Do tourists go downtown when visiting LA? With the beaches and all the neighborhoods around the city, I've rarely set out to go to the city when I've been there. I remember driving through the Art District to check it out before driving to Vegas one time I was there, and while I was looking for a park, I saw a homeless man walking with his dikk out pissing at the same time.
I just said, "yeah, it's time to go after seeing that".
What do people do in downtown LA if they're visiting from out of town?
Downtown is pretty much what's advertised only because it has a skyline really.
That thing you saw passing through the art district is 100% common in downtown.
Pretty much people get duped into going to downtown it's basically only if you want a cheap place to stay or need to go there for work.
What you really want is West LA, Inglewood, Culver City, Santa Monica, etc. That said, homeless population only growing there too.
End of the day, LA is pretty much like any other major city. If you want nightlife, Hollywood nightclubs. Other than that it's food, the beaches (Santa Monica Pier and the and shopping/people watching at places like The Grove or some of the museums.