Located in the heart of Los Angeles, the La Brea Tar Pits is one of the world's top ice age fossil sites. The accompanying Page Museum boasts a collection of more than three million Ice Age specimens, including saber-toothed cats, dire wolves and mammoths from 10,000 to 40,000-year-old asphaltic (tar-like) deposits. Outdoor "pits" in surrounding Hancock Park are still active, including Pit 91.
Best and worst time to visit the La Brea Tar Pits/Page Museum
Weekends, holidays, and summer months bring crowds to the La Brea Tar Pits/Page Museum. Weekday school field trips also keep the museum busy. The best way to beat the crowds is to visit Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and weekday afternoons.
Must See/Do at the La Brea Tar Pits/Page Museum
Fossils, like the dire wolf and camel are amazing inside the Page Museum, but be sure to visit the surrounding park, especially Project 23 where 16 new fossil deposits were discovered during neighbor LACMA's expansion of underground parking in 2006. See workers excavate and clean these intricate bones taken from this newest find. Also stop at Lake Pit, where gas bubbles up continuously and witness the great Columbian mammoth statue stuck in the asphaltic sludge.
Admission to the La Brea Tar Pits/Page Museum
The La Brea Tar Pits/Page Museum is open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., with four exceptions--it is closed New Year's Day, Independence Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Admission prices range from $5 to mid-teens; children 2 and under are free.
How to get to the La Brea Tar Pits/Page Museum
The La Brea Tar Pits/Page Museum is located at 5801 Wilshire Boulevard (cross street Curson Avenue). Paid parking is available directly behind the museum at Curson Avenue, closer to Sixth Street. There are also metered parking along Sixth Street. Metro Local Bus Line 20 stops at Wilshire Boulevard and Curson Avenue outside of the Tar Pits.
Food at the La Brea Tar Pits/Page Museum
There is no restaurant at the La Brea Tar Pits/Page Museum, but there are restaurant options along Wilshire and Curson Ave., gourmet food trucks on Wilshire Blvd., as well as the LACMA Café, C&M (Coffee & Milk) and Ray's Restaurant at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) just west of the Tar Pits.
Insider tips for visitors to the La Brea Tar Pits/Page Museum
Free admission is offered on the first Tuesday of each month, except in July and August; half-price admission weekdays at 4 p.m. If you take Metro Bus service, show your Tap Metro car and receive a $1.25 discount off adult admission. Around Hancock Park, see examples of the asphaltic, tar-like substance oozing through the grounds or grass; it's usually marked with markers.
Author's bio: Lori Huck works in television development as well as writes on entertainment and the arts. She's a fan of the vibrant arts scene in Los Angeles and is a member of many arts organizations.