Things to Do in Downtown LA (Metro Guide)

The things to do in Downtown LA that we could check are the Broad and MOCA, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Grand Central Market, Angels Flight, the Central Library, Union Station and Olvera Street, and the Grammy Museum. All of them are a short walk from a Metro station. You can see most of them in one day for a $1.75 fare. We read each official page on 28 October 2026.

Downtown LA at a glance

Getting to and around Downtown LA by Metro

Downtown has two sets of stations. The A and E Lines run under Flower Street and 2nd Street through 7th St/Metro Center, Grand Av Arts/Bunker Hill, Historic Broadway and Little Tokyo/Arts District. The B and D Lines run under Hill Street from 7th St/Metro Center through Pershing Square and Civic Center/Grand Park to Union Station.

Subway: On a weekday the E Line takes about 2 minutes from 7th St/Metro Center to Grand Av Arts/Bunker Hill, 4 minutes to Historic Broadway and 5 minutes to Little Tokyo/Arts District. Daytime trains come about every 8 to 10 minutes (E Line timetable effective 14 December 2025, read 28 Oct 2026)

Price: $1.75 a ride, with free transfers for two hours. Metro never charges more than $5 a day or $18 in seven days. Tap a contactless bank card, a phone wallet or a TAP card (Metro fares page, read 28 Oct 2026)

Note: Metro's E Line timetable says all rail lines may have delays after 8 p.m. for maintenance, and sometimes early on weekend mornings (same timetable)

The stations are close together, so walking is often as fast as the train. From Grand Av Arts/Bunker Hill down to Grand Central Market is one stop by train, or one ride on Angels Flight. How to pay, the hours of each line and safety tips are in our LA Metro guide.

Flying in? The FlyAway bus runs from the LAX terminals to Union Station. Metro rail is cheaper but needs a shuttle and one change. Both are in our LAX to Downtown LA guide.

The sights, with address, hours and price

The Broad

Address: 221 S. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90012 (The Broad, visit page, read 28 Oct 2026)

Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Closed Mondays, Thanksgiving and Christmas Day (same page)

Price: General admission is free. The museum suggests a timed ticket booked ahead, and it has walk-up tickets every day. The Infinity Mirror Rooms need an advance reservation. Some exhibitions and events cost extra (same page)

Subway: Grand Av Arts/Bunker Hill station on the A and E Lines, says the visit page

The Broad is a museum of contemporary art, with works by artists such as Jeff Koons and Yayoi Kusama. Thursday is the late night, open until 8 p.m.

MOCA Grand Avenue

Address: 250 South Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90012 (MOCA, visit page, read 28 Oct 2026)

Hours: Tuesday to Friday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Open until 8 p.m. on the first Thursday of each month. Closed Mondays, the Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Year's Day (same page)

Price: General admission is free. MOCA suggests booking ahead (same page)

Subway: Grand Av Arts/Bunker Hill station, across Grand Avenue from the Broad

MOCA's second building, the Geffen Contemporary in Little Tokyo, was closed between shows when we checked. Its page said programs return on 18 September 2026 but listed no regular hours, so check before you go.

Walt Disney Concert Hall

Address: 111 S. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90012

Hours: Tour times not confirmed. The Music Center runs self-guided audio tours of the hall, but its tour page did not open for us this week. Tours stop when there is a performance, so check the page the day before

Price: Not confirmed. Walking around the outside of the hall is free

Subway: Grand Av Arts/Bunker Hill station, one block north of the Broad

The hall is the home of the LA Phil, designed by Frank Gehry. Even when the inside is closed for a concert, you can walk around the steel outside.

Grand Central Market

Address: 317 South Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90013 (Grand Central Market, visit page, read 28 Oct 2026)

Hours: Daily 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Each vendor sets its own hours. Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Year's Day (same page)

Price: Free to walk. Each stall sets its own food prices. The garage at 308 South Hill Street is $5.50 for the first 90 minutes and $40 for the day (same page)

Subway: A or E Line to Historic Broadway, or B or D Line to Pershing Square. The market says both are about one block away (same page)

Grand Central Market is a food hall that opened in 1917. Our tip: go before noon on a weekday to find a seat.

