The Trails Close at Dusk Now. Griffith Park's Hilltop Stays Open Late.

Where does a Griffith Park evening go once the sun sets before 5 p.m.? Clocks fell back on Sunday, November 1, and timeanddate's Los Angeles table had sunset at 4:59 p.m. on November 1. By November 15 sunset is 4:49 p.m., and on December 15 it is 4:45 p.m.. The city's Griffith Park activities page says every trail in the park closes at dusk. For anyone in Los Feliz who walks a trail after work, that walk is over until spring.

The park itself keeps its hours. Griffith Park is open daily from 5 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., and inbound gates close at 10 p.m. That leaves about five and a half hours of open park after dark every night between now and the end of the year. Over the next eight weeks, most of what can be done in those hours happens at the top of the hill. The bottom of the hill has also just become a simpler place to start, because the Greek Theatre has no more shows on its 2026 calendar.

What dusk takes away, and what it leaves

Here is the gap between trail hours and park hours on three dates this season.

The Observatory grounds and roads generally follow the park's hours, though the city notes that roads may close when traffic gets heavy. The building is open Tuesday through Friday from noon to 10 p.m. and on weekends from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. It is closed Mondays. So the dark half of the evening, which used to be time on the trail, now runs to the Observatory's closing time.

Getting up the hill now that the Greek is quiet

The last listing on the Greek Theatre's 2026 calendar was the rescheduled Tom Jones show on Wednesday, November 4. No other 2026 dates follow it. The Observatory's own access page describes the Greek season as generally running April through October, so the November date was a late exception.

That matters for parking. On concert evenings, the Greek Theatre area is closed to parking after 1 p.m. On nights with no show, the city's Griffith Park trip-planning page says you can park in the Greek lot for free and take the DASH Observatory up the hill for 50 cents. With nothing else listed for 2026, every remaining night of the year is a no-show night unless the Greek adds a date, and its calendar is the place to check.

Here is how the two ways up compare.

1. Drive to the top and pay. The Observatory lot and the parallel spaces on West Observatory Road and Western Canyon Road are paid parking, from noon to 10 p.m. on weekdays and from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekends. There is no time limit, the pay stations take credit cards only, and there are no refunds. The Recreation and Parks Department says fees go up during peak season and holidays, and that parking revenue goes back into the park. The Observatory lists evenings, weekends and holidays among its busiest times for parking.
2. Park at the Greek, or start in the Village, and ride. The DASH Observatory/Los Feliz runs every day, holidays included, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Its route connects the Vermont/Sunset station, Los Feliz, the Greek Theatre and the Observatory, and LADOT's timetable runs it to Los Feliz and Hillhurst. The regular fare is 50 cents in cash or 35 cents with TAP. Seniors, riders with disabilities and Medicare cardholders pay 25 cents in cash or 15 cents with TAP, and eligible young children ride free.

Check the last bus before you stay until closing. The city's park page puts the last Observatory departure at 10 p.m., while LADOT's weekday southbound table shows a 10:06 p.m. departure from the Observatory. Live arrival information settles it on the night. Rideshare and taxi pickups have their own rule. Drivers have to be inside the park before the inbound gates close at 10 p.m.

The evenings already on the Observatory's calendar

With free parking at the bottom and a cheap ride to the top, the Observatory's dated programs are the reason to make the trip after dark. The Griffith Observatory calendar has these through December:

The monthly star party sets up public telescopes on the lawn with local telescope groups. The November Walk & Talk is led by Observatory ecologists and Griffith Park Rangers. November 14 is a good night to see the new schedule at work. The Walk & Talk begins at 3:30, sunset the next day is 4:49, and the walk runs until 6. So the walk crosses dusk with rangers present, and anyone who stays can walk onto a lawn full of telescopes until 9:45.

LADOT's route page says the building also closes on Christmas. The Observatory calendar currently shows only the Thanksgiving closure. Check before planning a December 25 visit.

On nights with no special program, the Samuel Oschin Planetarium keeps the building busy after dark. The current shows are Signs of Life, Centered in the Universe and Water Is Life. Weekday evening shows include 6:15, 7:45 and 8:45 p.m., and weekend evening shows include 6:45, 7:45 and 8:45 p.m. Tickets are sold only on-site and only for that day's shows. Adults pay $12, seniors, students and teachers $10, children 5 to 12 $8, and children under 5 get in free. Since you can't buy ahead, it helps to get there early, and that's another point for the 50-cent bus over circling the paid lot.

Across the park, Zoo Lights fills the late-November nights

The second set of evening dates is on the other side of the park. L.A. Zoo Lights runs on select evenings from November 20 through January 10. Parking is free and tickets start at $19. The zoo is promoting new lit paths and installations this year, built around plants, pollinators, wildlife and Ice Age giants.

The dark dates are worth noting, because several fall on nights you might plan around:

• Closed: November 26 for Thanksgiving and November 30. December 1, 7, 14, 15 and 16, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year's Eve. January 4 through 7.
• Sensory-Inclusive Night: December 8.
• Pride Night: December 17.
• Skating rink: a separately ticketed add-on.

Together, the Observatory and the zoo cover most of the season. Between the star party on November 14 and Zoo Lights opening on November 20, the park has a scheduled evening event in each of the next several weeks, apart from Mondays and the holiday closures.

The Griffith Park & Southern Railroad's holiday lights train is the one seasonal tradition still without a date. The railroad's site lists its 2026 special events as coming soon. Last season's lighted one-mile evening ride began the day after Thanksgiving and ran from November 28, 2025, through January 11, 2026. This year's dates have not been posted.

The neighborhood end of the route

Evening visits up the hill begin and end in Los Feliz, and two Los Feliz Improvement Association projects are on that route this season.

At the Los Feliz Boulevard and Fern Dell Drive entrance to the park, the LFIA plans to have the Leif Erikson bust and the Berlin Bear bronzes conserved in the coming months. Anyone who passes those sculptures on the way to an evening program may see conservation work there this winter.

Down near Franklin and Vermont, a new "Greetings From Los Feliz" mural shows neighborhood landmarks and P-22, the mountain lion. The LFIA says the mural was produced by the Los Feliz-based Local Collective with LFIA funding and was designed and installed by Greetings Tour artists. It sits on Vermont, the same avenue that leads up to the Greek and the DASH stop.

Event listings change, so check the Observatory calendar, the Zoo Lights page and LADOT's DASH page on the day you go. Until the Greek posts its next show, the free lot and the 50-cent ride are there every night the park is open.

At The Carrabba Group, we pay attention to how the park's calendar shapes everyday life in Los Feliz, from which lot opens in which season to which events fill the winter nights. If you'd like to talk about what living this close to Griffith Park means for your home, we're glad to have that conversation. Work With Us.