Paramount Drive-In Theatres
Paramount Drive-In Theatres
4.5
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
4.5
15 reviews
Excellent
10
Very good
5
Average
0
Poor
0
Terrible
0
Erina
California286 contributions
Aug 2022
Its a great place to watch a drive in movie. It used to be that 1 ticket allows you to watch both movies but this changed a few years back. Now, you just pay for 1 ticket and its for 1 movie. The parking lot is not flat, the parking spots are slightly tilted upwards so your car is aiming up at the screen. Be aware though, there are some rude people who will park in front of you (mainly suvs) and face backwards. On top of that, they will lift up their trunk so they can sit in the back. The problem with that is their trunk door is sticking up blocking your screen. Its funny, no matter how many times we go there's always quite a few people that do it and not care about anyone else around them. There are times when the walking attendant says something, which is nice, but at times they are nowhere to be seen. The screen is sometimes dark but manageable and its only apparent when there is a dark scene in the movie. Don't get me wrong, this place is great and I'm glad that there are still drive ins. Its just that there are rude people who don't care about anyone else around them and block them with their trucks/suvs. Happened to us and has happened to others on numerous occasions. So, if you go and you have an suv/truck, don't block other people and park in front of a small vehicle. Even if its tilted you can still get blocked.
Written July 16, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Nereida
California221 contributions
Jul 2017 • Family
I was blown away when I learned that this drive-in was still in existence as I was under the impression that there were no drive-ins operating. As a teen I lived fairly close to this drive-in and I remember trips with a car load of teens hiding in the back, going in for free.
I took my youngest daughter, who is 21 and had never been to a drive-in, and she was just as excited as I was. On weekends they show three movies, and on weekdays two. There are two screens in the lot, and depending what movies you want to watch you to one or the other. Tickets are $10 per person, which I found to be extremely reasonable.
Like another poster wrote, long gone are the days where you had a post and speakers. Now, you tune in from your car radio, but I'm still not sure how that works. I was greatly concern that my car battery was going to die if I did that. Fortunately, there were many movie goers who had set up big speakers and we were able to hear perfectly without having to use our car radio.
The best part about this "new" experience is that, contrary to years gone by where you watched the movie from within the confines of your car, now you can pull out your chairs and watch the movie under the stars. It was awesome seeing families sitting outside spending quality time. My daughter loved it, I loved it, and we're going back when they show other movies.
As of right now they're showing Despicable Me 3, Cars 3, Wonder Woman, and the new Spiderman movie. We watched Despicable Me 3, and were ready to watch Cars 3, but had to leave before it started.
We will return.
I took my youngest daughter, who is 21 and had never been to a drive-in, and she was just as excited as I was. On weekends they show three movies, and on weekdays two. There are two screens in the lot, and depending what movies you want to watch you to one or the other. Tickets are $10 per person, which I found to be extremely reasonable.
Like another poster wrote, long gone are the days where you had a post and speakers. Now, you tune in from your car radio, but I'm still not sure how that works. I was greatly concern that my car battery was going to die if I did that. Fortunately, there were many movie goers who had set up big speakers and we were able to hear perfectly without having to use our car radio.
The best part about this "new" experience is that, contrary to years gone by where you watched the movie from within the confines of your car, now you can pull out your chairs and watch the movie under the stars. It was awesome seeing families sitting outside spending quality time. My daughter loved it, I loved it, and we're going back when they show other movies.
As of right now they're showing Despicable Me 3, Cars 3, Wonder Woman, and the new Spiderman movie. We watched Despicable Me 3, and were ready to watch Cars 3, but had to leave before it started.
We will return.
Written July 10, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LBCSQUID
LONG BEACH23 contributions
Jul 2015 • Couples
I can't freakin believe it! So, my hubby and I were talking about the good ole days and drive in theatres when I decided to look it up. I wanted to see if any still existed in Southern California, as from what I can remember, all had closed down. Sure enough, I stumbled upon this place. It was a short drive there to discover that I would describe as a gem of a find. They have 2 screens. It is $9 each person in the car and they play 2 movies on the weekdays and 3 on the weekends. It is actually clean, safe and great to have a drive in in So Cal again. I highly recommend this place. I will go here any day before going to a regular theatre any more.
Written July 11, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
remmulp91
Bristol, UK22 contributions
Sep 2018 • Couples
Me and my partner (both in our 20s) wanted to visit a drive-in theatre for the nostalgia. This long running theatre was great! The film started on time, was a clear picture and we left very happy
Written September 6, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sandra S
Los Angeles, CA133 contributions
Jan 2017 • Family
The place is nearby and it's definately a trip down memory lane. They are organized and the movies play promptly, the concesión has pizza besides other movie food, and you can also bring your own. You pay per person but it's definately an experience.
