You hear the bell first. Then those orange-and-black cars nose toward you, wood creaking a little like a front porch after sundown. I’ve been bringing groups to this slope since long before the condo towers, and the ritual is the same today: stand under the arch at 351 S Hill St, buy your ticket, and ride a minute of pure Los Angeles between Hill Street and Grand Avenue. The railway runs daily 6:45 a.m.–10:00 p.m., which means you can catch commuters at dawn and date-nighters at dusk.
The two cars have names you’ll see lettered on their sides: Olivet and Sinai. They share a cable and pass each other mid-slope on a stretch that measures just 298 feet end to end. The track climbs a 33% grade, which is polite engineer-speak for “your calves would complain if you took the stairs.” The lower station faces Grand Central Market, and the upper station opens into California Plaza, 350 S Grand Ave. There are plenty of taller monuments in town, but few with this much personality packed into a city block.
Start at the base arch on Hill Street. If you just want to ride once, pay the one-way fare of $1.50 at the booth. If you already carry a Metro TAP card with Stored Value, tap it for a $0.75 one-way ride. That’s the best deal for locals and anyone who picked up a TAP for the subway. A round-trip ride is $3.00 as a souvenir ticket, the orange paper you’ll see peeking from a lot of scrapbooks. All of these prices are current for the railway itself, not a third-party tour.
Regulars often buy commuter books: five single-ride tickets for $6.00 or forty for $45.00. Those booklets are for one rider only and can’t be combined with the Metro discount. If you’re commuting up to Grand Avenue five days a week, that booklet math works out nicely; if you’re visiting, the TAP discount or the $3 keepsake usually makes more sense.
Doors open both ends of the car. Step up, sit facing downhill if you like a front-row view of Hill Street and the Million Dollar Theatre marquee. The trip is about a minute. You’ll exit into the WaterCourt level of California Plaza at the top or back onto the sidewalk by Grand Central Market at the bottom. Signs list the same daily operating hours at both stations: 6:45 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., seven days a week.
For navigation, punch in the two station addresses and you’re set: upper station at California Plaza, 350 S Grand Ave; lower station at 351 S Hill St. The railway sits in the heart of Downtown; you’re not driving into an industrial edge case here, you’re right in the middle of the Historic Core and Bunker Hill.
| Option | Price | Where/How to buy | Good for | Notes |
| TAP card with Stored Value | $0.75 one-way | Tap at the reader before boarding | Budget-minded riders already using Metro | Requires a physical TAP with Stored Value loaded; applies per person, per ride. |
| Standard one-way | $1.50 | Buy at the station booth | Visitors without TAP who only need one ride | Paper ticket issued; valid for a single trip in either direction. |
| Souvenir round-trip | $3.00 | Buy at the station booth | Riders who want to go up and back, plus a keepsake | Includes two rides for one passenger; printed as a souvenir ticket. |
| Commuter ticket book | 5 for $6.00 or 40 for $45.00 | Sold at the railway | Frequent riders working on Grand Avenue | Tickets are for one person only and cannot be combined with the Metro TAP discount. |
If you’re trying to choose, the decision tree is simple. Carry a TAP card with Stored Value already? Tap for $0.75. No TAP and only riding once? Pay $1.50. Want the keepsake and a return trip? Buy the $3 souvenir ticket. Commuter who’ll ride daily? The 5-for-$6 or 40-for-$45 booklet is the most efficient.
The phrase you’ll see printed on signs and T-shirts is accurate: the funicular is “the world’s shortest railway,” just 298 feet of track. It opened on December 31, 1901 at the old Third and Hill alignment and spent decades hauling Bunker Hill residents and workers between the flats and the mansions. Through the mid-century teardown of the old neighborhood and the long storage years that followed, the two cars survived. When the system returned to service on February 24, 1996, it reappeared a few hundred feet south of the original site, exactly where you ride it now between Hill Street and Grand Avenue.
The cars are still Olivet and Sinai. They meet at the passing turnout in the center, a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it choreography that always gets a murmur from the first-timers in the cabin. The line’s history includes a pause in 2001 after a fatal accident, a restart in 2010, another closure in 2013, and a full reopening on August 31, 2017 after a safety modernization agreement that set the railway up for the long term. If you’re the movie-buff type, you’ve seen those cars on-screen; a certain 2016 musical gave Olivet and Sinai their most famous modern cameo.
