Pasadena Los Angeles Guide: Rose Bowl, Huntington Gardens & Old Town

Pasadena, 15 kilometres northeast of downtown Los Angeles, is one of the most pleasant day trips in greater LA — a walkable historic city of Craftsman bungalows, world-class museums, and a vibrant Old Town restaurant scene that feels genuinely different from the sprawl of the basin. The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens is one of the USA's finest cultural institutions: 120 acres of themed gardens (Japanese, Chinese, Rose, Desert, Jungle) plus an art collection including Thomas Gainsborough's 'The Blue Boy' and one of the finest collections of Impressionist and American art on the West Coast. The Rose Bowl Stadium hosts the famous New Year's Day game and a legendary monthly flea market (second Sunday of every month, one of the best in California). Old Town Pasadena's Colorado Boulevard is packed with restaurants from every cuisine. The Norton Simon Museum holds one of LA's most underrated art collections, including extraordinary Degas bronzes and South Asian sculpture. Pasadena is 30 minutes by Metro Gold Line from Union Station — no car required.