries about those interned here, making it a great place to learn about Hollywood's early history. The cemetery also often holds events, including regular movie screenings (see below under Do) in the summer.
Grounds open daily 8AM-5PMFree
SeeHistory museumDowntownJapanese American National Museum
A museum devoted to the Japanese-American experience, with a particular emphasis on the Japanese internment camps of World War II, including numerous artifacts and historic photographs. Besides the permanent collection, the museum also holds changing exhibits on Japanese-American art and history.
Closed · opens 11 am$12 adults, $6 students/seniors/youth 6-17, free for children 5 and under; free admission Th evenings 5-8PM
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SeeDowntownLos Angeles City Hall
Completed in 1928, this towering Art Deco building is the center of the city's government, housing the mayor's office and the city council meeting chambers, and was the city's tallest building for nearly forty years after it was built. An observation desk on the 27th floor offers a marvelous view of Downtown; you'll have to check in at the security desk at the entrance, and they'll give you directions to the observation desk. On the way up admire the spacious rotunda on the 3rd floor and the "Hall of Mayors" on the 26th floor.
Closed · opens 9 am MondayFree
SeeWestHammer Museum
A UCLA-affiliated institution which houses changing exhibitions of contemporary, modern, and classical art, with a particular focus on Los Angeles-based work. The basis of the museum's collection is a set of significant European works collected by the institution's founder, Armand Hammer. The museum also holds many free public programs, including lunchtime "Art Talks" every Wednesday at 12:30PM.
Closed · opens 11 amFree
SeeNorthwestBarnsdall Art Park
Metro: Vermont/Sunset
A small hill in East Hollywood with sweeping views of the neighborhood as well as an arts complex on top that serves the local community, with an art center that offers classes to adults and children, a community theater, the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery, which holds changing exhibits of art from local artists, and Hollyhock House, which was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and is open to the public. Hollyhock House is one of eight buildings by Wright to be listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Daily 5AM-10PM; Municipal Art Gallery Thu-Sun noon-5PM; Hollyhock House Thu-Sun 11AM-4PMFree; Hollyhock House tours $7 adults, $3 students/seniors (tickets sold online only)
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SeeHistory museumHollywoodLos Angeles Fire Department Hollywood Museum
This museum is in the old Los Angeles City Fire Station 27, opened in 1930. It is fully restored to how it appeared in 1930 and contains a historic fire apparatus.
Closed · opens 10 amFree · Heritage listed
SeeSouthCalifornia African American Museum
It focuses on enrichment and education on the cultural heritage and history of African Americans with a focus on California and the western United States.
Closed · opens 10 amFree
SeeWestFowler Museum
A cultural museum that hosts changing and permanent exhibitions featuring art and archaeological artifacts, with a particular focus on non-Western cultures. A number of striking artifacts from Africa, Asia, the Pacific, and the Americas are on regular view, including tribal masks, religious figurines, headdresses, and a Chinese hand puppet.
Closed · opens noonFree
SeeWestMildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden
Created as an experimental garden of rare and exotic plants for the university's botany program, this garden makes for a tranquil retreat from the urban landscape, with many tropical and subtropical plants as well as a stream running through the middle of the garden.
Closed · opens 8 amFree
SeeWestFranklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden
In the middle of the arts and social sciences section of campus, this noted sculpture garden showcases dozens of modern and contemporary sculptures from masters such as Calder, Matisse, and Rodin.
Free
SeeNorthwestTravel Town Museum
A free exhibition of historic trains from Southern California, including locomotives, cabooses, passenger cars, and streetcars, as well as model trains and an exhibit hall with old automobiles. Train rides for children on a miniature railroad are also available.
Mon-Fri 10AM-4PM, Sat Sun 10AM-5PM (open until 6PM on summer weekends)Free; train rides $2.75
- SeeNorthwest
Los Angeles Live Steamers Railroad Museum
Run by a local group of railroad enthusiasts, this museum is essentially a large scale model railroad, with miniature train rides for children and a few historic train cars. Most notable among the historic exhibits is the actual workshop owned by Walt Disney that he used to make his backyard model railroad (only open on the third Sunday of each month, when volunteers from a local historical society are available).
Sundays only, 11AM-3PMFree, donations accepted
- DoEastside
Audubon Center at Debs Park
An urban nature center showcasing the native habitat that used to fill the Los Angeles Basin.
Closed · opens 9 amFree
- SeeNorthwest
Ferndell Nature Museum
A shady oasis tucked alongside one of the main entrances into Griffith Park, this naturalistic area has numerous ferns and tropical plants alongside a small stream, with a nature trail and a picnic area that makes it a wonderful retreat on hot summer days.
Open now · closes 10 pmFree
- SeeEastside
Southwest Museum
Extensive collection of American Indian art and artifacts. It is a subsidiary of the Autry Museum and undergoing major renovations.
Closed · opens 10 amFree
- SeeArt gallery
Los Angeles Central Library Getty Gallery
Closed · opens 9:30 amFree entry · Wi-Fi
- SeeArt museum
Museum of Contemporary Art
250 South Grand Avenue
Closed · opens 11 amFree entry · Wheelchair accessible
- SeeMuseum
Gallery at REDCAT
Closed · opens noonFree entry
- SeeMuseum
Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery
Closed · opens noonFree entry
- SeeGarden
California Friendly® Demonstration Garden
Southwest Style Garden
Free entry
- SeeViewpoint
City Hall Observation Deck
Closed · opens 9 am MondayFree entry
- SeeArt gallery
Music off the wall
Free entry
- SeeGarden
Rose Garden
Free entry
Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Los Angeles (CC BY-SA 4.0). Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Place data from Overture Maps. Some descriptions from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).