Free events in LA: The best free things to do in the city

Riverside’s stunningly beautiful Mission Inn is bathed in 4.5 million twinkly lights during the annual Festival of Lights. The free six-week-long holiday tradition runs from late November to early January and typically features more than 400 animated figures. Having been voted the “Best Public Lights Display” by USA Today, the festival attracts over 500,000 visitors each year.

Nope, that’s not some sort of catastrophic explosion in the center of the city—that sound’s just the arrival of Christmas at the Grove. Brace yourself: L.A.’s shopping mall metropolis lights up its Christmas tree with fireworks and a slew of special guests, including Santa himself (may we humbly suggest that you ask Santa this year for a prime spot in that mammoth parking garage). Lance Bass hosts this year’s show, with performances by Ryan Tedder, Maren Morris, Rachel Platten, Robin Thicke, Jesse McCartney, Abi Carter and Shelea. Stick around for the fireworks finale (and we’ll reiterate that, yep, anxious Angelenos, those are indeed fireworks that you’re hearing on November 25).

Every Sunday you can find dozens of food vendors at this market at ROW DTLA, with a mix of much-loved pop-ups and future foodie stars. Look out for this year’s new vendors, including Basket Taco Co, Battambong Barbecue and Taste of the Pacific.

Every year on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, the Great Los Angeles Walk debunks all of those cliches about walking in L.A. Hundreds of walkers start the free urban hike on one side of the city and, about half a day later, end up at the other. You can hop on or off the walk whenever you’d like, and though no reservations are required, RSVPs are appreciated. This year’s route starts in Exposition Park—in front of the oldest palm tree in L.A.—and heads toward the Bruin statue in Westwood for a USC-meets-UCLA edition.

As you might expect, the Getty has a sizable slate of free PST Art exhibitions this fall, and this one is easily the largest and most notable. “Lumen” takes a multi-faith approach to how astronomy and optics impacted art and religion in the Middle Ages—in other words, you’ll find illuminated Hebrew Bibles and a Byzantine chandelier alongside an Islamic astrolabe from the 1200s and a 12th-century manuscript that documented how monks used constellations to tell time. The Getty ties some contemporary pieces into the exhibition, as well, including Fred Eversley’s purple-hued parabolic lens and one of Anish Kapoor’s void-like Vantablack sculptures. These current-day pieces extended outside of the gallery, as well: You’ll find a fuzzy, meditative sculpture from Light and Space artist Helen Pashgian in the museum’s north pavilion, as well as Charles Ross’s array of rainbow-scattering prisms in the entrance hall. Make sure to scope out an eye-popping pair of shows in the west pavilion, too: “Abstracted Light: Experimental Photography,” which features abstract prints from artists like László Moholy-Nagy and Man Ray, as well as “Sculpting with Light: Contemporary Artists and Holography,” a collection of portraits and landscapes that appear to float within their frames. Both are open through November 24.

We could spend hours wandering the Huntington’s gardens—and about just as long in its wonderful gift shop. Well, here’s an excuse to spend even more time there: this one-day-only artisan pop-up market, which brings more than three dozen art, home, jewelry, craft and fashion vendors to the visitor center’s Haaga Hall. We recommend French-style caramels from Le Bon Garçon, old-Hollywood-inspired makeup from Bésame Cosmetics, and retro L.A. menus turned into art from Vintage Menu Art. Admission is free and doesn’t require a museum ticket.

Like a holiday edition of Fiesta Hermosa, this weekend-long event transforms the coastal city’s downtown with an open house among existing retailers, plus an artisanal pop-up marketplace (Pier Avenue between Valley Drive and Monterey Boulevard), as well as a carnival—complete with Ferris wheel—at Pier Plaza. Also on the schedule: a tree lighting ceremony and community concert on Sunday, and fun family activities including the culmination of a citywide Elf on a Shelf Scavenger Hunt. 

Artists and JPL scientists come together for this collaborative exhibition in Glendale, where 11 artists across a mix of mediums present their take on how nature and the night sky can inspire wonder in us.

