One of the wonderful aspects of living in Los Angeles is that you can have a big city job and yet still be able to get out in nature to heal the mind and body in a matter of minutes. Yes, it is a sprawling city — and you will need a car to get around. But there are also plenty of opportunities to walk, hang out and just relax.
I first arrived in Los Angeles in 2006 from Buenos Aires and absolutely loved the vibe of the city. I was supposed to be born in Pasadena, in the northeast of Los Angeles County, but my family moved to the Chicago suburbs months before my birth. It is no wonder that I instantly felt at home in Los Angeles, where I currently serve as bureau chief for Reuters. The people are friendly, the scenery is beautiful, the food is delicious and life is fun and exciting.
Here’s my guide to how to experience the City of Angels like a local:
Take a hike: A good first way to see this city is from above. I suggest taking a hike up to the Griffith Observatory, overlooking Hollywood, in the company of Angelenos. Before you start your hike, get a coffee or snack at The Trails Cafe in Griffith Park. From there, you can make your way up the winding trails to the top, roughly 1.7 miles (2.7 kilometers). If you’re still feeling energized, you can hike further up the Hollywood Hills and over towards the Hollywood sign. From 1,578 feet (481 m), you get a real sense of the scope of Los Angeles, from downtown to the beach, from Hollywood to Beverly Hills. If you’re not up for the trek, you can also ride horses up to the Hollywood sign, during the day or around sunset, courtesy of Sunset Ranch.
What to eat: After the hike, you can treat yourself to lunch down in any of the nearby Hollywood, Los Feliz or Silver Lake neighborhoods. This town has one of the best food scenes in the country, featuring amazing Mexican food, as well as Thai, Japanese and Korean cuisine. My favorites include a great Mediterranean place on Hollywood Blvd called Kismet, which serves Persian-style rice, chicken, flaky bread and fried cauliflower. There’s also Pine and Crane, a Taiwanese place in Silver Lake that offers delicious Dan Dan noodles, Jidori chicken, pork dumplings and beef roll. If it’s great tacos you’re after, head down the street to Guisados in Echo Park. If it’s sushi, try Sushi Gen in Little Tokyo. For burgers, you can visit either For The Win in Hollywood or the old Southern California star chain In-N-Out Burger.
Pro-tip: If you want to order like a local, get a side of In-N-Out’s off-menu favorite: “animal style” fries, topped with grilled onions, pickles and extra sauce.
Hit the beach: Los Angeles County boasts 20 beaches, but the one in Santa Monica is a good place to start. There, you’ll find people walking along beach paths and working out under the sun at the aptly named Muscle Beach. I like to start with breakfast at the Shutters on the Beach hotel, which offers panoramic views of the water and the Santa Monica Pier. From there, you can then walk north to see the Santa Monica sand or south to Venice Beach, where there is always something going on. You can also rent bikes at the beach and ride along 22 miles (35 kilometers) of paved oceanside paths.
If you want to visit some more splendid beaches, head north to the celebrity enclave Malibu where you can go to the popular Zuma Beach or the very beautiful Leo Carrillo beach where dolphins often show up. To the south, Huntington Beach (aka Surf City USA) is where people and dogs love to converge and swim. The Pacific waters can be cold but also very refreshing.
Hot ticket: If you are visiting between late April and early October, take in a show at the Hollywood Bowl, an outdoor venue that showcases top acts, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, which in 2025 is in its last year under the direction of star Venezuelan conductor Gustavo Dudamel. Tickets start at around $65 but can go for over $200 if you want to be close to the stage. You can bring a picnic or order food and drink there — all under the sultry summer sky.
If sports are more your fancy, one of the most fun things to do is to catch a baseball game at Dodger Stadium, a palm-fringed venue with mountain views. The Los Angeles Dodgers, the 2024 World Series Champions, are chock-full of top talent and a nine-inning game can be unforgettable. Check out Shohei Ohtani, the Japanese superstar who is beloved in Los Angeles.
Museums and gardens galore: Los Angeles has become a major arts center over the years. Downtown, there is The Broad (pronounced “brode”), a contemporary art museum that claims more than 2,000 works of art, and across the street is the Frank Gehry-designed Walt Disney Concert Hall, cloaked in a wavy steel exterior. In the city’s museum row, dubbed the “Miracle Mile,” the LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) hosts Latin American art, jewelry and photographic exhibitions. Get your fill of movie history at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures or fast cars at the Petersen Automotive Museum. On the west side, visit the Getty Center for European and American art, which features paintings by Van Gogh, Rembrandt, Monet and Degas. To walk among flowers, wander down to Descanso Gardens in La Canada Flintridge or The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens in San Marino.
Get away: Locals take day or overnight trips to Ojai to the northwest of LA, where there are majestic mountains, oak forests, a wide array ofrestaurants and a Sunday farmers’ market; Palm Springs out east in the desert features a relaxed vibe, while Santa Barbara offers coastal scenery, morebeaches and fantastic food. And for those who love a theme park, the original Disneyland is down south in Anaheim.
CITY MEMO DATA POINTS
Population: 3.82 million across the city, with the wider county home to 10.4 million.
Languages spoken: 224
Price of a cup of coffee: $3.25 for a small coffee from Urth Caffé, a local favorite that started in Manhattan Beach but can be found across the city.
Great place to see a sunset: The cliffs of Santa Monica
Largest university: The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), with more than 48,000 students (Mary Milliken/Reuters)
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