Mulholland's Most Majestic

Visit the Overlooks Along Mulholland Drive in Los Angeles

You don’t have to hike up a mountain to see peak views. You can do it the L.A. way … by filling up your gas tank and taking a leisurely drive along Mulholland Drive. Aside from celebrity homes, this famed road that ribbons through the Santa Monica Mountains hasn’t changed much since it was built in 1924–and that’s the appeal. To navigate Mulholland’s twists and turns is to discover beautiful urban scenery and unexpected wild beauty, right in the middle of the city. 

Twelve overlooks dot the famous drive. Here are our favorites: 

Jerome C. Daniel Overlook above the Hollywood Bowl (7036 Mulholland Drive) is the most popular for good reason. Walk up a flight of 67 steps to a stone-wall rotunda to get a downright romantic panorama that includes the downtown skyline, the Hollywood Bowl, and the Hollywood Sign.

Drop by the Universal City Overlook (7701 Mulholland Drive) to catch a glimpse of movie-making magic at work. This northern perspective gives a bird’s-eye view of Universal and Warner Bros. Studios amid the San Fernando Valley and the Verdugo Hills. 

Stop at the Nancy Hoover Pohl Overlook (8401 Mulholland Drive) for lush valley views and access to the 5-mile Betty B. Dearing Mountain Trail if you’re looking to explore the area by foot (pack a snack and plenty of water if you do this).

At the Barbara A. Fine Overlook at the Summit (11801 Mulholland Drive), walking along a short and secluded nature trail offers a lovely vantage of Fryman Canyon, the Simi Hills, and the San Gabriel Mountains. Tip: Cross Mulholland from the overlook parking lot, and you might just see all the way to the ocean.

To get to Mulholland Dr., take the 101N to exit 11A toward Barham Blvd. Merge onto Cahuenga Blvd., turn right on Lakeridge Place and make another right onto Mulholland. Some overlooks offer small free parking lots while others have designated street parking. Noted overlooks are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., while the Jerome C. Daniel Overlook above the Hollywood Bowl is only open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Story and photos by Yvonne Pasquini, @yvonne_pasquini

Trending Stories NorCal

View all Stories
  1. Camp at Goose Lake in the Lakes Basin

    Duck, Duck, Goose!

    Try to get a first-come, first-served campsite at one of the Lakes Basin’s lakeside campgrounds. We love Goose Lake Campground, where there are just 13 sites and no motorized boats.

    View
  2. This Is Paradise

    Granite mountain-scape, superb sunset views, crystal lakes, and shoreline campsites … the trip to Paradise Lake in Tahoe National Forest lives up to its idyllic name.

    View
  3. Aloha from California

    Say Aloha without leaving California with a 7-mile out-and-back hiking adventure to Lake Aloha in El Dorado National Forest. You can also camp here, a premier place for stargazing.

    View
  4. Sequoia Re-opens Crystal Cave

    Step inside Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park's hidden world by visiting the newly re-opened Crystal Cave—the only cave in the parks open to the public. Closed for four years, this rare marble karst cavern is welcoming visitors once again, but only through the summer season!

    View

Trending Stories SoCal

View all Stories
  1. Can't Top This

    San Francisco’s Presidio was already a fantastic place to hang out for the afternoon, a beautiful site within the largest urban national park in the United States (the Golden Gate National Recreation Area). And Presidio Tunnel Tops is like a cherry on top. Make that two cherries on top, with the newly opened (July 2025) Outpost Meadow, a 1.5-acre green space located at Old Mason Street across from the Crissy Field Marsh in the Presidio.

    View
  2. Underground Garden

    Looking to escape the summer heat? Head to Fresno and discover its cool secret: the Forestiere Underground Gardens–an enchanting garden and architecture oasis like no other.

    View
  3. Oh Ryan

    Sure, it’s those whimsical trees that give Joshua Tree National Park its marquee billing; but this beautiful landscape also has surrounding mountains and its night sky—one of the darkest in Southern California and designated an International Dark Sky Park. Joshua Tree has four allowable stargazing parking lots, and a newly opened haven for spending the night nearby...

    View
  4. Easiest Best Hike in the World

    Choose the easiest and most view-rewarding hike in Yosemite. Okay, we’ll go first: the combination of hiking to Sentinel Dome and Taft Point. Both of these lookouts are within a couple miles of each other on Glacier Point Road

    View