Hollywood Forever Cemetery

Hollywood

Paradisiacal landscaping, vainglorious tombstones and epic mausoleums set an appropriate resting place for some of Hollywood's most iconic dearly departed. Residents include Cecil B DeMille, Mickey Rooney, Jayne Mansfield, punk rockers Johnny and Dee Dee Ramone and Golden Girls star Estelle Getty. Rudolph Valentino lies in the Cathedral Mausoleum (open 10am to 2pm), while Judy Garland rests in the Abbey of the Psalms.

Take a guided tour or browse on your own with a map ($5) from the flower shop (9am to 5pm weekdays, to 4pm weekends).

Despite being an eternal resting place, these hallowed grounds are anything but dead. Summer brings outdoor screenings of classic movies, while in late October or early November the gates open for Día de los Muertos, complete with costumes, dancing and exhibitions.

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

  • Griffith in Blue

    Griffith Observatory

    2.3 MILES

    With eyes on both the galaxy above and palm-flanked boulevards below, the Griffith Observatory hovers above LA like a hulking spacecraft. This is one of…

  • People entering Knott's Scary Farm at Knott's Berry Farm, celebrating a Southern California Halloween tradition, on October 14, 2013.

    Knott’s Berry Farm

    24.94 MILES

    What started as a simple berry farm is now a sprawling 160-acre operation with rides, live shows and lovable Peanuts characters roaming the grounds. Knott…

  • VENICE BEACH, USA - SEPTEMBER 29, 2016: The crowded Venice Beach Boardwalk. Lots of people are strolling down the boardwalk. On the sides there are several shops and palm trees.

    Venice Boardwalk

    11.32 MILES

    Prepare for a sensory overload on Venice's Boardwalk, a one-of-a-kind experience. Buff bodybuilders brush elbows with street performers and sellers of…

  • Santa Monica Pier

    Santa Monica Pier

    11.77 MILES

    Once the very end of the legendary Route 66 and still the object of a tourist love affair, this much-photographed pier dates back to 1908 and is the city…

  • The Broad Museum of Los Angeles.

    Broad

    4.57 MILES

    From the instant it opened in September 2015, the Broad (rhymes with 'road') became a must-visit for contemporary-art fans. It houses the world-class…

  • Getty Center, exterior.

    Getty Center

    9 MILES

    In its billion-dollar, in-the-clouds perch, high above the city grit and grime, the Getty Center presents triple delights: a stellar art collection …

  • Universal Studios Hollywood

    Universal Studios Hollywood

    3.94 MILES

    Dodge dinosaurs, hang with Homer Simpson and morph into a Minion on the sometimes hair-raising, always entertaining attractions at Universal Studios…

View more attractions

Nearby Hollywood attractions

1. Sunset Bronson Studios

0.62 MILES

Jack Warner founded Sunset Bronson in 1919, building his studio on old farmland. It was here that Warner and Zanuck shot Rin Tin Tin (1924), the film's…

2. Hancock Park & Larchmont Village

0.63 MILES

LA has gorgeous homes galore, but there’s nothing quite like the old-money mansions flanking the tree-lined streets of Hancock Park, a genteel…

3. Sunset Gower Studios

0.64 MILES

When Nestor Film Company moved to the corner of Sunset and Gower in 1911 it became the Sunset Gower Studios, which birthed Columbia Pictures when the Cohn…

4. Hollywood & Vine

0.99 MILES

If you'd turned on the radio in the 1920s and '30s, chances were you’d hear a broadcast ‘brought to you from Hollywood and Vine’. Thanks to a mega…

5. Pantages Theatre

1.01 MILES

Scottish architect Benjamin Marcus Priteca designed this 1930 survivor, the last theater commissioned by Greek-born theater magnate Alexander Pantages…

6. Capitol Records Tower

1.09 MILES

You’ll have no trouble recognizing this iconic 1956 tower, one of LA’s great mid-century buildings. Designed by Welton Becket, it resembles a stack of…

7. Regen Projects

1.1 MILES

A standout private gallery, known for propelling the careers of some of LA's most successful and innovative artists, among them Matthew Barney, Glenn…

8. Village at Ed Gould Plaza

1.12 MILES

One of several branches of LA's LGBT center, the Village has art galleries, a theater and other cultural offerings.