Angels Flight

Address: Lower station: 351 S. Hill Street, across from Grand Central Market. Upper station: California Plaza, 350 S. Grand Avenue (Angels Flight site, read 28 Oct 2026)

Hours: Daily 6:45 a.m. to 10 p.m. (same site)

Price: $1.50 each way. $0.75 one way with a Metro TAP card loaded with stored value. A souvenir round-trip ticket is $3 (same site)

Subway: Historic Broadway station at the bottom, Grand Av Arts/Bunker Hill station at the top

Angels Flight is a very short funicular railway with two small cars. It saves you a steep walk up Bunker Hill. A good plan is lunch at the market, then Angels Flight up to the Broad.

Bradbury Building

Address: 304 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90013, across from Grand Central Market

Hours: Not confirmed. We found no official visiting hours. Travel guides say visitors can see the lobby and ground floor only

Price: Not confirmed. Travel guides say there is no charge for the lobby

Subway: Historic Broadway (A, E) or Pershing Square (B, D)

The Bradbury is an office building from 1893 with a glass roof, open iron stairs and old elevators. It is still a working office building, so keep to the lobby and be quiet.

Central Library

Address: 630 W. 5th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90071 (Los Angeles Public Library, Central Library page, read 28 Oct 2026)

Hours: Monday to Thursday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Sunday 1 to 5 p.m. (same page)

Price: Free. The library lists a docent-led art and architecture tour on weekdays at 12:30 p.m. It did not say whether the tour is free, so we did not confirm that (same page)

Subway: Pershing Square (B, D) or 7th St/Metro Center (A, B, D, E)

The library's 1926 building has a tiled pyramid roof and a rotunda with painted murals. Maguire Gardens, a public park, is next to it.

Union Station

Address: 800 N. Alameda Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012 (Union Station, visit page, read 28 Oct 2026)

Hours: Open to the public daily from 4 a.m. to 1 a.m. (same page)

Price: Free

Subway: Union Station on the A, B and D Lines. Amtrak, Metrolink and the FlyAway bus to LAX also stop here

Union Station opened in 1939. Walk through the old waiting room with its big leather chairs, then out to the garden courtyards on each side.

Olvera Street

Address: Olvera Street, across Alameda Street from Union Station

Hours: Not confirmed. We did not find current hours for the street's stalls on an official page this week

Price: Free to walk

Subway: Union Station (A, B, D)

Olvera Street is a short brick lane with Mexican food stalls and shops, next to the old plaza where Los Angeles started. We think 30 minutes is enough. The free museums and tours around the plaza, and Chinatown one stop north, are in our Chinatown and Olvera Street guide.

City Hall and Grand Park

Address: Los Angeles City Hall, 200 N. Spring Street. Grand Park runs between City Hall and the Music Center

Hours: Not confirmed. Older guides say City Hall's free observation deck on the 27th floor is open on weekdays. We found no 2026 official page with its hours

Price: Free (Grand Park)

Subway: Civic Center/Grand Park station on the B and D Lines

Grand Park is a long, open park with lawns and a fountain. It links Bunker Hill to City Hall, so you can walk it on the way from the Broad to Union Station.

Grammy Museum and the area around Crypto.com Arena

Address: 800 W. Olympic Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90015 (Grammy Museum, visit page, read 28 Oct 2026)

Hours: Sunday, Monday, Thursday and Friday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays, Thanksgiving and Christmas (same page)

Price: Adults $22.50, seniors 65+ $18, ages 17 and under free. Visitors under 16 must come with an adult (same page)

Subway: Pico station on the A and E Lines, one stop south of 7th St/Metro Center

The museum is part of the L.A. Live block, next to Crypto.com Arena, where the Lakers play and big concerts take place. On a game night the area is busy late, and so are the trains.

