CITY & ITS PEOPLE
LA rainy-day backups
Lots of people think it never rains in LA, but December to March is rainy season, and when it rains the whole city acts like it's a typhoon day. First what not to do in the rain, then free museums, hot soup, jjimjilbangs and three indoor routes you can just follow.
Translated from Jasmine’s original Chinese. The illustrated slides are on the interactive reader.
Key points
- LA actually has a rainy season: When it rains, plans get canceled, the freeways jam, and the whole city acts like it's a typhoon day.
- Free museums: The Broad, the Getty, MOCA: A museum on a rainy day is LA's most elegant way to stay dry.
- Bookstores: Rain outside plus a bookstore: find a corner and you can spend the whole afternoon reading.
- Koreatown jjimjilbangs: Rain outside, sweat inside.
- The day after the rain stops: LA rarely gets rain, so every storm feels like the city taking a deep breath.
Full text
LA actually has a rainy season
Roughly mid-October to the end of April, with the most rain December to March, and winter 2026–27 is forecast to be wetter than usual. When it rains, plans get canceled, the freeways jam, and the whole city acts like it's a typhoon day.
01 | Don't go in the ocean, don't go up the mountains
For 72 hours after heavy rain, LA County Public Health advises staying out of the water at all beaches; trails get muddy, rocks fall and trails may close, so skip hiking and canyon roads on rainy days.
02 | Avoid burned hillsides; check road conditions before you go
Areas burned in the 2025 fires, like the Palisades and Altadena, are at risk of mudslides in heavy rain; PCH and Topanga may close before big storms, so check QuickMap and alert.lacounty.gov before heading out.
03 | Driving in the rain
The first rain after a long dry spell is the slickest. Slow down, leave more space, and if your wipers are on, your headlights must be on too; that's California law. The scariest thing on a rainy day isn't the rain; it's everyone else's driving.
04 | Free museums: The Broad, the Getty, MOCA
All three are free, reservations recommended, and all are closed Mondays. The Getty has lots of indoor galleries, and the moment the rain stops, the view from the hill is incredibly clear. A museum on a rainy day is LA's most elegant way to stay dry.
05 | Museum Row, three in one go
LACMA, the Academy Museum and the Petersen on Wilshire are all walkable, and Metro's D Line Wilshire/Fairfax station is right across the street. Park once and spend the whole day indoors.
06 | With kids: dinosaurs + the space shuttle
The Natural History Museum and the California Science Center in Exposition Park are walking distance apart; the Science Center's permanent exhibits are free, and space shuttle Endeavour reopens in the new building from 11/13.
07 | Rainy days call for hot food
Grand Central Market, a market over a hundred years old, with everything under one roof. Or a pot of soft tofu stew in Koreatown, a bowl of beef noodle soup in the 626, or ramen on Sawtelle (bring an umbrella for the line).
08 | Shopping: only if it has a roof
The Beverly Center is a covered indoor mall, and the Glendale Galleria is mostly indoors too. The Grove and the Americana at Brand are lovely on sunny days; on rainy days, skip them.
09 | Bookstores
The Last Bookstore in DTLA is free to browse, and the book tunnel is the photo spot. Rain outside plus a bookstore: find a corner and you can spend the whole afternoon reading.
10 | Koreatown jjimjilbangs
Wi Spa is 24 hours, $40 for a day pass, with a co-ed jjimjilbang area; Olympic Spa is women only and requires booking a treatment. Rain outside, sweat inside.
11 | J's rainy-day wellness
I've been to all of these myself, and they're all indoors: Pause's sauna + cold plunge and float, Higherdose infrared sauna, Remedy Place, Surya Spa. If you have health issues, ask your doctor first.
12 | Three rainy-day routes
DTLA: The Broad → MOCA → Grand Central Market → The Last Bookstore. Museum Row: take the D Line and hit all three. Koreatown: an afternoon at the jjimjilbang, then a pot of soft tofu stew.
13 | What Angelenos carry when it rains
A small umbrella (lots of Angelenos genuinely don't own one), shoes that can get wet, a jacket (rainy LA is colder than you think), and patience. Buying an umbrella in LA is proof that 'I've lived here a long time.'
Two-city mirror
In Taipei you go out in the rain like normal, umbrella up, walking under the arcades; in LA, when it rains, the news covers it from morning to night. In Taipei, rain is everyday life; in LA, rain is an event.
The day after the rain stops
The day after the rain stops, the air is the cleanest it'll be all year, and in winter you can even see snow on the distant mountains. LA rarely gets rain, so every storm feels like the city taking a deep breath.
Places in this story
- The Broad
- Getty Center
- LACMA
- Academy Museum
- Petersen Automotive Museum
- California Science Center
- Grand Central Market
- Beverly Center
- The Grove
- The Americana at Brand
- The Last Bookstore
- Wi Spa
- Olympic Spa
- Remedy Place West Hollywood
- Exposition Park
In this series
- The LA beach town guide | Same Pacific, so why is every beach town different?
- The LA hiking trail guide 2026 | Which mountain do Angelenos climb on weekends?
- Where do you catch LA's night view? | The LA night view & rooftop map 2026
- Before the Getty closes, which LA museums should you see? | The LA museum guide 2026
- DATALAND | The first time art looked back at me
- In the city of movies, seeing a film can be an event | The LA special cinema map
- Where do celeb wardrobes come from? | The LA boutique map 2026
- The LA vintage map
- The LA independent bookstore map
- The LA date map (insider edition)
An original JSLALALAND field guide by Jasmine Chang (@jslalaland).