Guides · United States
Getting around Los Angeles
How to move around Los Angeles on a 3-day walking trip: metro, tickets and the notes that matter.
Checked September 2026 against official sources
Los Angeles
Transit and walking
Follow the official link before you buy. Full walking days: Los Angeles itinerary.
Getting around
- On Metro buses and trains you can pay the regular fare by tapping a contactless credit or debit card, phone or TAP card at the validator, with two hours of free transfers.Source: LA Metro · checked Sep 2026
- The DASH Observatory/Los Feliz shuttle links Vermont/Sunset Metro station with Griffith Observatory daily 10:00–22:00, every 20 to 25 minutes, for 50 cents (35 cents with a TAP card).Source: LADOT Transit · checked Sep 2026
Questions
Quick answers
Do I need a car?
Not for this plan. Day one is on foot, day two uses the Metro B Line and the DASH Observatory shuttle, and day three needs one longer taxi or rideshare between the Getty Center and Santa Monica. Metro buses and trains accept contactless bank cards.
Can you see the Hollywood Sign up close?
You cannot walk to the letters, but Griffith Observatory's terraces and the Mount Hollywood Trail behind it give the clearest views, and the DASH shuttle from Vermont/Sunset station saves the climb.
How much walking is this itinerary?
On the Downtown day it comes to about 2 km in a straight line between sights; day two is done by Metro and the DASH shuttle with short walks at each end; day three adds about 4 km, most of it the flat beach path from Santa Monica Pier to Venice.
The days these rules belong to
3 days in Los Angeles
Los Angeles is a collection of cities joined by freeways, so the trick is to stay in one area each day: day one walks Downtown from Union Station and Olvera Street to Grand Central Market, The Broad and Walt Disney Concert Hall; day two takes the Metro to Hollywood Boulevard, visits Hollyhock House and ends with sunset over the city at Griffith Observatory; day three goes west to the Getty Center, Santa Monica Pier and Venice Beach. The Broad, the Getty and Griffith Observatory are all closed on Mondays, and Hollyhock House opens only Thursday to Sunday, so plan the middle day around it.
