Locals share their secret tips and hacks for living in Los Angeles

Senior Features Writer

Oct. 2, 2024 3 AM PT

Living in Los Angeles is a lot like folding a fitted sheet: It seems almost impossible to do well — until someone shares a tip or two that smooths things out and makes the whole process infinitely easier to navigate. I’ve been the beneficiary of many a Los Angeles life hack over the years. Some were passed along by longtime Angelenos with the solemnity of handing down a family heirloom. Others were on-the-job discoveries. All of them made it infinitely easier to fold the fitted sheet of living in the City of Angels.

That’s why I recently put out a call for readers to share their own L.A. life hacks: the coping mechanisms, shortcuts and workarounds that decrease the frustration and increase the enjoyment of everyday life in our city. You’ll find the best of them here — along with some others I’m proud to have discovered (or been told about) that I deploy on a regular basis.

Once you’ve had a chance to drink deeply from the trough of hive-mind wisdom given freely by your fellow Angelenos, consider sharing your L.A. life hack. You’ll find the form to do just that below.

Port your charcuterie to the Bowl in a toolbox

“I haven’t done this yet,” wrote Christine Lubieniecki. “But the other weekend [at the Hollywood Bowl], we shared a box with four strangers who split a three-tiered Husky toolbox organizer charcuterie box. One of them had converted an unused, multi-tiered toolbox organizer into the most efficient, manageable, shareable, spill-proof picnic spread I’ve ever seen. They put it down on the table, popped open the latches and opened up to reveal the three staggered trays of various dips, seafood, cheeses, crackers, veggies and more ... covered airtight with plastic wrap for the journey.

“This is the biggest picnic hack — especially for the Bowl, where table space is scarce — that I’ve ever seen in my life.... I do not know the woman’s name, but her ingenuity should be known to anyone planning a summer picnic at the Hollywood Bowl or elsewhere.”

illustration of the hollywood bowl with 4 wheels like a car

Beat Bowl traffic all kinds of ways

If there’s one thing scarcer than table space at the Hollywood Bowl, it’s a parking space. That’s one of the reasons getting to and from the storied venue has inspired all kinds of ire-taming work-arounds. Earlier this year, I discovered the new dedicated rideshare lot (which I highly recommend). For those who wish to kick the car to the curb altogether, my Times colleague Christopher Reynolds recently compiled a list of close-to-the-Bowl hotels (some of them a short walk, some of them slightly longer).

Then there’s the Bowl hack sent along by Jen Derwingson-Peacock. “The best, easiest [and] cheapest way to get to the Hollywood Bowl and avoid the traffic and parking nightmare is to take one of the park-and-ride shuttles. I live in Los Feliz, so it’s a short drive to the L.A. Zoo, where we park for free, and then take the shuttle, which drops passengers off right at the entrance gate.”

Shuttle off to the Observatory

Taking a shuttle bus is also the hack of choice suggested by Barbara Allen, though it’s to beat a different — but equally vexing — parking nightmare. “For the love of [G]od and all that is holy, stop driving all the way up to Griffith Observatory just to find out it’s $10 AN HOUR to park. Use the free Dash bus that circles Los Feliz and provides front-door drop-off service at the Observatory. Park your car in the park for free near the Greek Theatre, then hop on the shuttle on the east side of the road.

“Also, at no charge, the bus will drive you up the steep hill to the Observatory and let you off right in front of it. You can catch [the bus] back down or walk back to your car. (If there’s a concert or event at the Greek, park even further down [toward] sea level in the Los Feliz neighborhood and grab the Dash near Vermont and Franklin avenues).”

Depart from arrivals at LAX

A couple of reader submissions offered pointers on how to hack the horseshoe from hell — the permanently gridlocked U-shaped route past all of the terminals at Los Angeles International Airport. “If you’re flying out of LAX during especially busy departure times and have a friend or loved one dropping you off, use the arrivals level,” suggests Marc Istook. “Often the busiest departure times coincide with a less busy arrivals time, and you can get to your terminal much more quickly [that way]. Same if you’re arriving at a busy time — head up to the destinations level and get picked up there if it’s less busy.”

If you’re trying to decide whether to head toward LAX on two wheels or four, Matthew Weitz’s hack might help you make up your mind. “[T]here is free motorcycle parking in the lots at the terminals (yes, in the lots inside the horseshoe). You can park in any area designated for motorcycles or [within] the white hash marks at the end caps of aisles. If you travel light (e.g. with a carry-on size backpack like the Osprey Farpoint 40, as I did once a week for work for eight years), it’s amazing.”

Deboard from the back at the Burbank Airport

Since I live about the same distance from the Hollywood Burbank Airport as I do from LAX, flying out of the former instead of the latter whenever feasible — because it’s always far less congested and much more manageable — has long been an arrow in my life-hack quiver. But I was recently reminded of a serious time saver for anyone flying into Burbank on Alaska, American, Avelo or Southwest airlines who doesn’t need ramp access: When you board your Burbank-bound flight, instead of jockeying for seat up front, try to grab one as far toward the back as possible. That’s because, when you land, those airlines give passengers the option of deboarding from the rear door of the plane as well as the front.

