Los Angeles has a way of making two days feel like an adventure and five days feel like it still was not enough. Between Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and Santa Monica, this city delivers no matter how much time you have.
This guide maps out a day-by-day Los Angeles itinerary for both trip lengths, from your first morning on Hollywood Boulevard to an afternoon on the Santa Monica coast, with stops through Beverly Hills, Griffith Observatory, the Sunset Strip, and beyond. You will know exactly where to go, in what order, and how to make every day count.
The easiest way to hit the ground running in LA is with a local behind the wheel. Our Celebrity Homes Tour and Half Day Best of LA Tour are the most efficient and fun way to cover the top highlights of the city, all led by an expert driver-guide who brings every neighborhood to life.
Explore all Hollywood Bus Tours and find the perfect fit for your trip.
The 2 Day Los Angeles Itinerary
If you only have two days in LA, you want to spend every hour on the highlights that make this city worth visiting. This itinerary gets you there without wasting time.
Day 1 in Los Angeles — Hollywood Boulevard, Beverly Hills, and Celebrity Homes
Morning: Hollywood Walk of Fame and TCL Chinese Theatre
The Walk of Fame runs along Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street and covers more than 2,700 stars honoring film, television, music, and radio. Give yourself an hour to explore at your own pace and get your photos at the TCL Chinese Theatre, one of the most recognized art deco buildings in the country, where celebrity handprints and footprints have been cast in cement since 1927.
Our Self-Guided Walking Tour of the Hollywood Walk of Fame is one of the best ways to make the most of this stretch.
Using your smartphone, you unlock professionally narrated stories, history, and insider facts as you walk, available in 11 languages and fully flexible so you can go at whatever pace suits you. The tour is $9 on its own and free with the purchase of any Hollywood Bus Tours’ tour.
Afternoon: Hollywood, Beverly Hills and Celebrity Homes Open Air Tour
On our Hollywood, Beverly Hills, & Celebrity Homes Open Air Tour, your driver-guide takes you through the Hollywood Hills, along Mulholland Drive, past views of the Hollywood Sign, into Beverly Hills for a photo stop at the Beverly Hills Sign, and down Rodeo Drive and the Sunset Strip–all in just 2 hours.
The tour passes by the homes of some of the biggest names in entertainment, from Tom Cruise and Leonardo DiCaprio to Rihanna and Katy Perry, in small-group open-air vans that can access neighborhoods other tours cannot reach.
Book your Hollywood, Beverly Hills, & Celebrity Homes Open Air Tour here.
Evening: Sunset Strip
The stretch of Sunset Boulevard running through West Hollywood has some of the best restaurants and bars in the city and is one of the most satisfying spots in LA to wind down after a full first day.
Day 2 in Los Angeles — Griffith Observatory, The Farmers Market, The Santa Monica Pier & The Best of LA
Morning and Afternoon: Half Day Best of LA Tour
If you only have one day to see the best of LA, our Half Day Best of LA Tour is the most efficient way to do it. Four extended stops, expert narration, and no LA traffic to worry about — all wrapped up in 5.5 hours.
The tour departs daily at 10AM or 11:30AM from the Hollywood Visitor Center.
- Beverly Hills and Rodeo Drive — Stop at the Beverly Hills Sign with time to walk Rodeo Drive and take in one of the most famous streets in the world
- Santa Monica Pier — Walk the pier, take in the Pacific Ocean, and enjoy one of the most quintessential LA experiences on the tour
- Farmers Market and The Grove — Lunch at the historic Farmers Market and time to explore The Grove’s shops
- Griffith Observatory — Sweeping views across the city and the best angle of the Hollywood Sign in Griffith Park
Book your Half Day Best of LA Tour here.
Evening: Dinner in Hollywood
After the tour drops you back at the Hollywood Visitor Center, you have several strong dinner options within easy reach.
Musso and Frank Grill has been serving classic American cuisine on Hollywood Boulevard since 1919 and is one of the most storied restaurants in the city. It is a short walk from the Visitor Center and a genuinely historic way to end your last night in LA.
Yamashiro Hollywood sits above the city with sweeping views across LA, serving Asian-inspired cuisine in a Japanese palace-style building a short drive up into the Hollywood Hills. It is one of the most visually dramatic dinner spots in the neighborhood.
