How to Spend 8 Hours in Los Angeles: Paramount Studio Tour and Hollywood
Updated October 3, 2026
Eight hours makes room for a working film studio. Fuel up on chicken and waffles, tour Paramount's backlot, visit the graves of silent film stars next door, then see the round Capitol Records tower and Amoeba's vinyl aisles.
Most of the big studios left Hollywood decades ago, but Paramount still makes films and shows on its historic lot, and a guided cart tour takes you inside. This day is built around that booking, with a hearty breakfast before and a walk through Hollywood's music history after. The cemetery beside the lot holds many of the stars who worked there, and about two kilometers north, the round Capitol Records tower and a giant record store sit near Hollywood/Vine station. Book a morning tour ahead, so the cemetery's mausoleum is still open when you walk over.
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The 8 hour plan, stop by stop
Stops and travel: 4 hr 48 min to 6 hr 38 min of 8 hours
Herb Hudson, a Harlem native, opened the first Roscoe's on Gower Street in 1975, pairing Southern fried chicken with waffles in a way that became a Los Angeles institution. This original location is a dim, cozy room just south of Sunset Boulevard, and it opens early every day and stays open late. The restaurant counts President Barack Obama among its famous fans, along with Stevie Wonder and Snoop Dogg. Portions are big, so one plate can fuel a long day.
Tip: Order the Country Boy, three wings with two waffles, a lighter choice before a long studio tour than the half chicken in Herb's Special.
- Time here
- 40 min to 1 hr
- Website
- roscoeschickenandwaffles.com
NaviTime to head out from Roscoe's Chicken & Waffles, Gower Street for Paramount Pictures Studios, Hollywood. It's a 9 minute transit ride if you leave now. Here's the link
Paramount calls itself the longest operating and only remaining major studio in Hollywood, and it has been on this lot since 1926. The guided tour lasts about two hours, rolling by cart past sound stages, the New York Street backlot and the prop warehouse. You also pass the arched Bronson Gate, where Gloria Swanson made her entrance in Sunset Boulevard. Tours run daily except major holidays, adults need photo ID and children must be older than ten. Booking online is strongly recommended.
Tip: As of October 2026, the standard studio tour costs $71; ask your guide about which stages are filming, since live productions change the route.
- Time here
- 2 hr 10 min to 2 hr 30 min
- Website
- paramountstudiotour.com
NaviTime to head out from Paramount Pictures Studios, Hollywood for Hollywood Forever Cemetery. It's an 8 minute walk if you leave now. Here's the link
Founded in 1899, this cemetery backs onto the Paramount lot, and part of its original land was sold to the studio. It is the resting place of Rudolph Valentino, Judy Garland, Cecil B. DeMille, Douglas Fairbanks and Johnny Ramone, whose bronze statue plays a guitar. Palm lined lawns run down to a lake with an island tomb. In summer, crowds bring picnics for outdoor film screenings on the lawn. The grounds are open daily from morning until late afternoon, while the Cathedral Mausoleum keeps shorter midday hours. A map and walking guide are available in the flower shop, and any funeral deserves a wide berth.
Tip: Valentino lies in a crypt in the Cathedral Mausoleum, where fans still leave flowers. It opens in the late morning and shuts in the early afternoon, so book a morning studio tour and come straight here.
- Time here
- 40 min to 1 hr 10 min
- Website
- hollywoodforever.com
NaviTime to head out from Hollywood Forever Cemetery for Capitol Records Building, Hollywood. It's a 16 minute transit ride if you leave now. Here's the link
Completed in 1956, this thirteen story tower is described by the Los Angeles Conservancy as the world's first circular office building. Louis Naidorf of Welton Becket's firm designed it. Many people think it was shaped like a stack of records on a turntable, but the architect has said the resemblance was a coincidence. The light on top of its spire blinks the word Hollywood in Morse code. Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole and many others recorded at Capitol Studios inside, which are not open to the public.
Tip: Find the John Lennon star on the Walk of Fame, set in the sidewalk right in front of the entrance, and photograph it with the tower behind.
- Time here
- 10 to 20 min
- Website
- capitolrecords.com
NaviTime to head out from Capitol Records Building, Hollywood for Amoeba Music, Hollywood. It's a 5 minute walk if you leave now. Here's the link
Amoeba opened its first Hollywood store on Sunset Boulevard in 2001 and moved in 2021 to a vast new home on Hollywood Boulevard. Its aisles hold new and used vinyl, CDs, films and posters across almost every genre, and the clearance bins reward patient digging. A stage hosts occasional free in store performances. Staff picks are pinned to the racks with handwritten notes. It opens late in the morning every day and stays open into the evening, an hour later from Friday to Sunday.
Tip: Start with the used vinyl, since those racks change constantly and rare pressings sell fast, and leave the new release walls for last.
- Time here
- 30 min to 1 hr
- Website
- amoeba.com
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