Los Angeles Insider Tips

Are you currently planning a trip to Los Angeles? Want to explore the city of stars and celebrities? We have some great tips for Los Angeles that not everyone knows! Read here about the most important sights in Los Angeles.

A popular spot for bookworms and literature lovers. Inside, there are also some fantastic photo opportunities. Explore and feel at home in this book paradise. A really cool store.

Located in the heart of Downtown L.A., this famous market has been around since 1917. Here, you'll find food from all over the world: tacos, burgers, ice cream sandwiches, sushi, Thai, and much more. Originally a farmer's market, it has transformed into the trendiest street food hall in L.A.

Across from the Downtown Food Market, you will find the historic cable car Angels Flight. It takes you from Grand Avenue at Angel's Knoll up Bunker Hill and Hill Street. It was opened in 1901, is over 120 years old, and is only 100 meters long. Nevertheless, we took the short ride.

Randy's Donuts is an undisputed icon of 1950s Los Angeles for obvious reasons. A typical California drive-up restaurant from the mid-century with a giant donut on the roof.

Not just any giant donut - Randy's has THE giant donut, the most famous donut in America and perhaps even the world.

Randy's Donuts appears in countless TV shows, music videos, and movies. There are several stores in the original Randy's Donuts chain, but the most well-known is Randy's in Inglewood.

The building itself is nothing special. But the donut on its roof is so large that no one can miss it.

Randy's Donuts is one of the most famous landmarks in Los Angeles and represents the optimism and vibe of the city post-war like few other places.

Another insider tip that we unfortunately didn't make it to (you know, traffic in and around Los Angeles is just terrible):

The Donut Hole in La Puente was built in 1968. Since then, it has been a donut shop in continuous operation. Highlight: there are two giant donuts that you can drive through. Unfortunately, we didn't have the chance to visit the Donut Hole and try the donuts. Maybe you do?

As an example of programmatic architecture, The Donut Hole is one of the best examples in Southern California. For obvious reasons, the Donut Hole is one of the most photographed donut shops in the country and has appeared in several films.

Where are the burger fans? This replica of the first In-N-Out from 1948 will make any fast food lover's heart race. ⁠

A must-see for all fans and nostalgia lovers. If you're hungry, just a few meters away is an actual operating In-N-Out location. ⁠

In Baldwin Park, you can visit an original replica of the first In-N-Out drive-thru. For many, In-N-Out is THE burger chain. I wouldn't say I'm a huge fan, but when we found out there was a replica of the original In-N-Out drive-thru, we had to go to Baldwin Park.

However, you should know that no burgers are served there anymore. But just the reconstruction and the many details of the classic design of that era: from the price signs to the cigarette vending machine and the vintage interior decor and register. We found the place to be great.

You can only enter from Thursday to Sunday from 11 AM to 2 PM. If you stop by at another time, the gate will be closed. However, you can still take pictures from the outside.

Address of the original In-N-Out replica: Francisquito Ave 13766, Baldwin Park, CA 91706.

The Mexican El Pueblo de Los Ángeles is located in the heart of Downtown L.A., right next to Union Station. The Pueblo is the origin of the city of Los Angeles; it's also home to the first house in L.A. Here, you'll find a beautiful Mexican market with well-designed souvenir stalls, Mexican music, and, of course, Mexican food.

It feels a bit like Mexico. Besides tourists, you'll meet only Mexicans here. I love the vibe. Visiting is a delightful change from the rest of the big city.

Everywhere in L.A., you'll find murals and paintings with wings (Angel Wings). Colette Miller started in the City of Angels with her paintings to show that we are all angels on Earth. Now, you can find Colette's wings in Kenya, Australia, England, Japan, Taiwan, France, Cuba, Mexico, and in other cities across the U.S.

We visited the Angel Wings by Colette Miller at OUE Sky Space (unfortunately closed since COVID).