Feel as though you’ve escaped to a small-town fishing village during the Marina Del Rey Boat Parade. Bring a blanket and gather around Fisherman’s Village or Burton Chace Park to watch as 70 boats glide through the marina with holiday lights and decorations in competition. Categories include Best Theme, Best Animation, Best Band, Best Lights and more. The festivities begin at 5:55pm with fireworks, and the boat parade starts at 6pm, rain or shine. RECOMMENDED: Where to see Christmas lights in Los Angeles

This first-floor exhibition at the Broad features hundreds of German artist Joseph Beuys’s “multiples,” editioned objects (with a focus here on environmentalism) that stretched the meaning of sculpture. But the most notable aspect of this show extends beyond the gallery walls: Inspired by Beuys’s 7000 Eichen (7000 Oaks), the concurrent Social Forest: Oaks of Tovaangar will plant 100 native trees (primarily coast live oaks) in Elysian Park and at Kuruvungna Village Springs.

Shop Etsy goods IRL at these local markets, which pop up at malls and shopping centers across Southern California throughout the holiday season. Shop both handmade and vintage treasures, plus artisanal food. You’ll also find DIY activities, live art and giveaways.

While Santa may still be working with his elves to load up his sleigh, you can relax and enjoy a Christmas Eve celebration at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. Gather up your friends and family and go hear L.A.’s biggest holiday show, now in its 65th year, which includes more than 20 choirs, music ensembles and dance troupes from all over the city. The free three-hour show celebrates L.A.’s multicultural observation of the holidays and has hosted everything from an all-women soul ensemble to Hawaiian music to Indian dance. The performance runs from 3 to 6pm, and guests are encouraged to come and go as they please throughout the show. Reservations and tickets are not necessary; parking at the Dorothy Chandler is also free. Those who still have last-minute holiday responsibilities to attend to can listen to a livestream of the concert on pbssocal.org or watch it on PBS SoCal.

Inspired by Steve Martin’s satirical City of Angels comedy—and blessed by the legend himself—“L.A. Story” will bring a group show about L.A.’s enchantments to Hauser & Wirth’s West Hollywood gallery. Though not a one-to-one response to the surreal 1991 film, the exhibition will have plenty of after-the-fact homages to key locations and scenes, including swimming pools (David Hockney, Eric Fischl and Calida Rawles), the coastline (Florian Maier-Aichen), the cityscape (Mark Bradford), major streets (Ed Ruscha) and Hollywood shootouts (Vija Celmin). “I’m thrilled that L.A. Story is the focus of so many wonderful artists and a wonderful gallery, Hauser & Wirth, which is just across the street from the Troubadour, where I first stepped foot on Santa Monica Boulevard, which began my L.A. sojourn,” said Martin in a statement. This actually isn’t his first crossover with the L.A. art world: In 2015, he curated a show of landscape paintings by Lawren Harris at the Hammer.

Take a seat under the arch at the former Hollywood & Highland for this free series of movie screenings, typically held on the last Friday of the month. Stop by the Ovation Hollywood booth for free popcorn and discounted treats from the TCL Chinese Theatre concessions stand.

Commuting through Union Station around the holidays? Make sure to take a detour into the historic ticket concourse for the train station’s ninth annual tree lighting on November 25, with musical performances by Kingston Ska Collective and Los Rebeldes Romanticos. You’ll also find a “North Pole” on the north patio, where you can enjoy arts and crafts with a side of milk and cookies. Little ones can pose for photos with Santa. The holiday décor will stay up through Christmas.

Hatched during the pandemic and 2020’s social justice demonstrations, this exhibition—guest curated by Glenn Kaino and Mika Yoshitake—examines how environmental art intersects with equity. In practice, that means you’ll find pieces that contemplate the power dynamics of our changing natural world, like Tiffany Chung’s floating model of a flooded Southeast Asian village or LaToya Ruby Frazier’s photos of the water crisis in Flint, Michigan. The large-scale installations perched above the museum’s courtyard are most likely to grab your attention, though: Lan Tuazon’s plastic recycling station, a green oasis from South L.A.’s self-described “gangsta gardener” Ron Finley and a literal hive of activity around Garnett Puett’s Untitled (Paradoxical Garden Downstream), a trio of wax figures buzzing with honeybees (they’re behind glass and a few curtains but you may still find some nearby wild bees attracted to it).

Like an Angelyne billboard on Sunset Boulevard, the Hollywood Christmas Parade is an essential part of L.A. kitsch. The nine-decade-old parade will feature floats, balloons, bands, equestrians and celebrities as they ride in a U-shaped route that begins at Hollywood and Orange and ends up at Sunset and Orange. Reserved grandstand seats can be purchased, with proceeds going to Toys for Tots, but free curbside seating is also available.