Think off-peak

Several readers sent along life hacks that keyed into a strategy familiar to anyone who has tried to game out avoiding rush-hour traffic: making your move when others aren’t making theirs. Reader Ben Cendejas probably summed it up best: “To enjoy any L.A. landmark, particularly the beach, the key is to arrive before 8:30 a.m.” Anytime after that, he writes, lots have filled up and ideal spots on the sand are few and far between. Plus, he says, then “You can leave [the beach] before the weekend rush-hour rush in the early afternoon. Also, some of the best, less-crowded beaches are toward the very south of L.A. County (just north of Palos Verdes) and the north edge of L.A. County, such as Malibu or Zuma.”

Plan on a 90-minute travel time ... every time

Instead of constantly trying to play beat the clock getting from point A to point B, Cindy Clegg’s suggestion is to plan on a 90-minute drive no matter what. “Basically, virtually any time of day anywhere outside of my local area I go in L.A. (forget Orange County, which I do not understand), I allow an hour and a half. Going to LAX, going to the beach, going to LACMA, lunch in Venice — all the same. I usually arrive well ahead of time, with the reward of a neighborhood walk, a latte or a glass of wine depending on the time of day. Even if there is nasty traffic, I usually get there on time and sane. (Yes, I am an East-sider, and I do not trust Google distances and travel times.)”

Mind the ‘Thru Traffic’ signs

Carmen Ortegas suggests shaving some time off a freeway drive by taking advantage of an often less-crowded lane. “I am sure most Angelenos know this: There is a stretch on the 10 Freeway going east where you can bypass the bumper-to-bumper traffic by heading toward the off ramp on La Brea or Arlington avenues, [where you see the “Thru Traffic OK” signs]. Keep on that road which runs alongside the freeway, then merge back on to the freeway at Hoover [Street]. You save yourself about 10 minutes.”

Ortegas’ hack works equally well on the same stretch of the Santa Monica Freeway headed west.

On the topic of taking the road less traveled, Angel Zobel-Rodriguez offers this hack for traveling to downtown L.A. from from the northeastern part of the San Fernando Valley in a timely manner. Instead of braving the I-5 or the Hollywood Freeway: “[Take] the 118 to the 210 to the 2 to get downtown. [My d]aughter went to school in downtown [L.A.]. Waze kept suggesting [this route], and now we just assume that’s the way to get to the Music Center, Grand Central Market or South L.A.... It’s faster in both directions.”

illustration of yellow 'loading only' sign

Look for the ‘Loading Only’ zones

Sometimes, though, the signage doesn’t tell the whole story. That’s the case with my all-time favorite L.A. life hack, which has to do with those squarish, yellow “loading only” signs and the yellow-painted stretch of curb they accompany. What the sign doesn’t tell you is that the space is “loading only” between the hours of 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. The rest of the time (unless there’s a posted sign to the contrary), it’s not enforced. So the yellow sign is your golden ticket, and you can legally park there — free of charge.

Enjoy museums gratis

Not all of the helpful hints were traffic-related. “Recognizing that L.A. is beautifully diverse and wacky is my best advice,” offered Connie Najah. “I’m formerly from the East Coast, and there is definitely a culture difference. There is a lot I still don’t like (traffic, friend flakiness, the huge amount of suffering of more and more homeless individuals without a solution), [but] I’ve been lucky enough to be able to go to art museums, protest marches, volunteer opportunities, concerts at the Hollywood Bowl and the Greek Theatre and [I] marvel at the massive diversity of humanity and the myriad gatherings Los Angeles has to offer. It keeps me going.”

Speaking of museums, Nancy Broderick suggests doing a little web-searching in advance of your gallery browsing. “Certain days of the week offer free museum days, [so] take advantage of [them]. Type in ‘free museum days’ on a search engine, and all the different places pop up. [It’s] really a fantastic and inexpensive way to see L.A. in an artistic setting.”

Lobby for the view

“[For the] best view of all of Los Angeles, take the elevator up to the top floor of the hotel lobby of the Intercontinental Hotel,” advises Will Mathew Morgan, who adds, “And for the fellows, be sure to use the urinal in the men’s restroom. [It’s] a great way to relieve yourself with all of Los Angeles to see! You have to ‘pee it to believe it!’ ”

Lean on the Los Angeles Public Library

Tommy Bui’s suggestion is probably my favorite of all the ones that came my way. And that’s because it’s essentially a meta-hack, the L.A. life-hack equivalent of using a last wish to ask the lamp genie for three more wishes.

“The Los Angeles Public Library. The go-to tabernacle of literacy and lifesaving life hacks. A passport to wonder and whimsy and then some,” Bui says. “With your library card, you can get free museum passes, free digital newspaper and magazines and even state park passes. Not to mention access to free streaming services and books galore. And did you know you can print, scan and photocopy for free at the library? But perhaps the most resuscitating life hack I rely on the most? The friendly and helpful reference librarians at the desk. [They’re] always ready and able and armed with an unsinkable smile.”

Now, if one of those reference librarians can just help me figure out how to fold that fitted sheet, I’ll have an unsinkable smile too.