I’ve walked this slope with school groups for years, and the “what’s the big deal?” question comes up every time. The big deal is that this isn’t a theme park ride. It’s a century-old transit link that still does a job in the middle of the workday. That steep 33% grade is the job. Watch the flow at 8:30 a.m. or around 5, and you’ll see downtown workers making an honest transfer between Hill Street and the Grand Avenue arts district.
Downtown has finally made good connections to this corner. Coming by rail, you have two realistic approaches. From the A or E Lines, use Historic Broadway Station and walk one block to Grand Central Market and the Angels Flight lower station. From the B or D Lines, use Pershing Square Station, which is also about a block from the Hill Street arch. Either way, TAP fare on Metro aligns nicely with that $0.75 TAP price on the funicular if you’re stringing trips together.
Grand Central Market itself keeps long hours, 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. daily, and posts its address as 317 S Broadway. If you’re driving, the Market’s garage at 308 S Hill St often works for a short visit; published rates include $5.50 for the first 90 minutes, then $2 each additional 15 minutes up to a posted daily max. If you prefer two wheels, the nearest Metro Bike Share station is listed at 303 S Broadway right out front of the Million Dollar Theatre.
Ride Angels Flight uphill and you step into the plaza level of Grand Avenue, where three of the city’s cultural anchors sit within a few minutes’ walk. The Broad, 221 S Grand Ave, promotes free general admission with timed tickets, which pairs well with a quick funicular ride. MOCA Grand Avenue, 250 S Grand Ave, operates its own free general admission program with timed entry. And if you’re headed to a show, Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S Grand Ave, is just down the ridge. From the upper station at 350 S Grand Ave, the grade is gentle enough that even my slowest senior groups made the walk without complaint.
People ask if it’s better up or down. It depends where your day points you. If you’re starting with lunch at Grand Central Market, ride up to Grand Avenue for museums and a concert hall. If you’ve just finished an exhibit, ride down to the Market for tacos or ice cream before you catch the train. A one-way ride is the same cost either direction. The only true wrong answer is skipping the ride and trudging the stairs when you’re carrying leftovers.
Queues ebb throughout the day; if you want emptier cars, arrive right after opening at 6:45 a.m. on a weekday. Midday and early evening tend to be busiest. If both cars are in a station, you board the one that’s already on your side; there’s no trick to choosing between Olivet and Sinai besides which one is at your platform first.
Because the line is short, riders often make a round trip. If you paid $1.50 one-way and decide you want to go back, you’ll pay again. If you know you’ll ride both ways and you like a tangible memento, the $3 souvenir ticket covers both rides for one person. Families or groups planning multiple rides in a day will do better buying individual one-ways with TAP if everyone has a card loaded with Stored Value.
Keep an eye on your path at the upper station. The plaza level includes stairways and ramps, and the signage to Grand Avenue streetside can be a little maze-like the first time. If you’re heading specifically to The Broad, walk north along Grand; for MOCA, head a touch south; for Disney Hall, angle north and west. None of these are more than a few blocks, which is part of the fun of using the railway as a connector rather than a novelty.
The railway runs seven days a week from 6:45 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.. Those hours are posted at both stations and match what the operator publishes. If you want to avoid crowds, early weekday mornings are typically the quietest.
A standard one-way ride is $1.50. If you have a Metro TAP card loaded with Stored Value, the one-way price drops to $0.75 when you tap. A souvenir round-trip is $3.00. Frequent riders can buy books of 5 for $6.00 or 40 for $45.00, which are single-user and not combinable with the TAP discount.
Use Historic Broadway Station on the A/E Lines or Pershing Square Station on the B/D Lines. Both put you on the Hill Street side within about a block of the lower arch at 351 S Hill St, directly across from Grand Central Market.
The upper station opens into California Plaza at 350 S Grand Ave. From there it’s a short walk to The Broad (221 S Grand Ave), MOCA Grand Avenue (250 S Grand Ave), and Walt Disney Concert Hall (111 S Grand Ave).
If you’re deciding how to fit Angels Flight into your day, let your feet choose for you. Coming from Grand Central Market or Pershing Square, ride up with a $0.75 TAP tap. Starting on Grand Avenue, buy the $3 souvenir and ride down and back before you aim for a museum or the hall. Either way, you’ll walk off with the same little grin I’ve watched people wear here for thirty years.
Published: September 4, 2026