Written January 4, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
TiffMateas
Orange County, CA297 contributions
Jun 2015 • Solo
Well I had some free time after working all day on a literary project, so decided to catch a late show, but none of the local theatres' viewing times had anything I wanted to see. Enter The Paramount for a fun option. I arrived right before the 2nd show, so poked around the snack bar and video game selection. I was all at once awash in memories of fun childhood trips to both the arcade as well as my beloved fav the institute that is the iconic drive in theatre. What a lasting treasure I hope lasts for generations to come.
Written February 12, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Bmoe
uk263 contributions
Feb 2024 • Couples
Nostalgic place to watch a movie. The picture and sound were very good. People parked well . Started on time. The food was low quality though take your own. It was $13 each for one movie.
Written February 28, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Noel A
Exeter, UK62 contributions
Aug 2018 • Family
We had a fantastic night here at the Paramount Drive in. Great American experience, good snacks, great picture quality and radio sound worked well.
Just remember the saying...if the car’s a rocking, don’t come knocking!!
Just remember the saying...if the car’s a rocking, don’t come knocking!!
Written August 23, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ciara
Los Angeles, CA188 contributions
Aug 2017 • Friends
My friend from out-of-state came to visit me in LA for the weekend and one of the things on his "bucket list" was to see a drive-in movie. I saw that the Paramount Drive-In wasn't terribly far away (and was playing a decent horror movie) so we decided to go on a Friday night.
In short, it was amazing! It was so fun and everything was ran very smoothly. The movie started on-time and it was great to see that the drive-in (which has a huge lot) was nearly completely full on a Friday night. The drive-in has "ridges" on the parking spaces so that everyone gets an equally elevated view of the screen. We saw a wide variety of people - friends, families, couples - and it was very easy to both enter and leave.
Here are some of my big tips/takeaways from my experience at the drive-in:
● BRING your own food! There's an old-timey restaurant at the drive-in (it's cute and has '80s arcade games in it) but the food is very overpriced and the menu is limited (a most-likely microwaved cheese pizza and popcorn are the main staples). The attendants don't check your car so as long as you don't have the food in plain sight, you will be fine!
● BRING your own portable radio! I bought a cheap one off Amazon the day before and it was a life saver. Paramount plays their movies' audio through FM radio stations, and if you want to avoid keeping your car on and letting the battery run low, a portable radio is a fantastic option.
● GET to the drive-in around an hour early (although this somewhat depends on the movie/time). You can't buy tickets in advance/online, and we were seeing a Friday 8:30pm showing of a new horror movie, so we arrived around 7:30pm. It was a perfect time to stake out a spot (we were still, by no means, the first ones there).
● BE aware that if you see a "darkly-lit" film (these tend to be horror films), it can be a little difficult to see them on the screen just due to lighting. The attendants are very good/transparent about this and told us at the "gate" (where you buy tickets); you have the option to turn around if this bothers you. For us, and the rest of the people there, it didn't bother us!
In short, it was amazing! It was so fun and everything was ran very smoothly. The movie started on-time and it was great to see that the drive-in (which has a huge lot) was nearly completely full on a Friday night. The drive-in has "ridges" on the parking spaces so that everyone gets an equally elevated view of the screen. We saw a wide variety of people - friends, families, couples - and it was very easy to both enter and leave.
Here are some of my big tips/takeaways from my experience at the drive-in:
● BRING your own food! There's an old-timey restaurant at the drive-in (it's cute and has '80s arcade games in it) but the food is very overpriced and the menu is limited (a most-likely microwaved cheese pizza and popcorn are the main staples). The attendants don't check your car so as long as you don't have the food in plain sight, you will be fine!
● BRING your own portable radio! I bought a cheap one off Amazon the day before and it was a life saver. Paramount plays their movies' audio through FM radio stations, and if you want to avoid keeping your car on and letting the battery run low, a portable radio is a fantastic option.
● GET to the drive-in around an hour early (although this somewhat depends on the movie/time). You can't buy tickets in advance/online, and we were seeing a Friday 8:30pm showing of a new horror movie, so we arrived around 7:30pm. It was a perfect time to stake out a spot (we were still, by no means, the first ones there).
● BE aware that if you see a "darkly-lit" film (these tend to be horror films), it can be a little difficult to see them on the screen just due to lighting. The attendants are very good/transparent about this and told us at the "gate" (where you buy tickets); you have the option to turn around if this bothers you. For us, and the rest of the people there, it didn't bother us!
Written August 15, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Gomezfamily_5
144 contributions
May 2017 • Family
I haven't done it but I've seen people grilling there😂. It's awesome! My kids love it , especially on summer nights! We take our truck and bring blankets and pillows and reverse the truck and just sit on the back and run some extra chairs.
Written May 16, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Claim your listingParamount Drive-In Theatres - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)
Frequently Asked Questions about Paramount Drive-In Theatres
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