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Bucket list experience:

Last updated: 28 May, 2023
Expert travel writer: Luciana Bellini

The studios may have (mostly) decamped to more spacious surroundings, but much of the film industry’s history and iconography are located in this iconic neighbourhood. And yes, folks, dreams are still made (and broken) in Hollywood.

Walk of Fame

You know you’ve really made it in Tinseltown when you get your own star. Spread across both sides of Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street, everyone from Marilyn Monroe and Walt Disney to Jennifer Aniston and John Travolta is immortalised here.

Grauman’s Chinese Theater

Set amidst the glitz, glamour and occasional grime of Hollywood Boulevard, this is often billed as the world’s most ornate and opulent cinema complex, home to some of film’s biggest movie premieres over the years. It’s still the place where the biggest premieres still go down.

Kodak Theater

It doesn’t get more Hollywood than the home of the actual Oscars – now known as the Dolby Theatre. It was custom designed for the Academy Awards themselves and features 3,400 seats, three balcony levels and 20 opera boxes.

While you're there

Just nearby, but officially out of ‘Hollywood’ neighbourhood, is the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. The world’s largest museum dedicated solely to the art of film, it’s home to a collection of movie treasures, a rotating roster of exhibitions featuring industry creators, and an experience where you can hold a coveted Oscars statuette. Look out for Dorothy’s red slippers!

The famous Hollywood sign isn’t strictly in the Hollywood neighbourhood either, but up in the hills behind. You can see it from Hollywood of course – or you can also do the brilliant hike up to see it up close.

The big three film studios – Warner Bros, Paramount and Sony – all offer behind-the-scenes guided tours of the studios, where you’ll get a fascinating insight into how the films are made. They’re also just outside the neighbourhood, but close by.

Hollywood Walk of Fame
Experience

Hollywood Walk of Fame

Los Angeles, California, United States of America (USA)

You know you’ve really made it in Tinseltown when you get your own star. Spread across both sides of Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street, everyone from Marilyn Monroe and Walt Disney to Jennifer Aniston and John Travolta is immortalised here.

Best for ages: 4+ | Free

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Price: Free
Minimum age: Any
Age suitable: 8+
When: All year around

Getting there & doing it

The entire district (and between attractions) is easily walkable. The intersection of Hollywood and Vine is the unofficial centre of Hollywood, and it’s a great place to start a movie-themed stroll. Head west along Hollywood Boulevard towards Highland Avenue – this stretch of town houses some of the world’s most famous theatres, including Grauman’s Chinese Theater, the Kodak Theater (current home of the Academy Awards), and the El Capitan Theater (which runs fun live stage shows).

Our selection of the best Viator tours of this attraction or activity

LA Ghosts: Terrors of Tinseltown Tour by US Ghost Adventures

LA Ghosts: Terrors of Tinseltown Tour by US Ghost Adventures

Los Angeles

Come on our chilling ghost tour presented by US Ghost Adventures! LA Ghosts walking ghost tour will give you a historical look behind the sc...

$30 | Rating 4.48 / 5 [87 ratings]

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Hollywood Sightseeing and Celebrity Homes Tour by Open Bus tours

Hollywood Sightseeing and Celebrity Homes Tour by Open Bus tours

Los Angeles

See Hollywood and it's surroundings in a fun OPEN van (a few have a canopy for shade), which allows for excellent views without obstructions...

$35 | Rating 4.45 / 5 [1105 ratings]

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2-Hour Hollywood Bus Tour

2-Hour Hollywood Bus Tour

Los Angeles

There’s a lot to see here in LA, but it takes a good Hollywood bus tour to make sure you don’t miss them. Could a celebrity encounter also b...

$36 | Rating 4.48 / 5 [284 ratings]

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Hollywood Sign & Celebrity Homes Tour

Hollywood Sign & Celebrity Homes Tour

Los Angeles

Experience a Hollywood bus tour like never before! Our Hollywood Celebrity Homes tour is fully narrated by our fun and entertaining tour gui...

$39 | Rating 4.58 / 5 [129 ratings]

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

Hollywood Roosevelt

Los Angeles, California, United States of America (USA)[1.9 miles]

A Hollywood favourite is right in the thick of things; you can feel the neighbourhood’s energy pulsing through the property, whether you’re sipping cocktails in the Spare Room bar or lounging beside the David Hockney-painted swimming pool.

