Besides its appear­ance in innu­mer­able movies, the sky­line of Down­town Los Ange­les is, tak­en on its own, not that remark­able. The sky­scrap­ers’ unin­spired buz­z­cuts are the result of a law, changed only in 2014, dic­tat­ing flat tops to accom­mo­date heli­copter land­ing pads. Most dis­tinc­tive among the sky­scrap­ers is the 1,018-foot U.S. Bank Tow­er, its sum­mit rem­i­nis­cent of a trav­el plug. What makes this one of the best sky­lines in the world is how the surg­ing tow­ers stark­ly con­trast with the vast, most­ly low-rise urban sprawl that sur­rounds it. Top­ping it off, when viewed from the famous Cal­i­for­nia coast­line, is the back­drop of the rugged San Gabriel Moun­tains. The Grif­fith Obser­va­to­ry, one of the most unique places to vis­it in Cal­i­for­nia, is the best spot to get a per­spec­tive on the epic sky­line of California’s largest city. If you want to see it up close, head to the Stan­dard Hotel’s rooftop bar in the evening to be enfold­ed with­in this glit­ter­ing grove of sky­scrap­ers and high-ris­es.