Pretend City Children’s Museum is an interconnected city designed for children (infant-8). The city is comprised of a grocery store, farm, doctor’s office, art studio, amphitheater, beach, marina, construction site and many other exhibits. At Pretend City, children learn through role play based on real-world experiences as they dress up as a police officer, deliver the mail, create art, compose music or put out a fire.
Collection of over 200 different railway locomotives, passenger and freight cars, streetcars, interurban electric cars, buildings and other artifacts dating from the 1870’s. Visitors can ride streetcars, electric cars, and trains on the Museum railway. Special events throughout the year.
Located in Griffith Park, the Autry offers an array of exhibits activities the entire family can enjoy. Check out the the new kid-friendly movie studio, Autry Detective Kits for kids, or weekend gold panning. Free admission on the second Tuesday of the month, or if you are a Bank of America cardholder, the first full weekend of each month!
The California African American Museum highlights art, history, and culture of African Americans, with a focus on California and the West. Special events for children and family programs are offered throughout the year. Exhibitions, programs, and events are always free and open to the public.
New exhibits for 2019 include: Dogs: A Science Tail, Superpower Dogs 3D IMAX film, Backyard Wilderness 3D Movie, and Math Alive. The museum offers free general admission to all permanent exhibits (excluding IMAX and special paid exhibits).
Formerly the Zimmer Museum, the Cayton, in its new location, offers five core wings where kids can explore playful exhibits, a winter camp, plus hosts birthday parties.
Play in the STEAM Lab, learn about trains in the Model Train Village, ride an authentic, hand-carved carousel, then uncover dinosaur fossils, learn about environment conservation, and then dress up in costume and perform on a stage.
Take in 71,000 square feet of interactive and hands-on, cutting-edge exhibits and thrilling events! Field trips, birthdays, summer camps, outreach, special events, sleepovers, and teacher workshops are also available.
Hands-on exhibits include Discovery Theater, Inspector Training Course, Boeing Rocket Lab, Discovery Market, Science of Hockey, and more. Special exhibits, field trips, birthdays, special events, sleepovers, and teacher workshops are also available.
The Getty Center and Getty Villa offer special events and activities for the family. Both offer the Family Room, a gallery designed just for kids to explore and participate in hands-on activities. The Getty Center offers Art Detective cards where kids find the art and solve the mystery while exploring the galleries, garden, and architecture. The Getty Villa offers a Percy Jackson audio tour scavenger hunt for kids where they explore the museum in a 25-minute tour and earn a prize bracelet.
Hammer kids programs offer hand-on art workshops and films for the whole family. Download a family or teen guide from their website for an interactive experience in the galleries.
The Hilbert Museum of California Art at Chapman University has a collection that includes oils, watercolors, sketches and lithographs of urban and industrial scenes, coastal views, farms, ranches and landscapes of everyday life in the 20th century by California artists. Their latest exhibit features one of Disney’s famous artists. Admission is free.
Homestead Museum is located in the heart of a former Mexican rancho and offers free-guided, 45-minute tours of two historic houses, Wednesday – Sunday.
Changing exhibits celebrate the history of surfing and surf culture. Open Tuesday through Sunday 12 p.m. – 5 p.m.,$3 admission per person.
See current exhibitions, hundreds of rare materials in the Library Exhibition Hall, a botanical conservatory, and acres of spectacular gardens in between! Youth and Family Programs include workshops, preschool series, weekend festivals, a children’s garden, family days, drop-in activities and activity carts––even weeklong day camps.
The Japanese American National Museum features exhibits that highlight Japanese American culture and history. Free general admission every Thursday, 5 p.m. – 8 p.m., and all day every third Thursday of the month.
Hands-on exhibits, both indoor and outdoor, are designed to encourage a child’s growth in development through exploration of the environment, investigation in science, and artistic expression. Exhibits include water and mud features, digging for fossils, outdoor climbing and more. Plus, they offer classes, camps, family nights, workshops and special events.
The La Brea Tar Pits is an active Ice Age dig site where new discoveries are made every day. Their newest exhibit, “Mammoths and Mastodons,” allows you to get up close to La Brea’s real fossils as well as new life-sized replicas that show what these animals looked like in life. Plus don’t miss Titans of the Ice Age 3D, a movie adventure that takes you on a journey to a world lost in time, buried in ice, and ruled by giants.
Family ArtMaking Workshops are offered for free on the Museum’s lawn with a view of the ocean. September – May., third Sunday of the month; June, – August, every Sunday. Free museum admission after 3 p.m. on Thursdays, and half-price all day Fridays.
Kids can join NexGen, a free youth membership program that offers free admission for anyone 17 and under as well as free general admission for one accompanying adult. Family activities include painting in the Boone Children’s Gallery, Family Days with tours, art-making on Sundays, story times, art classes and camps.