Los Angeles is a spread-out collection of neighborhoods rather than one city: surf towns on the coast, hillside hikes with skyline views, world-class museums and some of the best casual food in the country. Plan a base or two and keep drives short.
Month by month
Best: March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Avoid Poor OK Good Excellent Peak
How long to stay
4–6 days is the sweet spot.
Flight time
About 5.5h from the US East Coast, 11h from Europe, 19h from South Asia.
Good to know
- Traffic is the real itinerary constraint; cluster each day in one area (Westside, Hollywood, Downtown, or the beaches) and avoid crossing town at 5pm.
- Use the Metro for Downtown, Union Station and the Expo Line to Santa Monica; rideshare or a car for everything else.
- June 'gloom' marine layer often hides the coast until noon; September and October are the warmest, clearest beach months.
Plan a trip to Los Angeles
Pick your dates and Offdays builds a day-by-day itinerary from Los Angeles's best places.
Destination