Official star rating:

Chateau Marmont

Los Angeles, California, United States of America (USA)[4 miles]

Soak up Hollywood’s scandalous past, present and future at this wonderfully glamorous Sunset icon, where you’re bound to bump into an A-lister in the Gothic-chic drawing room or the outrageously raucous bar.

Official star rating:

Mondrian Hotel Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California, United States of America (USA)[4.5 miles]

Superbly-located West Hollywood hotel, right on Sunset Boulevard. One of LA’s sexiest hotels, with a hippest rooftop party scene.

Official star rating:

West Hollywood Edition

Los Angeles, California, United States of America (USA)[5.8 miles]

The coolest recenthttps://www.editionhotels.com/weho/ addition to the Sunset Strip, the WeHo Edition is home to a buzzy rooftop pool and terrace, a destination restaurant, an underground nightclub and a gloriously zen spa.

Official star rating:

Destination guides including or relevant to this experience

Los Angeles

California, United States of America (USA)

The bright lights of Tinseltown are home to surfer-filled beaches, glorious mountain hikes, glitz and glamour in spades and year-round sunshine.

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Our writer’s recommendations of other bucket list experiences our writer says you must do in this destination, closest first

Griffith Observatory

Los Angeles, California, United States of America (USA)[4 miles]

The Art Deco observatory is one of LA’s most instantly-recognisable buildings, home to captivating exhibits, an out-of-this-world planetarium, and the site of some of the best views in Los Angeles.

Best for ages: 5+ | £6

Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)

Los Angeles, California, United States of America (USA)[4.2 miles]

A 20-acre compound of galleries and pavilions housing more than 100,000 works, from ancient Mayan bowls inscribed with bat heads and Japanese sculptures dating from 3000 BC to paintings by Rubens, Cezanne and Degas.

Best for ages: 13+ | £17

Academy Museum of Motion Pictures

Los Angeles, California, United States of America (USA)[4.3 miles]

The world’s largest museum dedicated solely to the art of film, home to a collection of movie treasures, a rotating roster of exhibitions featuring industry creators and an experience where you can hold a coveted Oscars statuette.

Best for ages: 8+ | £22

Hike up to the Hollywood Sign

Los Angeles, California, United States of America (USA)[5 miles]

Hike the picturesque but little-known Hollyridge Trail to the summit of Mount Lee, offering spectacular views and the closest point to the sign.

Best for ages: 8+ | Free | 2-3 hours

Other worthwhile experiences near this experience if you have time or interest..

Farmers Market on Fairfax
Experience

Farmers Market on Fairfax

Los Angeles, California, United States of America (USA)[3.7 miles]

This LA institution in West Hollywood first opened in 1934 and is home to over 100 food stalls and grocers, who specialise in everything from doughnuts and ice cream to beef jerky and gourmet pickles.

Best for ages: 13+ | Free

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Life-size mammoth sculptures recreate Los Angeles prehistoric days at La Brea Tar Pits archaeological site in the Mid-Wilshire district of Los Angeles California.
Experience

La Brea Tar Pits

Los Angeles, California, United States of America (USA)[3.9 miles]

On Wilshire Boulevard, during the last Ice Age, asphalt bubbled from the ground, trapping sabre-toothed tigers, mammoths and giant sloths. Excavations continue to unearth new plants and animals and visitors can come to watch, or explore one of the world’s largest collections of fossils, on display in the museum.

Best for ages: 6+ | £12

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Greystone Mansion’s Gardens
Experience

Greystone Mansion’s Gardens

Los Angeles, California, United States of America (USA)[6.9 miles]

If this Tudor Revival mansion in Beverly Hills looks more than a little familiar it’s due to its stellar Hollywood lineage, having appeared in films including The Big Lebowski and X-Men. Come to explore its formal English gardens and elegant grounds.

Best for ages: 18+ | Free

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The Broad in downtown LA with a colorful crosswalk by Artist Carlos Cruz-Diez on Grand Avenue. The Broad is a contemporary art museum named after Eli Broad.
Experience

The Broad

Los Angeles, California, United States of America (USA)[8 miles]

The most popular of Downtown LA’s contemporary art museums, the Broad houses the collection of Edythe Broad as well as notable pieces by the likes of Jeff Koons, Andy Warhol, Ed Ruscha and Basquiat. It’s always packed, so book in advance.

Best for ages: 18+ | £15

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