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Bucket list experience:

Last updated: 22 November, 2022
Expert travel writer: Luciana Bellini

Stunningly designed by Richard Meir, this marble-clad modernist complex tucked into the Santa Monica Mountains houses the late billionaire oil tycoon J. Paul Getty’s impressive art collection. Highlights on show include works by Titian and Van Gogh, illuminated manuscripts from the Middle Ages, Louis XIV-era furniture and decorative arts.

Strolling through the 110 acres of galleries, gardens and modern buildings perched overlooking the LA sprawl is a must for any visiting art fan.

Price: Free
Minimum age: Any
Age suitable: 18+
When: All year around

Getting there & doing it

The Getty Center is about 12 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles. On-site parking is available – but it usually fills up pretty quickly, so come early (or late) if you want to park; a monorail then carries visitors up to the complex.

Download the museum’s guide app before you go, which has an audio a highlights tour and on-demand information to every exhibit (you just enter the exhibit number). Take your own earphones, or you’ll have to buy them there.

There is a museum café and a formal restaurant with views of the Santa Monica mountains (book ahead for the latter).

When to do it

It’s open all year round, Tuesday to Sunday. Closed Monday.

Our writer’s picks of the best places to stay near this experience, closest first

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Live out all your Bel-Air mansion fantasies in this luxurious property, where you can stroll among the tranquil gardens, feed the resident swans and be pampered like one of the hotel’s A-list neighbours in the decadent spa.

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Beverly Hills Hotel

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The Pink Palace is the place to go if you’re looking for pure Old Hollywood glamour – where Marilyn Monroe rubbed shoulders with Elizabeth Taylor.

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Hotel Oceana Santa Monica

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Elegant beachside resort in the heart of Santa Monica with the feel of a classic 1950s California beach hotel, just made for soaking up the sun and surf.

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Destination guides including or relevant to this experience

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