LA Facts
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Get to know the basics. |
The city of Los Angeles holds many distinctions. LA is the entertainment capital of the world, a cultural mecca boasting more than 300 museums, and a paradise of good weather. From tourist attractions like the Walk of Fame’s collection of stars (numbering 2,334, and growing by one or two a month) to career opportunities like those presented in the expanding biotech industry, Los Angeles is the place to be. It is the only city in North America to have hosted the Summer Olympics twice. Downtown LA is the largest government center outside of Washington, D.C. Los Angeles has the only remaining wooden lighthouse in the state (located in San Pedro’s Fermin Park) and the largest historical theater district on the National Register of Historic Places (located Downtown on Broadway).
Los Angeles is on the leading edge of several growth industries. The LA five-county area, with more than 134,000 jobs in the fashion industry, has surpassed New York’s fashion district workforce. The metro area also has more than 211,000 people at work in health sciences/biomedical activities and 361,000 people in aerospace/technology. Here are some more facts and figures about Los Angeles: the city, the county and the region.
More facts about Los Angeles:
Size
Geography
Climate
Population
Hotels
Ethnic Makeup
Tourism
Business
The Economy
- City of Los Angeles: 467 square miles
- County of Los Angeles: 4,081 square miles
- Los Angeles Five-County Area: 34,149 square miles There are 88 incorporated cities in Los Angeles County ranging from Vernon (population 100) to Los Angeles (population 4 million).
Geography
Los Angeles spans a widely diverse geographic area. Primarily a desert basin, the area is surrounded by the San Gabriel Mountain Range, and divided by the Santa Monica Mountains. Los Angeles County has 75 miles of coastline and altitudes ranging from nine feet below sea level (at Wilmington) to 10,080 above sea level atop Mt. San Antonio. Area rivers include the Los Angeles, Rio Hondo and San Gabriel rivers. The county of Los Angeles includes two islands: San Clemente and Santa Catalina.
Climate
Southern California's climate has often been described as "perfect" and with good reason. It is mostly sunny and warm with gentle ocean breezes in the summer. The humidity is low with little rain. The last time it snowed in LA was on January 10, 1949, and even then, it was only 3/10 of an inch.
Annual precipitation: 14.89 inches
Average sunny/partly sunny days: 329 days
Average mean temperature: 65º F
- City of Los Angeles: 4 million
- County of Los Angeles: 10.3 million
- Los Angeles Five-County Area: 18.2 million (Los Angeles, Riverside, Ventura, Orange and San Bernardino counties)
- If the Los Angeles five-county Destination Marketing Area were a state, it would surpass all states in total population size with the exception of California, New York and Texas.
- The county of Los Angeles alone would rank as the 8th most populated state, just after Ohio (11.5 million residents) and ahead of Michigan (10.1 million), Georgia (9.4 million residents), and North Carolina (8.9 million residents).
- Los Angeles ranks as the second largest city in the nation.
Hotels
Los Angeles boasts more than 92,000 hotel rooms ranging from hostels to luxurious five-star resorts, with a diverse selection of amenities to meet individual needs and budgets.
Los Angeles is the fourth largest hotel market in the United States.
There are more than 6,500 hotel rooms in approximately 20 hotels in Downtown Los Angeles alone, with another 1,200+ slated to open in the next three years.
The Westin Bonaventure houses the city's largest ballroom and the largest number of small meeting rooms. It also offers the largest hotel room block in Los Angeles, with 1,000 rooms.
The city's most expensive hotel room? The Regent Beverly Wilshire's $7,500 a night Penthouse Suite. Located in Beverly Hills, the 5,000-square-foot penthouse will be fully stocked with anything you desire, as guests complete a pre-stay interview.
Downtown LA hotels offer an affordable option when compared to other similar markets.
Ethnic Makeup
The diverse multiethnic population of Los Angeles today distinguishes the city as the cultural hub of the Pacific Rim. People from about 140 countries, speaking approximately 86 different languages, currently call Los Angeles home.
White, non-Hispanic: 29.5 percent
Hispanic or Latino (of any race): 47 percent
African-American: 8.8 percent
Asian/Pacific Islander: 12.9 percent
American Indian/Others: 1.8 percent
Tourism in 2006
Visitors to Los Angeles County: 25.4 million
Visitor-related spending: $13.6 billion
Domestic overnight visitors: 20.7 million
International visitors: 4.7 million
Business
The leading industries, based on employment, in LA County are:
- Direct international trade
- Tourism
- Technology, including aerospace
- Motion picture/TV production
- Business and professional services
- Wholesale trade (excluding autos, apparel)
- Health sciences/biomedicine
The Economy
California would be the seventh largest economy in the world if it were a separate country. The LA five-county area would be No. 15, just behind Russia and ahead of Australia. LA County would be No. 17, behind the Netherlands and ahead of Belgium.
