219 Cool and Unusual Things to Do in Los Angeles - Atlas Obscura

Unusual Attractions in Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California

Underground Tunnels of Los Angeles

During prohibition, corrupt city officials ran drinking dens under the streets of Downtown Los Angeles.

Los Angeles, California

The Museum of Death

World's largest collection of serial killer artwork and other macabre exhibits.

Los Angeles, California

The Echo Park Time Travel Mart

Non-profit time travel mart sells goods you would need for a trip through the fourth dimension.

Los Angeles, California

The Last Bookstore

This iconic L.A. bookshop is housed in an abandoned bank—both symbolic and chic.

Los Angeles, California

Sunken City

A jumble of foundations, streets, and streetcar tracks inhabit the cliff where a landslide occurred in 1929.

Los Angeles, California

Griffith Observatory's Tesla Coil

High on a hill overlooking Los Angeles lives a world famous, high power conical Tesla Coil.

Los Angeles, California

Bradbury Building

The legendary building that needed ghostly approval before being built.

Los Angeles, California

Old Zoo Picnic Area

The abandoned zoo enclosures offer a perfect place to experience the other side of the bars.

See All 219 Things to Do in Los Angeles See All 219 Places

Upcoming Experiences Near Los Angeles

Explore the Secrets of the Sewage Garden

Los Angeles, California

Sexual Fluidity Beneath the Sea

Santa Monica, California

A Hands-on History of Printing

Carson, California

Go With the Glow - Heal The Bay Aquarium

Santa Monica, California

Unique Food & Drink in Los Angeles

Szechuan Button

This herb gives cocktails another kind of buzz.

The Zombie

Donn Beach only wrote the recipe for his famously potent cocktail in secret code.

Hangtown Fry

This bacon-and-oyster omelet was a status symbol during the California Gold Rush.

Steam Beer

The unique style born out of the California Gold Rush blends the crispness of a lager with the flavor of an ale.

Atlas Obscura Trips

Science in the Field: Tracking Wild Bumblebees in the Redwoods

Community Forums / United States / US: West

Top Discussions in the US: West Travel Forum

Post	Replies	Views	Activity
Looking for places to visit in Tucson Az	13 January 3, 2020	2677	January 3, 2020
Blenheim Apricot	10 January 13, 2020	2433	January 13, 2020
Visiting Utah and Colorado	11 December 5, 2019	577	December 5, 2019
Traveling through MT, WY, CO, TX. Need advice!	9 June 12, 2019	1429	June 12, 2019
Tracing a town with a square with a lovely scent, near Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA	8 September 22, 2019	1461	September 22, 2019

New Post Visit the Forum

Explore Los Angeles, California

Launch Map

Los Angeles Leaderboard

Places Added

Places Edited

Places Visited

Recent Los Angeles Activity

EmmyRose wants to go to Evergreen Memorial Park & Crematory

madcapwanderlust wants to go to Underground Tunnels of Los Angeles

bena wants to go to Phantasma Gloria

Ammozboli has been to Old Zoo Picnic Area

Ammozboli has been to Stay On Main Hotel

Stories About Los Angeles

How a Photographer Recreated Outdoor Adventures With Household Stuff

Think of it as the Great Indoors.

"The package may be small, but you will know it does not need to hold the love I send, for that cannot be confined," Hildreth Heiney wrote to her fiancé in 1918. The man in the photograph, identified as John, may be her brother.

A Trove of Sad, Funny, and Familiar Stories From the 1918 Flu Pandemic

A UCLA librarian has built a remarkable collection of century-old letters, diaries, and photographs.

by Jessica Klein

Hear the Soundscapes of Cities Transformed

"It is, in a word, quiet."

by Matt Mikkelsen

A food truck fit for a prince.

The Exiled Prince Behind Los Angeles's Only Fresh-Pasta Food Truck

Bend the macaro-knee.

February 27, 2020

SHAN Wallace, <em>The Makeover of Progress</em>, 2019. The Annenberg Space for Photography commissioned the photographer to document the wall along Detroit's 8 Mile Road, which segregated the city's working-class homeowners.

Photographers Take on the World's Walls, Borders, and Barriers

An exhibit documents the obstacles we erect, and how we overcome them.

November 26, 2019

The Fitzroy Mausoleum at night, ready to scare visitors.

How Two Friends Rebuilt a Huge Haunted House in Just Two Weeks

Shortly before opening night, vicious winds ripped the roof off of their homemade haunt.

by Shannon Brown

October 29, 2019

The Raitt Street mural around four years ago, faded and in disrepair.

California's Mexican-American History Is Disappearing Beneath White Paint

It’s surprisingly hard to protect beloved public art.

by Sabrina Imbler

August 28, 2019

The remains of the tree.

The Life of a Historic Los Angeles Tree Comes to an End

For 144 years, it lived at El Pueblo de Los Angeles, the site where the city was founded in the 18th century.

by Jonathan Carey

Lists Featuring Los Angeles