What is the most romantic date in Los Angeles?

Our editors lean toward the sunset views and intimate, low-lit spots below — but every entry here was chosen for chemistry, not for the camera.

How many romantic date spots does this guide cover in Los Angeles?

7 — hand-verified by editors and drawn from our full A-to-Z guide to Los Angeles. Each one has a real address, the best time to go, and an editor's note.

Romantic Things to Do in Los Angeles — 7 Hand-Picked Spots

Griffith Observatory

Hollywood Hills

Free
Sunset
View

90 minutes before sunset. Golden hour to city lights. The most-filmed building in LA. Free to enter.

Tip The most-filmed building in Los Angeles (La La Land, Rebel Without a Cause, every other CW show). Arrive 90 min before sunset — golden hour into city lights is the date moment. Free admission. Planetarium shows $10. Park at Charlie Turner Trailhead and hike up if upper lots are full. The Hollywood Sign view from the western terrace is the iconic photo. Walk the back side to find Bronson Canyon (the hidden ★) on the way out.

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Little Tokyo

Downtown LA

$$
Evening
Food

Tsujita tsukemen at 4:30 PM (no, you can't skip the line), Bunkado for imports, Far Bar down the alley.

Tip Tsujita LA Artisan Noodle for tsukemen (cash only, line out the door — go at 4:30 PM). Bunkado for Japanese imports + Daiso for everything else. Japanese American National Museum (JANM) for context. Nijiya Market for groceries + bento. End at Far Bar (347 E 1st) — a hidden speakeasy down a narrow alley, opened 2009.

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Malibu

Westside Coast

$
Sunset
Beach

PCH drive 45 min north. Cliff trail with 180° Pacific. Malibu Farm pier dinner. The LA sunset of legend.

Tip Drive PCH 1 north from Santa Monica — 45 min to Point Dume. The cliff trail goes up over the headland with a 180° Pacific view; gray whales migrate Nov–Apr. Westward Beach below is the wide sand. Malibu Farm Pier Cafe for dinner — sit on the deck at sunset. Nobu Malibu is the splurge. Pure-magic-hour drive at sunset.

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Queen Mary

Long Beach

$$
Afternoon
Cultural

1934 ocean liner moored as a hotel since 1967. Observation Bar at sunset is the move. Yes, you can sleep on it.

Tip A moored 1934 ocean liner — once the fastest ship across the Atlantic, served as a WWII troop carrier, retired to Long Beach in 1967 as a hotel. The Observation Bar on the Sun Deck is the date — original Art Deco interiors, harbor views, real cocktails. Self-guided tour $25 (1 hr). You can sleep on it ($150 staterooms, the haunted floor is its own thing).

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Rooftop balcony overlooking DTLA at sunset

Perch DTLA

Downtown LA

$$$
Sunset
Nightlife

16th-floor French rooftop with the inside-the-city DTLA skyline. Sunset reservation only — book on Resy.

Tip Perch on the 16th floor of the Pershing Square building — French rooftop bar with the best DTLA skyline view from inside the city. Reserve for sunset on Resy. The Pacific Center 1014 Rooftop competes (BS Taproom) but Perch has the better view. Below: walk Pershing Square + Cicada Restaurant inside the Oviatt Building (1928 Art Deco lobby, used in Pretty Woman).

Full entry →Map ↗Book ↗

Topanga

Westside Hills

$$
Evening
Nature

Inn of the Seventh Ray since 1973, candlelit patio over the creek, the Joan Didion LA of the canyons.

Tip Inn of the Seventh Ray is the date — outdoor patio over Topanga Creek, candlelit, vegetarian-leaning, established 1973 by Spiritualist commune (yes really). Drive UP Topanga Canyon Blvd from PCH — golden-hour drive through canyon, oak shade, occasional deer. Topanga State Park trails before/after (Eagle Rock + Echo Park). The bohemian LA Joan Didion wrote about.

Full entry →Map ↗Book ↗

Yamashiro

Hollywood Hills

$$$
Sunset
Nightlife

A 1914 Japanese hilltop manor 250 ft above Hollywood. Sunset cocktail reservation. The interior is shockingly intact.

Tip A replica Japanese hilltop manor from 1914 on the side of the Hollywood Hills — built for the Bernheimer brothers' Asian art collection. 360° city views from the patio. The Roosevelt and Hollywood Blvd are below; downtown glitters in the distance. Sunset cocktail reservation is the date. Dinner is splurge but the bar is more reasonable. The interior is shockingly intact.

Full entry →Map ↗

More Los Angeles date ideas

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See the full A–Z guide to Los Angeles — all 26 dates →

Los Angeles romantic date spots — FAQ

What is the most romantic date in Los Angeles?: Our editors lean toward the sunset views and intimate, low-lit spots below — but every entry here was chosen for chemistry, not for the camera.
How many romantic date spots does this guide cover in Los Angeles?: 7 — hand-verified by editors and drawn from our full A-to-Z guide to Los Angeles. Each one has a real address, the best time to go, and an editor's note.