Westlake Village re-creates a traditional European Christmas market with Holidays in the Village, where you’ll find 60 artisan vendors selling gift-worthy goods, as well as bakers, chocolatiers, carolers and live music. You can shop into the evening, when the stalls come alive with holiday lights. And kids can mingle with Kris Kringle and the Grinch, take a train or Ferris wheel ride, and hunt down teddy bears in a scavenger hunt. Refuel with a freshly baked croissant or Aebleskiver paired with a mug of Glühwein, hot cocoa or Kinderpunsch.

Ah, the joys of Christmas in a Mediterranean climate, where boat owners can deck out their ships in holiday lights and set sail without the impediment of icy weather. For the 116th year, the Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade is doing just that as over 100 decorated yachts and ships parade around a 14-mile circuit in the Newport Harbor. You can see the parade for free during each of the five nights from any bay-facing point along the harbor (Marina Park, which also hosts a holiday market, is the go-to spot), but there are also reserved seats, dining packages and cruises available for purchase.  RECOMMENDED: Where to see Christmas lights in Los Angeles

A true multi-hyphenate, Carver was a painter in addition to a pioneering agricultural scientist. CAAM will display seldom seen paintings as well as his lab equipment alongside contemporary works that were inspired by his foundational work in modern conservation—ideas that started to spread with his “Jesup Wagon,” an early 1900s moveable school.

The multicity Jackalope Arts fair is back again this year, featuring over 150 local artisans and high-quality, handcrafted goods perfect for gifting. Both the Pasadena market (held in Old Pasadena’s Central Park November 9 and 10) and Burbank market (held on San Fernando Boulevard as the Downtown Burbank Winter Arts Festival on December 7 and 8) offer free admission.

The term CicLAvia stems from a similar Spanish word for “bike way,” and in L.A. it’s become a shorthand for the temporary, festival-like closing of L.A.’s streets. The event (inspired by the first Ciclovías in Bogotá, Colombia) welcomes bikes, tricycles, skateboards, strollers and basically anything else without an engine to ride a rotating cast of car-free routes. You’ll inevitably always find a route each year around Downtown, but past events have taken it anywhere from the harbor to the San Gabriel Valley. Expect music, street performances and food trucks, as well as general whimsy and shenanigans along the way. Shop owners and restaurants along the CicLAvia route also tend to host specials. It goes without saying that you should bike or take the Metro to your desired spot along the route.

Looking for unique handmade gifts this holiday season? Artists, designers, creatives and makers will set up shop for this holiday fair outside Hugo’s Tacos in Atwater Village (3300 Glendale Blvd). If it’s anything like past markets, you’ll get to shop everything from artisan jewelry and apothecary goods to ceramics, prints, candles and even handcrafted aprons for the cook in your life. Interact with the makers themselves (third-party sellers are not allowed), while crossing family and friends off your holiday gift-giving list. 

The first Rose Parade in 1890 was staged to show off California’s sun-kissed climate. The tradition is still going strong, complete with elaborate floral floats, musical performances and marching troupes (not to mention the crowning of the fresh-faced Rose Queen and her court), but the celebration now draws more than a million spectators who line the streets of Pasadena. The big Rose Bowl football game follows the parade. Later in the year, the event is spoofed with a day of costumed mayhem at the Doo Dah Parade. The parade—held on New Year’s Day—kicks off at 8am at the corner of Green Street and Orange Grove Boulevard before making its way east onto Colorado Boulevard. Near the end of the route, the parade turns north onto Sierra Madre Boulevard and concludes at Villa Street, where you can see the floats showcased.  Bleacher seats are available—about $120 in the TV zone and closer to $75 farther east—but you can grab a spot on the sidewalk for free. People traditionally camp out overnight, but if you’d rather show up the morning of, head east of Lake Avenue and you’ll have an easier time.

LA Compost’s annual autumnal event gives “smashing pumpkins” a whole new—and very literal—meaning. Now that Halloween is over, you likely have at least one pumpkin rotting on your doorstep. Did you know that trashing it and sending it to the landfill releases methane, which contributes to global warming? Instead of adding your jack-o’-lantern to the 1.3 billion pounds of yearly pumpkin waste, bring it (as long as its free of paint, glitter or anything else nonorganic) to one of these composting parties to help nourish the earth. Check here for the different locations and to sign up.