Our LA Bucket List

Ok, I know what you're probably thinking.

Haven't you been in LA for quite a few months already and you're only just now making a list of things you want to do there? Yup, yes, guilty as charged. It is indeed true. We have, in fact, been here just around 6 months now. But here’s the thing. I mean, not to sound like a broken record or anything, but settling in from a cross-country move is a whole other beast to wrestle with. It’s really taken it out of me and been intensely time consuming (as in I have no time for anything else). So yes, here we are, in the midst of unpacking boxes, sorting through belongs, finding furniture and setting up our new home, finally coming up from the packing papers for a bit of air and to officially, finally, put together our ultimate LA bucket list together.

This list is pretty much just one big giant compilation of all the fun, well-known and noteworthy things to do in and around Los Angeles, plus a few random things that seem like a good idea (Well, at least to us, but who knows. Maybe we’re just weird and random! Haha). I’m very much aware that it is far from a ground breaking list (especially for anyone who is a true born and raised Angeleno or California Native), but it’s the things that sound fun and exciting to us. Ask us again in four years and we might feel differently, though! Ha! I’m sure we’ll be adding to this list as much as we'll be crossing things off (anything in bold indicates it's been done), so check back for (hopefully) frequent updates (Update as of 2022- I have been less than frequent with my updates to this list. Here’s hoping 2022 will, in fact, include a few more updates.).

And while we’re on topic of bucket lists, I also want to create ones for Los Angeles restaurants that we want to eat it and foods in LA that we want to try, things we want to do throughout the state of California as well as one big west coast bucket list. Sure, all this list making might seem a bit excessive to some (and even boring to others), but I mean, what else would you expect from a serial list maker? And two people who have spent their entire lives almost exclusively on the opposite side of the United States?!

• Go to a Dodgers game

• Tour the Stahl House

• Visit The Huntington Library Gardens

• Explore the Descanso Gardens

• See a show at the Palladium

• Go to a concert at the Greek Theater

• Visit the Flower Fields

• El Matador Beach (completed February 2018)

• Go kayaking in Marina Del Rey

• Griffith Observatory (completed October 2017)

• Rent a boat and take it out on the Pacific Ocean for the day

• Take in the view from Elysian Park

• Walk Rodeo Drive

• Walk on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

• See a movie at Chinese Theater

• Visit LACMA

• The Broad (completed April 5th, 2018)

• Visit the Getty Villa

• Explore the Getty Museum

• Tour the Eames House

• Go on a Malibu Wine Safari

• Check out Fisherman’s Village (Marina del Rey)

• Go on a food crawl at Grand Central Market (DTLA)

• Go on a taco crawl, a burger crawl, heck, even an ice cream crawl (There are truly just so many good ones here!)

• Little Tokyo for 寿司

• Find my favorite farmers market, and become a regular (Brentwood takes the cake for this one)

• Go to the classic Brennan's Turtle Racing

• Exposition Rose Garden

• Visit Silver Lake Meadow

• Go to The Queen Mary (maybe even for an overnight stay?)

• Go to the Hollywood Bowl

• Explore Eaton Canyon Falls

• Go to Echo Park Lake (I want to do one of the swan boat rides here, too!)

• Check out Endeavor Space Shuttle

• Go to Bob Baker Marionette Theater

• Betty B Dearing Trail

• LACMA lights at night

• See the Chandelier Tree in Silver Lake

• Take a hike at Baldwin Hills + check out the view from the overlook

• Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine

• Amoeba Music

• Wayfarers Chapel

• Point Dume Beach

• Mount Wilson Observatory

• Museum of Jurassic Technology

• Betty B Dearing Trail (aka the hike to the rainforest)

• Philip Mershon's Felix in Hollywood Tour

• Santa Monica Camera Obscura

• Ride the ferris wheel at the Santa Monica Pier (something that I’ve done, but Dave and I have not done it together so I’m keeping it on the list)

• Do a horseback riding trail

• A Laker's Game at the Staple Center

• Helicopter ride over the Hollywood Sign (even though helicopter rides make me nervous AF)

• Take a road trip to San Francisco (I know, I know, not exactly something to do in LA, more from LA, but LA is still involved, hence me including it on the list)

• Have a day at Disneyland

• Do a studio tour at Warner Bros Studios and Universal Studios

• La Brea Tar Pits(completed May 2018)

• Point Mugu Hike (completed January 2018)

• Peterson Auto Museum

• Take in a sunset at the Manhattan Beach Pier

• Sunset picnic at the Huntington Beach Pier

• Angel's Flight

• Go stargazing at the Griffith Observatory

• Take a sunset hike to the Hollywood Sign (a quintessential hike to do in Los Angeles that is great to do no matter what time of day, but I’ve heard it’s especially magical at sunset)

• Kayak the LA River

• A moonlight + dinner hike at Mt. Baldy (although I’m a little nervous to hike at night haha)

• Go to Zuma Beach (now one of my favorite beaches, especially in Malibu)

• Visit the Rosebowl Flea Market

• Visit the Melrose Flea Market

• Go to Eaton Canyon Waterfall

• Hike the Sunken City

• Check out (and buy a book from) The Last Bookstore

• Visit the Caravan Bookstore

• Enjoy a movie night at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery

• Visit Venice Beach (think we definitely accomplished that one when we moved to Venice Beach haha)

• Stroll the Venice Canals (see also the answer for Venice Beach, above)

• Camp at the beach (thinking Leo Carrillo Beach)

• Abandoned zoo at Griffith Park

• Explore the Cave of Munits

• Go to a drive-in movie at Vineland

• Check out Point Vicente Lighthouse