Hsi Lai Temple

Hsi Lai Temple tickets and tours: which one to book

Hsi Lai Temple is free to enter and no ticket is sold online. You drive up the hill, park in the temple lot and walk through the main gate; donations are welcome at the shrines. The few things you might pay for are a simple vegetarian lunch in the dining hall, served for a modest charge, drinks and snacks at the tea house, and books or souvenirs in the gift shop. The temple runs its own programme for those who want more than a look around: weekend meditation sessions, introductory classes on Buddhism in English and Chinese, chanting services and occasional short retreats, all booked directly with the temple rather than through tour sellers.

Volunteers may be able to show visitors around if you ask at the information desk, and school and community groups can arrange visits in advance. Commercial Los Angeles tours rarely include the temple, because it lies in the Puente Hills well east of the usual sights. The sensible plan is to come by car or ride-share and spend half a day on the grounds, ideally including lunch. Public transport is possible but slow, with buses along Hacienda Boulevard and a steep walk uphill at the end. The page lists any GetYourGuide tours whose route passes the temple.

Visiting Hsi Lai Temple: what to see and how to behave

Hsi Lai, meaning coming west, is the first overseas branch of Fo Guang Shan, a large Buddhist order founded in Taiwan by Master Hsing Yun, and it serves as the order's headquarters for North America. Planning began in the late 1970s, and the community met years of local opposition before construction started in 1986; the temple was completed in 1988 on a hillside in Hacienda Heights, in Los Angeles County. It follows Humanistic Buddhism, which stresses applying the teaching to everyday life, and it was the place where the lay Buddha's Light International Association was founded in 1991. The architecture follows the Chinese monastic tradition of the Ming and Qing periods, with golden-tiled roofs and a sequence of courtyards climbing the slope.

You pass the Mountain Gate, then the Bodhisattva Hall, then a large courtyard flanked by bell and drum towers, before reaching the Main Shrine with its three great seated Buddhas and the thousands of small Buddha images lining the walls. Look also for the garden of arhats, the statues of the Buddha's disciples set among plants, and the museum, which shows Buddhist art and changing exhibitions. Visitors are welcome in most areas, but keep voices low, do not step over the raised thresholds of the halls, and ask before photographing inside the Main Shrine or during services. Walk around the halls clockwise if you join the devotees. The temple is about 35 km east of downtown Los Angeles, reached in 30 to 45 minutes by car via the 60 freeway, depending on traffic.

Hsi Lai Temple: opening hours, ceremonies and the best time to go

The grounds open daily, usually from around 9 am to 5 pm; check the official site for the current hours and the times of the dining hall. Weekday mornings are the quietest, when you may hear the monastics chanting and have the courtyards almost to yourself. Weekend lunchtimes are busy with families and dharma classes. Southern California weather makes almost any month suitable, though summer afternoons on the exposed hillside can be very hot, so spring and autumn are the most comfortable.

The temple celebrates Chinese New Year with lanterns, food stalls and a lively crowd, and the Buddha's birthday in spring with a ceremony of bathing the infant Buddha. The Ullambana festival in late summer honours ancestors. These are the best days to see the temple full of life, but parking fills up quickly. Allow two hours, or three with lunch and the museum. Combine it with a drive through the San Gabriel Valley for its Chinese restaurants, or with a visit to the Huntington Library in San Marino.