Places to see in Los Angeles, California

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Los Angeles offers endless options for memorable experiences for visitors and locals alike. Whether it’s visiting a quiet museum, or attending a boisterous ball game, there are always interesting attractions and exciting events taking place throughout L.A.  




Places to see in Los Angeles, California

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Los Angeles museums house some of the world’s most renowned art collections. Throughout the city, you can discover masterpieces like Vincent van Gogh’s Irises, one of the most expensive paintings in history and currently on view at the Getty Center in Brentwood.


Marvel at Los Angeles museum village

The collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, or LACMA, are housed in a vast 20-acre complex of buildings, expertly renovated in 2008. The focal point is the BP Grand Entrance, which includes the stunning installation of Chris Burden's Urban Light. The Broad Contemporary Art Museum is home to a dazzling selection of modern works.


Hollywood

Los Angeles is the entertainment capital of the world, and for film fans, the ultimate experience is a behind-the-scenes studio tour. At Universal Studios Hollywood, the Studio Tour is perhaps its most legendary attraction - and its original one, having debuted in 1915, not long after the theme park opened. Narrated by Jimmy Fallon, the Studio Tour offers guests the chance to explore the working backlot of a real Hollywood movie studio. The tour includes Oscar-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson’s heart-pounding King Kong 360 3D, the world’s largest 3D experience.



Santa Monica Pier

Considered the focal point of Santa Monica Beach, Santa Monica Pier includes Pacific Park, a traditional set-up stocked with a Ferris wheel, aquarium, fairground games and cotton candy stands. On warm weekends, the stretch is busy with families, beach bums and gym bunnies, who work out in public at the original Muscle Beach just south of the pier.


Disneyland

You're never too old for Disneyland. This legendary theme park is packed with cool things to do, spread over seven lands. Stroll down Main Street USA to experience turn-of-the 19th century America, head Westwards at Frontierland and tune into the music of New Orleans square, minus the floods and booze. All your favorite cartoon characters come to life in dream-like environments: You can step into the wooded home of Winnie the Pooh at Critter Country, go behind the scenes of Disney films at Fantasyland and chase the iconic mouse, who'll be scurrying around Mickey's Toontown. Great rides include the stomach-churning Space Mountain and the epic Indiana Jones Adventure.


Shopping in LA

For chic clothes and delicious food, the place to go shopping is the junction of 3rd Street and Fairfax Avenue. Here, you'll find The Grove, an open-air mall where you can browse through about 50 top stores, including Abercrombie & Fitch and Barney's New York Co-Op. Adjacent, you'll find the Original Farmer's Market. Set up in 1934, it's expanded from selling fresh produce to offering an international culinary experience from a vast range of stalls. For comfort food, visit Du-Par's (stall 210, 323-933-8446, du-pars.com); for Texan grills, stake out Bryan's Pit BBQ (stall 740, 323-931-2869); and scoop up dessert from Bennett's Ice Cream (stall 548, 323-939-6786).


Venice Beach

Venice Beach has long been known as the kooky Mecca of California, and while it's been getting more than a fair share of mainstream tourists, the area nurtures its eccentric spirit. Skateboarders, radical pamphleteers and body builders: the visibility is great if you enjoy people-watching. Go for lunch at the local Figtree's Café before scanning the shelves at Small World Books. The bohemian district is welcoming to the gay community.



Jurassic experience

Despite the misleading name, this scientific nook has nothing to do with Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park. The Museum of Jurassic Technology is home to a repository of curiosities: scientific wonders include a bat that can fly through walls and artistic miracles such as impossibly tiny sculptures. The institute is an intriguing combination of fact and fiction, and much more exciting than chasing CGI dinosaurs.


California Science Center

The California Science Center is a dynamic destination where families, adults and children can explore the wonders of science through interactive exhibits, live demonstrations, innovative programs and awe-inspiring films. They inspire science learning in everyone!



Grand Park

The slow, lumbering mission to turn Downtown LA into a vibrant cultural hub got a lift when a portion of Grand Park's 12 acres officially opened to the public in July 2012. Dotted with fountains, picnic lawns, bright pink benches and plenty of nooks from which to sit and people-watch, Grand Park is a bright urban oasis that proves the city has a sense of romance. Development continues and will include the opening of performance and event lawns by the end of 2012, when the entire park will stretch from the Music Center on Grand Avenue all the way to City Hall.


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