city located in southeast Los Angeles County, California, United States

Downey is a city of 111,000 in the Gateway Cities of Los Angeles.

The oldest existing McDonalds is found in Downey.

Get in edit

By car edit

Downey is located at the intersection of Lakewood (CA-19) and Firestone (CA-42) Boulevards. The Stonewood Center (see "Buy" below) is on the northeast quadrant of the intersection.

By plane edit

The closest airport to Downey is the Long Beach Airport (LGB IATA) 8.5 miles south on Lakewood Boulevard.

Get around edit

See edit

  • 1 Downey History Center, 12540 S. Rives Ave, +1 562 862-2777, . W, Th, 3rd Sa each month: 10AM-2PM.
  • 2 World's Oldest McDonald's (Historic Speedee McDonald's), 10207 Lakewood Blvd, +1 562 622-9248. Su-Th 7AM-10PM, F-Sa 7AM-11PM. This is the oldest standing McDonald's fast food store. The original 60-foot-high sign is also still standing. Both are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
  • 3 Close to You and Only Just Begun, 8388 5th St. Karen and Richard Carpenter used to own these two apartment buildings across from each other.
  • 4 Columbia Memorial Space Center, 12400 Columbia Way, +1 562 231-1200. Tu-Sa 10AM-5PM. Space museum with a Lego robotics lab. $5.

Do edit

Buy edit

  • 1 Stonewood Center, 251 Stonewood St (on the northeast quadrant of the Lakewood/Firestone intersection), +1 562 904-1832. M-F 10AM-9PM, Sa 10AM-8PM, Su 11AM-7PM. Anchored by JCPenney, Kohl's, Macy's, Macy's Home Store, and Sears.
  • 2 Downey Landing, 12020 Lakewood Blvd (on southeast quadrant of Lakewood/Stewart & Gray). Major retailers include: Best Buy, Old Navy, Marshall's, Bally Total Fitness, Bed, Bath & Beyond, DSW Shoe Warehouse, PetSmart, Pier 1 Imports, Ross Dress for Less, Staples, and Verizon Wireless.
  • 3 Promenade at Downey, 8998 Apollo Way, +1 562-441-7212. Promenade at Downey is a dynamic outdoor retail, dining and entertainment complex designed with an architectural nod to Downey's aerospace roots.

Eat edit

  • 1 Porto's Bakery and Cafe, 8233 Firestone Blvd, +1 562-862-8888. M-Sa 6:30AM-8:3PM, Su 7AM-7PM. The long lines say it all. This family business has been booming and expanding. People would drive to Glendale from Downey before, but no longer, now they just wait in the line, smell and see all the goodies while they wait.
  • 2 Yogurtland, 8250 Firestone Blvd, +1 562 869-6300. Su-Th 11AM-10PM, F Sa 11AM-11PM. Outpost of a local chain offering self-serve frozen yogurt & toppings in a modern yet casual space

Drink edit

  • 1 The Anarchy Library, 13250 Woodruff Ave.. 8:30PM-2AM. At one time was a venue for the local and nation punk scene.

Sleep edit

Go next edit

Disneyland, Hollywood, and the Beaches are all under a 1 hour drive without traffic.

Routes through Downey
Downtown LACommerce  N   S  NorwalkSanta Ana
South Central LALynwood  W   E  NorwalkEND
South Central LALynwood  W    E  NorwalkEND


This city travel guide to Downey is a usable article. It has information on how to get there and on restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please feel free to improve it by editing the page.