LA 2028 Olympics. This end of Downtown is a Games zone. LA28 lists the DTLA Arena (Crypto.com Arena) for artistic gymnastics, trampoline and the boxing finals, the Peacock Theater for weightlifting and early boxing rounds, and the Los Angeles Convention Center for fencing, judo, table tennis, taekwondo and wrestling. LA28 says venues can change (LA28 venues page, read 28 Oct 2026).

Little Tokyo and the Arts District

Little Tokyo/Arts District station on the A and E Lines is 5 minutes from 7th St/Metro Center. Little Tokyo has Japanese shops and ramen. The Japanese American National Museum there is closed for renovation until 23 January 2027. The Arts District, to the east, has murals, breweries and restaurants in old warehouses. Hours and prices for both are in our Little Tokyo guide.

Is Downtown LA safe?

This is our own advice, not an official rating.

• By day, the visitor blocks are busy. Bunker Hill, Grand Central Market, the Historic Core along Broadway, Little Tokyo and Union Station are full of office workers and visitors. Most people walk them with no trouble.

• Know where Skid Row is. Many people live on the street in the area south of 3rd Street and east of Main Street. You do not need to walk through it to see any sight on this page. Look at the map before you book a hotel south of 3rd Street.

• At night, take a rideshare. Many office blocks empty after work. For anything more than a short walk after about 10 p.m., use a rideshare.

• On the train, act as you would in any big city. Keep your phone in your pocket on the platform, and move to another car if someone makes you uneasy. Our LA Metro guide has Metro's own safety contacts.

For where to sleep, our car-free LA guide names hotels in Little Tokyo, on Bunker Hill and next to 7th St/Metro Center, with the trade-offs of each block.

Free things to do in Downtown LA

• See the Broad. Book a free timed ticket, or join the walk-up line.

• See MOCA Grand Avenue across the street. It is also free.

• Walk around the steel outside of Walt Disney Concert Hall.

• Walk through Grand Central Market. You only pay for food.

• Visit the Central Library rotunda and Maguire Gardens.

• Walk Grand Park from the Music Center down to City Hall.

• Sit in the Union Station waiting room, then cross the road to Olvera Street.

Things to do in Downtown LA at night

• The Broad on Thursday. It stays open until 8 p.m.

• A concert. The LA Phil plays at Walt Disney Concert Hall. Check the hall's calendar for dates.

• A game or show at Crypto.com Arena. Pico station is one stop from 7th St/Metro Center. Expect crowded trains after the event.

• Dinner at Grand Central Market or in Little Tokyo. The market is open until 9 p.m.

After about 10 p.m., our advice is to take a rideshare back to your hotel, even for a few blocks.

A day in Downtown LA by Metro

This is our own plan, not an official one. Start at Union Station in the morning, then walk across the road to Olvera Street. Take the B or D Line two stops to Civic Center/Grand Park and walk up Grand Park to the Music Center. See Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Broad. Ride Angels Flight down to Grand Central Market for lunch, then walk across Broadway to the Bradbury Building. In the afternoon, go to the Central Library or take the A or E Line to Little Tokyo. End with dinner in Little Tokyo or a show near Crypto.com Arena.

The Broad and MOCA are closed on Mondays, and the Grammy Museum is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Wednesday to Sunday works best for this plan.

What we checked and what can change

Read on 28 October 2026: the Broad's visit page; MOCA's visit page; Grand Central Market's visit page; the Angels Flight site; the Los Angeles Public Library's Central Library page; Union Station's visit page; the Grammy Museum's visit page; the LA28 venues pages; Metro's fares page; and Metro's E Line timetable effective 14 December 2025. The Music Center's Walt Disney Concert Hall tour page did not open for us.

Not confirmed: the Bradbury Building's hours and rules, Olvera Street's stall hours, City Hall's observation deck hours, whether the Central Library tour is free, the Geffen Contemporary's hours, and the Disney Hall tour times and price. Our own advice, not an official source: the safety notes, the day plan and the night tips. Hours change on holidays and for events, so check each venue's page for your date. We did not visit Downtown LA for this page.