For something more casual, El Compadre on Sunset Boulevard is a great place for Mexican food with a festive atmosphere and an easy walk from Hollywood Boulevard.
Have 3 or 4 Days in Los Angeles?
Three or four days in LA gives you room to go beyond the must-see highlights and start to feel the city. Start with the two-day itinerary above as your foundation, then use your extra time to go deeper or add a day trip.
If you want to do both our Hollywood, Beverly Hills, & Celebrity Homes Open Air Tour and Half Day Best of LA Tour without splitting your attention across two separate days of planning, the Perfect Day in LA combo lets you book them together and take them on the same day.
The 5 Day Los Angeles Itinerary
Five days in LA gives you enough time to move through the city properly and get a real feel for what makes each neighborhood different. The first two days follow the itinerary above. Here is how to spend the rest of your trip.
Day 3 in Los Angeles — Venice Beach, Santa Monica and the Coast
Morning: Venice Beach and the Boardwalk
Venice Beach is one of the most visited places in Los Angeles and a defining part of what makes LA feel like LA. The boardwalk runs along the coast and is one of the best free things to do in the city, with street performers, vendors, and the famous Muscle Beach outdoor gym all within walking distance of each other. Give yourself a couple of hours to walk it at your own pace before the crowds build.
Afternoon: Santa Monica
The Half Day Best of LA Tour gives you a taste of Santa Monica Pier on Day 2, but coming back with a full afternoon is a different experience. Third Street Promenade is one of the best outdoor shopping streets in West LA and easy to spend an hour or two on, and the pier itself is worth a second visit when you have more time to settle in.
Evening: Watching the Sunset from the Shore
Find a spot on the beach as the sun goes down over the Pacific and you will understand why this stretch of coastline is still one of the best places to visit in all of LA.
Day 4 in Los Angeles — LACMA, the Getty Center and Museum Row
Morning: LACMA and Museum Row
Museum Row along Wilshire Boulevard is one of the most concentrated stretches of things to do in LA for culture and history. LACMA is the largest art museum in Los Angeles and one of the top art museums in the western United States, with a collection spanning thousands of years. The La Brea Tar Pits sit directly next door and are one of the most unique attractions in Los Angeles County, where active fossil excavations still take place in the middle of the city.
Afternoon: The Getty Center
The Getty Center sits above West LA with some of the best views of Los Angeles available from any public space in the city. The collection covers European paintings, sculptures, and decorative arts, and the architecture and gardens alone are worth the visit. Admission is free and the hilltop setting gives you a view of LA that stretches from Downtown to the Pacific on a clear day.
Evening: Dinner in West Hollywood or Los Feliz
Both neighborhoods offer some of the best dining in the city. West Hollywood’s Santa Monica Boulevard and Melrose Avenue have a strong mix of restaurants across every price point. Los Feliz, just east of Hollywood, has a more neighborhood feel with wine bars and local spots concentrated along Vermont Avenue, and is one of the most underrated places to eat for first-time visitors to Los Angeles.
Day 5 in Los Angeles — Make It Your Own
By day five you have a feel for the city and a sense of what resonated. Use your last day to enjoy more time in the parts of LA that stood out most.
If you want more coast:
Drive up the Pacific Coast Highway to Malibu. The beaches are less crowded than Santa Monica, the scenery along PCH is some of the best in Southern California, and a long lunch with an ocean view is one of the most satisfying ways to close out a trip to LA.
If you want a full theme park day:
Universal Studios Hollywood is one of the top ticketed attractions in LA and the studio tour takes you behind the scenes of one of the most active film lots in the world. Book in advance and give yourself a full day.
If you want to see more of Hollywood:
Spend the morning at Runyon Canyon for a view of LA from above, browse the aisles at Amoeba Music on Sunset, and finish with a long lunch on Melrose Avenue. If there is a show at the Hollywood Bowl that evening, book it. It is one of the most celebrated outdoor concert venues in the country and a genuinely memorable way to spend a last night in LA.
Planning Your Los Angeles Itinerary
Whether you are visiting LA next month or planning a future trip, a little preparation goes a long way in a city this size. Los Angeles is a sprawling metropolis and first-time visitors are often surprised by how different the experience feels depending on where you stay, how you get around, and what time of year you visit.
