Griffith Park Observatory - Los Angeles, CA
Yesterday we had the pleasure of going to the Griffith Observatory. We’ve meant to go for years, but finally decided it was time, with a budding astronaut in the family (Brett’s passion for space has grown significantly in the past few months. He could go toe to toe with anyone and I bet he can teach YOU about space!). It was a natural time to make the trek up there.
Never having been up there, I wasn’t sure what to expect… Would the parking be insane? (Nope). Would the crowds be aggravating? (Nope again). Would it cost a fortune for the day? (Nope again!) Would it be worth the drive up to Los Angeles? (ABSOLUTELY!).
On the drive up there, we weren’t really sure what to expect. “I’m hungry mom,” Kyle declared from the back seat. I furiously found the Griffith Observatory site (http://www.griffithobservatory.org/) on my iPhone and quickly found the menu for the “End of the Universe” Café (http://www.griffithobservatory.org/pdf/cafemenu.pdf). I was quickly able to tell the boys their meal options for the day. I found movie times and gift shop information also. And of course I used my GPS maps feature to easily guide us directly to Griffith Park as well as spot traffic to have an accurate idea of our travel time!
Parking on a Sunday afternoon during tourist season was shockingly easy. There were a ton of people in Griffith Park, but it seemed that most were there for hiking and sightseeing and not to go to the Observatory.
Once in, we had very little wait time to purchase tickets for the planetarium and admission to the Observatory is Free! We took about an hour to wander around the exhibits then made our way to the End of the Universe Café (operated by Wolf Gang Puck!) for some much needed lunch. The food was very fairly priced and the views of the Los Angeles area were amazing!
The Sea of Life show at the Planetarium was captivating and thought provoking. We’ll definitely be keeping our eyes out for the next series of shows.
Once in, we had very little wait time to purchase tickets for the planetarium and admission to the Observatory is Free! We took about an hour to wander around the exhibits then made our way to the End of the Universe Café (operated by Wolf Gang Puck!) for some much needed lunch. The food was very fairly priced and the views of the Los Angeles area were amazing!
The Sea of Life show at the Planetarium was captivating and thought provoking. We’ll definitely be keeping our eyes out for the next series of shows.
Our day was a true family adventure and one that we won’t ever forget. I’d highly recommend a trip for any family with kids (especially little astronauts!).
Total cost for the adventure? $28 for the planetarium shows (plus gas and food, parking and admission was free)
4 comments:
Sounds like a lot of fun! We took our kids to the air and space museums near our home. The kids were in awe of the giant planes and rockets. I never would have thought that they would be interested at this age..even though I knew I would be! :)
Love love the observatory! I grew up a few miles from Griffith Park and it is one of my favorite places to visit with both kids and adults. Great post! (Found your blog through a comment on just spotted)
Definitely a fun time. I grew up in the Bay Area, so I get to experience all the SoCal things for the first with my boys. :) I want their memories of childhood to be filled with tons and tons of fun adventures.
This is probably one of those totally taken-for-granted places in our area that we forget to visit. Thanks for the post. My kids would love it there and this reminder was the catalyst to putting on our list of things to do!
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