Time Needed for the Walk of Fame

A short stop at Hollywood & Highland

The block around Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue holds a lot in a short distance, and the Metro B Line’s Hollywood/Highland station sits beneath Ovation Hollywood, so it is an easy first stop. Within a few doors are Ovation Hollywood and the Dolby Theatre at 6801, with Muhammad Ali’s star mounted on a wall there; the El Capitan Theatre at 6838; the TCL Chinese Theatre at 6925, with its forecourt of handprints and Mickey Mouse’s star out front; and Madame Tussauds Hollywood at 6933. All of it can be seen from the sidewalk without a ticket, which makes this block a sensible choice for a visitor with little time.

The whole boulevard

Walking from Gower Street to La Brea Avenue covers 1.3 miles one way. East to west, the route passes the Pantages Theatre (6233), the corner of Hollywood and Vine, Musso & Frank Grill (6667, opened 1919), the Egyptian Theatre (6712, opened 1922), the Hollywood & Highland block above and the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel (7000), ending at a silver gazebo with statues of four actresses that marks the west end at La Brea. Stars sit on both sides of the street, so a return along the other side passes a different set of names. The time this takes depends far more on the stops than on the distance: checking names, taking photographs, reading theatre fronts. The self-guided walk gives the route stop by stop, with addresses.

Adding the Vine Street spur

Vine Street carries stars between Sunset Boulevard and Yucca Street. At Hollywood and Vine, four circular moon monuments for the Apollo 11 crew sit one on each corner, and the Capitol Records Building stands at 1750 Vine Street, on the same stretch. The spur runs north and south of the intersection rather than along the line to La Brea, so it is extra walking on top of the boulevard.

Looking up names first

With more than 2,800 stars on the two streets, searching for one name without an address can take a long time. The official directory at walkoffame.com gives each honoree’s category, street address and ceremony date, and a street number leads straight to the right block. The find-a-star page explains how to read an address against the sidewalk.

What a theatre, museum or tour adds

The Dolby Theatre tour lasts 30 minutes, and its listing asks guests to collect tickets at the box office 10 minutes before. The Madame Tussauds Hollywood ticket is valid for one day with no set entry time, and the listing does not give a typical visit length. The Hollywood Museum, just off the boulevard at 1660 N Highland Ave, opens Wednesday to Sunday according to its own site. The six bookable products run as follows, each per its own listing:

The tours hub sets the six side by side with their start points.

Planning around a star ceremony

Star ceremonies are free and open to the public, with a public viewing area subject to City restrictions. Recent ceremonies have been held at 11:30 am PT; the official site lists each one. Arriving early to find a place in the viewing area is sensible, and a ceremony fits easily into a morning on the boulevard. The star ceremonies page has the recent dates.

Frequently asked questions