Downtown Los Angeles: History and Architecture Tour

Discover the rich history and stunning architecture of downtown Los Angeles on this engaging and informative tour. Explore the Historic Core, Little Tokyo, the Civic Center, and Bunker Hill, and indulge in traditional Japanese sweets from a legendary confectioner. Don’t miss out on this unique opportunity to truly understand and appreciate the heart of LA!

Duration: 3 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Angels Flight Railway - Begin the tour by exploring the world’s shortest train! Discover Angels Flight and its link to Bunker Hill. The tour kicks off with a ride on Angels Flight! (The cost is included in the tour.)
  • California Plaza - Uncover the fate of the Victorian homes of old Los Angeles and the rise of the modern financial district….
What's Included
  • Complimentary snacks
Additional Information

Chris is excited to be your guide through Downtown. With experience leading tours for KTLA, Spectrum News1, and NHK Japan, Chris offers unique 5-star experiences, such as the Sunset Strip True Crime tour. Booking with Chris ensures you have the tour creator as your guide, not just someone reading from a script.
This tour is far from ordinary. Over the…

Location
341 S Hill St
South Hill Street
We meet at the BOTTOM of the Angels Flight trolley. This is right across from Grand Central Market. Your guide will be standing off to the side, near the stairs.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
5.0
(70 Ratings)
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Elizabeth_h
Oct 19, 2025
Best tour ever! - Our guide was so knowledgeable and gave us a great perspective on the history and architectural evolution of downtown LA!
Review provided by Viator
Michelle_l
Oct 17, 2025
The unseen LA - Chris did an exceptional job of taking us around downtown and providing us with an abundance of information about the architecture and history. As someone who lives within this community who knew many of the shop owners and vendors and it gave a very unique perspective of the community. I would highly recommend.
Review provided by Viator
Matthewsu2123hl
Oct 7, 2025
Amazing tour guide and various things seen. - The guide was extremely knowledgeable on all sorts of topics and made Dad and I more interested in doing things in LA in the future.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Daniela_m
Oct 7, 2025
Discover the real Los Angeles - Chris is an excellent guide. You can tell he's passionate about history and that he enjoys sharing all the interesting facts about the most important buildings in Downtown LA, often using pictures to explain. He's not only knowledgeable but also funny, and he's definitely the best company you could have to discover Downtown LA.
Review provided by Viator
Willis_m
Sep 20, 2025
Architectural and History Tour of Downtown Los Angeles. - Great walking tour: Chris is extremely knowledgeable and indefatigable- he is a fountain of information about architecture and history. He also is caring, patient and thoughtful (always stopping in the shade!), while ensuring he includes everyone while sharing.
Review provided by Viator
Luke_s
Sep 17, 2025
Dynamic LA Tour-Don’t miss out - First and foremost, this was the best tour I did in LA easily. Forget the Hollywood celebrities and all that jazz-Chris is an LA expert and it really shows in his dynamic tour. He has a wealth of experience coming from doing tours in Chicago and it shows. He brings the city of LA to life in a new and fascinating way I don't believe any film can capture. I highly recommend his tour and his hospitality is absolutely incredible!!!
Review provided by Viator
Frans_l
Sep 6, 2025
Great walking in downtown LA - Great tour! Learned a lot about LA and its history. Our tour guide Chris was very engaging. I highly recommend this tour!
Review provided by Viator
Z4004kcandrewk
Aug 30, 2025
An EXCELSIOR experience for Los Angeles tourist AND locals! - This is a PRIME experience in LA. I'm a local and I would recommend to anyone-- local or tourist-- you gain a new perspective and appreciation of a city that can seem on the surface superficial-- Chris is an effortless host who grabs you from the onset with a breezy yet breakneck pace that mixes good humor with stunning facts-- and he was very considerate about heat (always finding shade for info dumps) and find fun pit stops to try local delicacies. This is likely one of the best tours I've ever been on. The 2.5 hrs felt like 45 minutes. Will recommend and maybe even do again.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Denise_h
Aug 23, 2025
Best walking tour - This was an amazing tour, I learned so much about Los Angeles and its history and architecture. My guide Chris was the best! Not only was he very knowledgeable but also very engaging . I really enjoyed spending a few hours with him. I would highly recommend this tour . This was one of the best walking tours I have taken.and I’ve been on a lot of them over the years.
Review provided by Viator
Laura_w
Jul 27, 2025
We live just outside of... - We live just outside of LA but this tour introduced us to a vast amount of history and detail about LA. Our host, Chris, was incredibly knowledgeable, and invested in respecting and protecting the city and its inhabitants. Would absolutely recommend this tour!
Review provided by Viator
From $49
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).