The Best Time to Visit LA
Los Angeles has some of the best weather in the country year round, which makes it a viable destination at any point in your trip planning. That said, the timing of your visit does affect the experience.
Spring and fall offer the most comfortable temperatures and smaller crowds, making them the ideal window for a first visit to LA. Summer brings warm weather and peak beach season but also peak crowds and higher hotel prices. December through February is the quietest time of year and still mild enough to enjoy the city comfortably.
One thing worth knowing for any LA itinerary is June Gloom. From late May through June the coast regularly sees overcast mornings that burn off by midday. It rarely affects a full day of sightseeing but it is worth knowing before you plan a beach day.
Where to Stay in LA
Where you stay in LA shapes your entire trip. The city does not have a single obvious base the way some cities do, so the right neighborhood depends on what your itinerary prioritizes.
Hollywood is the most practical base for this itinerary. You are within walking distance of the Hollywood Walk of Fame, a short drive from Beverly Hills, and centrally located for both the Half Day Best of LA Tour and Hollywood, Beverly Hills, & Celebrity Homes Open Air Tour, both of which depart from the Hollywood Visitor Center.
Santa Monica and West LA put you on the coast with easy access to Venice Beach, the Getty Center, and Museum Row. It is a longer commute to Hollywood but a strong option if beach access is a priority. The Beverly Hills Hotel and surrounding area is worth considering if you want a more upscale base with easy access to Rodeo Drive and the best of Beverly Hills.
Downtown LA is centrally located and a good option for visitors who want to explore the heart of Downtown LA, Grand Central Market, Little Tokyo, and the Walt Disney Concert Hall without adding drive time to every morning.
Do You Need a Car in LA
This is one of the most common questions for first-time visitors to Los Angeles, and the honest answer is that it depends on your itinerary. Los Angeles is a city built around the car and LA traffic is a real factor in how you plan your days. Having a rental car gives you the most flexibility, especially for Day 3 through Day 5 when the itinerary spreads out to the coast, the Getty Center, and potentially Malibu or Universal Studios.
If you are on a short trip of two nights or flying into LAX with a packed schedule, rideshares are a practical alternative for getting between stops without dealing with parking. Public transport via the Metro works well for specific routes, particularly between Downtown LA and Hollywood, but it is not the best way to get between the coast and the rest of the city.
The best way to approach it is to rent a car for the days when you are moving between neighborhoods and use rideshares for evenings when parking and traffic make driving more trouble than it is worth.
Tips for Every Trip to Los Angeles
Group your days by area. LA traffic is real and the city is more spread out than it looks on a map. The itineraries above are structured to keep each day geographically focused — if you adjust the order, make sure you are not scheduling Museum Row in the morning and Malibu in the afternoon on the same day.
Hollywood Boulevard is best in the morning. The iconic Hollywood Walk of Fame gets crowded by midday. Start early and you will have the street largely to yourself for the first hour.
Downtown LA is worth adding to your itinerary. If you have time beyond the core itinerary, the heart of Downtown LA covers a lot of ground in a compact area. Grand Central Market on Broadway is a strong breakfast or lunch stop, the Walt Disney Concert Hall is one of the most striking buildings on any street in LA, and Little Tokyo is a few blocks east with some of the best Japanese food in the city.
The Getty Center is free but parking is not. Admission is free but parking costs $20 per car. The Getty Shuttle from the Metro Expo Line is the best way to get there without paying for parking.
If you are flying into LAX, plan for traffic. The drive to Hollywood can take anywhere from 30 minutes to over an hour depending on when you land. Build that buffer into your first day.
Plan Your Perfect Trip to Los Angeles
Whether this is your first visit to LA or your next trip back, the right tour on day one sets the tone for everything that follows. Our Hollywood, Beverly Hills, & Celebrity Homes Open Air Tour covers Hollywood, Beverly Hills, the Sunset Strip, and the celebrity home neighborhoods in two hours, all from an open-air van with a local expert driver-guide who knows the city inside and out.
If you want to see the best of LA in a single morning and afternoon, our Half Day Best of LA Tour adds Beverly Hills, Santa Monica Pier, the Farmers Market, and Griffith Observatory to the mix.
Both tours depart daily from the Hollywood Visitor Center and are the most efficient and fun way to see the top attractions in LA County, no matter how much time you have.