Even at California's highest open-air observatory, there are Angel Wings by Colette Miller. Through the angel wings painted on the glass wall, you have a breathtaking view over Los Angeles.

The oldest existing McDonald's restaurant in the world is located in a town called Downey, about a 15-minute drive southeast of Downtown Los Angeles. If you don't know there's a McDonald's here, you might not even recognize it as a McDonald's while passing by. This retro store looks like an old typical California burger joint on the roadside.

This McDonald's, at the corner of Lakewood Blvd. and Florence Ave. in Downey, was opened in 1953 by Roger Williams and Bud Landon. It was the fourth restaurant opened by the two founders, whose franchise they started in 1948. Thus, the Downey restaurant is the fourth oldest McDonald's, but it is still the oldest that exists today. The original sign remains at the first walk-up hamburger stand in San Bernardino.

The Broad is the private museum of billionaire Eli Broad and his wife Edythe. Admission to the museum is free.

Especially the two Infinity Mirror Rooms by Yayoi Kusama attract crowds. One room transports us into a sparkling, pulsating star field made of LEDs, while the other houses a smaller reflective chamber where everything is mirrored. Of course, there is much more contemporary art. The two mirror rooms are a highlight for many.

Paul and Betty Pink founded Pink's Hot Dogs in 1939 with a pushcart near the corner of La Brea and Melrose in Hollywood. They opened their namesake restaurant in 1946 on North La Brea. Since then, guests from all over the world have lined up to buy hot dogs. It all started with a 10-cent chili hot dog made with Betty's chili recipe, mustard, and onions on a bun.

Today, the menu features 30 hot dogs, many named after celebrities and chefs like the Martha Stewart Dog (9" stretch dog, relish, onions, bacon, diced tomatoes, sauerkraut, sour cream) and the Emeril Lagasse Bam Hot Dog with mustard, onions, cheese, jalapeños, bacon, coleslaw.

Just the store and the many photos with celebrities are worth a visit.

As Bradbury is located in Downtown LA, it was a filming location in the blockbuster "Blade Runner." The architecture inside the building is fascinating. Thus, we simply had to visit the building from the inside. The structure is now an office building and is not always open to visitors.

If there is a security guard present inside, they will explain that you can only stay in the lower level up to the first landing of the stairs leading up. You cannot go further, as people are working in the office building. Please respect the rules.

Among the most popular Instagram spots in LA are always the cool retro-style lifeguard towers. You can find them at all public beaches throughout the city. But this Pride Lifeguard Tower in Venice Beach is special because it was painted in rainbow colors to celebrate Venice Pride!

A very special experience is a helicopter flight over the city at sunset. This way, you can see the mega metropolis from above and get close to the Hollywood sign. Unfortunately, we couldn't do this since a wildfire broke out nearby, and the firefighting planes needed the airspace.

The smoke gave the sunset a particularly kitschy color. Beautiful.

The Walt Disney Concert Hall, the jewel of the Music Center, is anything but cartoonish. The auditorium designed by Frank Gehry features an open stage and some of the best acoustics in the world. In the concert hall, you can listen to the internationally acclaimed LA Philharmonic. Throughout the year, this venue offers a surprisingly diverse program of concerts and performances.

And if you're not in the mood for a concert: Even from the outside, the architecture is a visual treat. To me, it's one of the most beautiful architectural sights in Los Angeles.

While the Walt Disney Concert Hall is known worldwide as an architectural marvel, most people don't know that the famous architect also designed A Rose for Lilly, the Lillian Disney Memorial Fountain. The fountain is located in the Blue Ribbon Garden on the roof of the hall, an oasis in downtown with a great viewpoint of the Hollywood sign, the Los Angeles Central Library, and even the San Gabriel Mountains.

Share your favorite spots in the metropolis on the West Coast of California that not everyone knows about. We'll test your travel tips & highlights on our next visit to L.A. I hope you've seen what this filmmaking mecca has to offer beyond the usual attractions like the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Universal Studios, Rodeo Drive, and more for tourists.

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