The Roze Team has visited numerous free and low-cost attractions in Los Angeles, including most of the places mentioned in this article. We enjoyed our different experiences at these locations over the years.
Throughout the year, Southern California provides visitors with a variety of free and low-cost activities. At these many locations, there is beauty, fun, and information to be learned. With the temptation to partake in all of Hollywood’s glamour and glam, Los Angeles can be an expensive destination. Regardless of your budget, there are still plenty of free activities to keep you entertained. Many of the most popular points of attraction do not charge admission, and with all of the beaches, gardens, and public entertainment alternatives, it’s not difficult to explore the City of Angels on a budget. However, parking fees can be expensive at times, so if you don’t want to hire a car, consider purchasing a Metro Day Pass to go around town by bus or rail.
Check Out the Best Markets in Los Angeles
If your next stop is one of L.A.’s wonderful beaches or Grand Park, visit The Original Farmers Market for a stroll among stalls peddling gourmet food, homemade pies, fresh bread, fish, meat, cheese, veggies, and any number of excellent picnic-making items. The market, which opened in 1934, is open every day of the year.
If you want to do some window shopping, go to Grand Central Market, which is located near the LACMA and has been functioning as a public market since 1917. It is presently the city’s oldest and largest market, with 40 kiosks selling a variety of ethnic foods from Japan, Germany, China, Italy, the Philippines, Mexico, and other parts of Latin America.
Go to The Original Farmers Market and Go to Grand Central Market
Enjoy The Benefits of Free Days at the Best Museums in Los Angeles
If you want to go to two of Los Angeles’ top museums, The Autry Museum of the American West in Griffith Park and the LACMA (the Los Angeles County Museum of Art), try to go on the second Tuesday of the month, when both are free to enter.
The permanent collection at LACMA includes an impressive amount of Latin American and Islamic Contemporary Art, as well as exhibits on an in-depth look at a century’s worth of fashion from 1900 to 2000, Spanish Colonial and 19th Century Art, Modern Mexican and Peruvian silver, and Greek ceramics, among other things. Check the website to learn what traveling exhibitions are coming before you go to Los Angeles.
The Autry Museum in Griffith Park houses almost 600,000 pieces of Hollywood Western memorabilia relating to Native American history, expansionism, ranching and cowboys, anthropology, archaeology, California history, and pop culture. Western-style movie posters from the silent cinema era, sceneries from a cowboy gallery, stories and art from the Old West, a California road trip, an ethnobotanical garden, and an exhibit featuring Pueblo pottery are among the special exhibitions.
Go to the Autry Museum and Go to LACMA
Observe the Surfers at Work
If you visit some of Los Angeles County’s beaches, they have some of the best surf on the planet. Surfers can be seen all along the Pacific Coast at any time of year, but especially when there’s a storm building and the waves are larger than usual. El Porto (Manhattan Beach), Redondo, Hermosa, Venice Beach, Ocean Park, Malibu (Surfrider Beach), Topanga Beach, Sunset Point, and Zuma Beach are all popular surfing spots in Los Angeles.
If you are visiting during a major surfing tournament, travel to the beach and spend the day cheering on some of the world’s most skilled surfers as they take on the waves. Huntington Beach holds the US Open of Surfing, about an hour south of downtown Los Angeles, during the end of July or the beginning of August. Closer to the city, the International Surf Festival takes place on Manhattan Beach, about 35 minutes away, in early August.
Go to the International Surf Festival and Go to the US Open of Surfing
Make Your Own Walking Tour
If you’re unfamiliar with Los Angeles and don’t want to pay for a professionally led tour, consider a self-guided walking tour using the GPSMYCITY app, which is available on the App Store and Google Play.
Whether you sign up for a three-day trial or an annual subscription, you’ll have access to dozens of self-guided itineraries throughout the city, including Downtown L.A., Hollywood Boulevard, West Hollywood, Chinatown, Korea Town, Little Tokyo, La Cienega Design Quarter, Beverly Hills, Angelino Heights, Historic Olvera Street, Westwood, Venice Beach, and Culver City, among others.
Go to the Make Your Own Walking Tour
Take in the Scenery at Grand Park
Grand Park is located Downtown near Los Angeles City Hall, and the park is a convenient and scenic area to relax after an eventful day of touring L.A. The 12-acre open space is also ideal for an afternoon picnic, whether you buy food from a food truck or pack your own meal.
Grand Park advertises itself as the park for everyone and is usually where you’ll find public activities, some of which are free to the public. It’s open every day from 5:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Check the website and social media pages to see if there’s anything interesting going on while you’re there. If anything, it’s a lovely place to unwind and take in the scenery—plus, the kids can play at the Grand Park Playground.
Visit the Most Iconic Places in Los Angeles
The Roze Team enjoyed visiting Santa Monica Pier and experiencing its variety of eateries. While riding the iconic Ferris wheel and other attractions at Santa Monica Pier’s amusement park, Pacific Park, costs money, visiting the pier itself is free and worthwhile even if you don’t ride any of the rides. Santa Monica Pier is such an iconic element of Los Angeles that you can’t miss it, and it’s also within walking distance of downtown Santa Monica and the Venice Beach Boardwalk, all of which are worth seeing if you’re in the area. Santa Monica Pier is not only a terrific site for people-watching and photography; it is also the western terminus for Route 66, one of the most famous roads in the United States and a popular route for epic road excursions to the West Coast.
Nearby, Sunset Boulevard’s famed 22-mile stretch takes you from the Pacific Palisades neighborhood along the coast to Downtown Los Angeles, whether you’re a fan of vintage cinema or simply wish to cross one of the city’s most popular thoroughfares. This stretch runs through Beverly Hills and West Hollywood, with its well-known palm trees and beautiful Bel Air houses. If you decide to enjoy this gorgeous drive, check the traffic conditions first, as Sunset Boulevard may get busy and L.A. traffic can be heavy.
The Roze Team has enjoyed experiencing the free and affordable aspects of visiting Los Angeles sites. Remember that highlights of the free and affordable events and places in L.A. are continued in parts 2 and 3.