Los Angeles Museums

Museums are L.A.'s hidden gems for Los Angeles residents and tourists alike. The cost of admission is usually less than a movie, but you'll get better value from a museum and a more memorable experience. You can take your camera, although some museums prohibit flash photography and many do not allow the use of a tripod. Children are welcome in most museums, with many of them offering hands-on exhibits and special events for kids.

Museum Row on the Miracle Mile

[May 2021 update - LACMA is open; The Petersen is open; Tar Pits museum is open; Craft opens May 9; Advance reservations are required for these museums]

Home to Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), Page Museum at La Brea Tar Pits, Petersen Automotive Museum and the Craft and Folk Art Museum. Two of the museums are in Hancock Park, which features tar pit exhibits such as the Lake Pit, where you can view and take photos of life-sized models of an American mastodon and a family of Columbian mammoths. On weekdays you can watch workers search for fossils that are carefully removed from the tar before they are meticulously cleaned inside Page Museum.

Special Event

Immersive Van Gogh Exhibit - this is a limited-time event that opens on May 27, 2021 and is to be held in a "secret venue situated in the heart of Los Angeles." The exhibit features 300,000 cubic feet of animated artwork by Vincent van Gogh. The exhibit is designed and conceived by Massimiliano Siccardi, with soundtrack by Luca Longobardi, both of whom pioneered immersive digital art experiences in France.

West L.A. Museums

[May 2021 update - The Getty reopens in late May]

Getty Center Museum, Skirball Cultural Center, Fowler and Hammer Museums at UCLA, Museum of Tolerance and more.

Hollywood Museums

[May 2021 update - Most Hollywood Blvd museums are open]

Hollywood Bowl Museum, Hollywood Heritage Museum, Hollywood Museum, Madame Tussaud's Hollywood, Ripley's Odditorium, Hollywood Wax Museum, Hollyhock House and the Galleries at Barnsdall Art Park and more.

Downtown Los Angeles

[May 2021 update - Japanese American National Museum is open; GRAMMY Museum opens May 21; The Broad opens May 29; most other museums in downtown L.A. are closed]

Includes the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA Grand Avenue and Geffen Contemporary), The GRAMMY® Museum, Japanese American National Museum, the museums at El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument, and the Chinese American Museum

Exposition Park (near downtown)

[May 2021 update - California Science Center, Natural History Museum and California African American Museum are open - advance reservations are required]

Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History (dinosaurs, dioramas, rocks, life exhibits), California Science Center (exhibits that demonstrate concepts of science or show the history of science), California African American Museum and Fisher Museum of Art at the University of Southern California (USC).

Santa Monica and Malibu Museums

Including Getty Villa, Santa Monica Museum of Art, the Surf Museum at Pepperdine, Santa Monica Pier Aquarium, Point Vicente Interpretive Museum and others.

Museums in Pasadena and nearby

Norton Simon, Pacific Asia Museum, Pasadena Museum of History, The Huntington and more.

Griffith Park

Including Autry Museum of the American West, Travel Town railroad museum, Griffith Observatory and other museums near Griffith Park, Burbank and Glendale.

North Valley Museums

Museums in the San Fernando Valley and Santa Clarita Valley, including Nethercutt Collection, Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and more.

Long Beach and South Bay

Aquarium of the Pacific, Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, Long Beach Museum of Art, Los Angeles Maritime Museum and others.

Orange County (and nearby) Museums

Including Irvine Museum, Laguna Art Museum and Orange County Museum of Art.

Museums Away From Los Angeles

Calico Ghost Town Museum, Catalina Island Museum, Fort Tejon and more.

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Short links to this page: https://LAtourist.com/museums -or- https://inLA.us/museums

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