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Photo: Serouj, Public domain via Wikimedia Commons
A popular tourist attraction, this Art Deco landmark was built in the 1930s and has since appeared in many films, most notably Rebel Without a Cause, which is honored at the observatory with a statue of James Dean on the grounds. The outside offers a beautiful panorama of the city of Los Angeles, which is especially stunning at night, as well as some of the best views of the Hollywood Sign. Inside is an extensive array of space- and science-related displays, including a Foucault pendulum and a Tesla coil. The planetarium shows are entertaining, with a live narrator.
Griffith Observatory is an observatory in Los Angeles, California, on the south-facing slope of Mount Hollywood in Griffith Park. It commands a view of the Los Angeles Basin including Downtown Los Angeles to the southeast, Hollywood to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. The observatory is a popular tourist attraction with a close view of the Hollywood Sign and an extensive array of space and science-related displays. Named after its benefactor, Griffith J. Griffith, admission has been free since the observatory's opening in 1935, in accordance with his will.
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An outdoor amphitheater, opened in 1930 and so named because the stage is modeled after a Greek temple, set in Griffith Park and regularly used for concerts. Parking can be a problem as it is on a hill in the middle of a residential neighborhood.
Perched in the foothills of Los Feliz beneath Griffith Park on a winding residential street is this massive Frank Lloyd Wright-designed house, constructed using textile blocks reminiscent of an ancient Mayan temple. The building is notable for its use as a filming location, appearing in numerous films and television shows including the 1959 House on Haunted Hill, the mansion in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and most notably in Blade Runner, as well as numerous commercials, fashion shoots, and music videos. Unfortunately, the house is only open for tours a handful of days each year, but both sides of its impressive exterior can easily be viewed from the street.
A shady oasis tucked alongside one of the main entrances into Griffith Park, this naturalistic area has numerous ferns and tropical plants alongside a small stream, with a nature trail and a picnic area that makes it a wonderful retreat on hot summer days.
A popular spot for film buffs, this former rock quarry consists of a short man-made tunnel through the hillside that was quickly embraced as a filming location once the quarry ceased operations in the 1920s. Since then, many television shows and low-budget sci-fi and Western films have been shot here, given its remote, craggy appearance and easy accessibility to Hollywood. Besides its portrayal as the entrance to the Batcave in the 1960s Batman series, you may have seen it in The A-Team, the original Star Trek series, Bonanza, The Lone Ranger television series, or perhaps one of the countless B-films from the 1950s and 60s that made use of it.
Before the current zoo was built in 1966, this spot a couple of miles to the south had served as Los Angeles' zoo since 1912, built at a time when small iron bar cages were common in zoos. Today, the rusting cages and stone grotto enclosures are still standing and are open for exploration alongside a picnic area, making this a popular spot for urban explorers. However, the cages are now closed off with iron bars.
Metro: Vermont/Sunset
A small hill in East Hollywood with sweeping views of the neighborhood as well as an arts complex on top that serves the local community, with an art center that offers classes to adults and children, a community theater, the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery, which holds changing exhibits of art from local artists, and Hollyhock House, which was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and is open to the public. Hollyhock House is one of eight buildings by Wright to be listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.