Help! Planning a trip to Natural History Museum in LA

[jonahsmommy]

Planning a trip for DS's 8th birthday. He LOVES dinosaurs so we are driving to the Natural History Museum in LA and also visiting Le Brea tar pits.
Have a ton of questions:

1. Are these 2 places in walking distance of each other?
2. Could both be done in 1 day?
3. DS's birthday is in November, good month to go or in December? Anything special for the holidays?
4. Hotels? What is a good nearby place to look for hotels? We don't mind driving a little. Burbank? Downtown LA?
5. Any other must see dinosaur places?

Thanks so much!!

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

1. Though the La Brea Tar Pits is part of the Natural History Museum, it is too far away, and you will have to drive. It is only about 8 miles away, but you'll go via a pretty busy freeway, so expect a half hour to get there (could be more with traffic).

2. You could do both in one day. I would go to the Tar Pits first. They open at 9:30, and explore the Page Museum. There is a cool tour called the Excavating Tour that takes you to the pits and explains what is going on. I was there a couple of weekends ago, and did a segment on our podcast that will air on 31 July (go to this link on that day if you would like to listen to it: http://www.disunplugged.com/category/disneyland-podcast-episodes/ ). After the Tarpits, head on to the Natural History Museum. It closes at 5pm, so if you have spent too much time at the tar pits you may want to do this another day. The tar pits doesn't have dinosaurs, but animals like dire wolves, saber cats, mammoths, sloths, mastodons, etc. So, maybe you DO want to go to the Natural History Museum first. It also opens at 9:30 am.

3. Check the schedules at both museums to see what exhibits are going on. I would tailor my visit for that.

4. Hmmm... hotels.... Don't stay at one near the Natural History Museum. One near the La Brea Tar Pits is better, or Downtown LA is also okay. Burbank is farther away, so I don't know if that would be a good idea. I would recommend Santa Monica, but the traffic on the 10 freeway leading from Santa Monica can get gridlocked.

5. I can't think of any other dinosaur exhibits. The one at the Natural History Museum is really good. You might consider going to the science center right next door to see the Endeavor space shuttle. Nice comparison between ancient and modern life.

 

[jonahsmommy]

Thanks so much for the information!
How far away is Santa Monica from La Brea Tar Pits?
Any good recommendations for downtown LA ? We normally stay at either Hyatt or Hilton hotels.

 

[emily94]

Planning a trip for DS's 8th birthday. He LOVES dinosaurs so we are driving to the Natural History Museum in LA and also visiting Le Brea tar pits.
Have a ton of questions:

1. Are these 2 places in walking distance of each other?
2. Could both be done in 1 day?
3. DS's birthday is in November, good month to go or in December? Anything special for the holidays?
4. Hotels? What is a good nearby place to look for hotels? We don't mind driving a little. Burbank? Downtown LA?
5. Any other must see dinosaur places?

Thanks so much!!

Hey! Just got back from a lovely trip to LA

1. They are definitely not walking distance! The Museum is near USC so there could be some good, quick places for lunch nearby. The Space Shuttle Endeavor is nearby, as well as the Memorial Coliseum if your family is interested in seeing those as well! Google Maps says the Museum is 22 minutes from the La Brea Tar Pits. The Tar Pits will probably not take that long, maybe 30 min to walk around the whole area. This area is fun and it is cool to walk around "Urban Lights" outside the LA County Museum of Art (LACMA). LACMA also has a great little restaurant for a possible lunch place.
2. Yes definitely!
3. I have no idea! The museum may be doing a special december exhibit, but I am not sure.
4. As PP said, hotels near the Natural History Museum may not be the best because of the area. Burbank is pretty far, Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Westwood, and Culver City would be better areas. Here are some other suggestions:

• Residence Inn Beverly Hills
  JW Marriott Santa Monica Le Merigot
  Courtyard Los Angeles Westside
  Hyatt Regency Century Plaza

5. The Natural History Museum is the end all, be all of dinosaur stuff in LA!

P.S. do you watch Bones? If so, does this look familiar? It's actually the Natural History Museum!!