Private Walking Tour of Downtown LA's History and Architecture

 

In a city blessed with blissful light, innovation and bold visual design statements, Los Angeles is full of architectural gems that only make sense in the context of the history around which they were built. On your private downtown history and architecture walking tour, you will:

- Begin your tour at Union Station, called the last of America's great train stations
- Discover grand historic structures, surreal monuments and futuristic sci-fi-inspired architecture
- Squint your eyes, and the stainless steel Walt Disney Concert Hall design looks like a gleaming clipper ship, its sails filled with wind
- Visit Olvera Street, known as “the birthplace of Los Angeles.” The block-long tree-shaded Mexican marketplace is part of El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument
- Walk down Union Street, a vibrant symbol of LA’s spirit and soul. Its’ stunning signature Mission Moderne style combines Spanish Colonial, Mission Revival and Art Deco architecture
- Visit The Bradbury Building - where modest mildly Romanesque exterior hides a magical light-filled Victorian court, open cage elevators, marble stairs, and ornate iron railings, built in 1893
- Enjoy Grand Central Market, which boasts vintage neon signs, glorious 1960s tile-work and original Beaux Arts detailing
- See a railway on a steep hillside, opened in 1901 to ferry passengers up and down the steep slope to the top of Bunker Hill and remains one of LA’s most endearing landmarks

From bold esoteric newcomers like the monumental Broad Museum to landmark favorites such as Bradbury Building built in 1893, Los Angeles is a city rich in iconic architecture - it’s rare to see two buildings alike. You will discover sharp, crisp right angles of modernist architecture, the dazzling exoticism of soaring spires and fairytale towers, and grand palatial estates. Backdropped by year-round blue skies and golden sunshine, LA’s structures are showcased to perfection in the city’s famous sublime light. The Private Downtown LA History and Architecture Walking Tour will dazzle with the porous alabaster-white shell facade of the Broad Museum, the glinting curves of the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the city’s downtown cultural centerpiece, and the old Mexican influences of El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument and its tree-shaded plazas

Pass lush sculptural landscapes on our way to be wowed by the geometric light-filled design of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, José Rafael Moneo’s Pritzker-prize-winning structure. This compelling tour - popular with visitors and Angelinos alike - provides the fascinating backstory to the growth of this great city, from its humble origins to the present day, as told through its striking, unique architecture. The fascinating Private Downtown LA History and Architecture Walking Tour delves into the city’s storied history to discover the dynamos that have powered design eras and the socio-political context of each visual feast