10 Best museums in LA

Los Angeles is not only beach and heat: in this city there are many things to see and do and among them are the incredible museums that the city offers to tourists and locals. In this wonderful Californian city you can find some incredible museums, dedicated to national origins, history, astronomy and also a lot of cinema.

We know that you will have to go to the beach and that you will want to party at night, but there are wonderful museums in Los Angeles that you can't miss for anything in the world. Join me in this article to learn about the 10 best museums in the city, so you can include them in your Los Angeles tours.

Los Angeles is the movie capital of the world, so how could that not be reflected in the list of museums in the city? You may have organized a visit to Universal Studios, but in addition to that I recommend that you don't miss the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. It is the museum of the Academy that organizes the Oscar Awards. It is a brand new museum, inaugurated in 2021 and whose building was designed by the renowned architect Renzo Piano.

Just going to this museum will be a delight for you, because of the novelty and technology that is fully incorporated into its exhibits. And there are more than 4500 square meters of space, in which much of it is dedicated to exhibitions, but there is also a beautiful square and two theaters, so you can easily spend a whole afternoon here. In the theaters there are often presentations linked to the exhibitions and also film shows.

If you want to know about the history of the Oscars and Hollywood in general, this is the place. There is a separate space called the Oscars® Experience where, to get in, you have to buy a separate ticket, but if you are a fan of these awards, you should not miss it. The location is phenomenal due to the fact that it is situated in the museum mile of Los Angeles and the entrance costs around 25 euros.

Practical information

• Location: 6067 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California
• Price: about 25 euros general admission, 15 euros reduced admission for university students and about 20 euros for seniors over 62. Minors are free.
• Hours: Sunday to Thursday from 10 am to 6 pm. Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Did you think the only Natural History Museum in the United States was the one in New York City? That's because you haven't seen the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, which has a fantastic history, as it was the first museum in the city, having opened in 1913. Its building is very classic and at the entrance you will see a huge whale skeleton that will dazzle you.

If you are looking for activities to do with kids in Los Angeles, there is no doubt that this is the place. Here you will be able to see many dinosaur skeletons and extinct mammals, as well as different temporary and permanent exhibits dedicated to the natural history of the West Coast of the United States. This is accompanied by some really amazing gardens where you can stroll and relax.

This museum is located in Exposition Park, so you can reach it using the Expo Park/USC or Expo/Vermont metro station. Hours usually run from 9:30 am to 5 pm and the general admission cost is about 15 euros for adults.

Practical information

• Location: Exposition Park, Los Angeles, California
• Price: about 15 euros admission for adults, 12 euros reduced admission for seniors and students and about 7 euros for children between 3 and 12 years old. Children under 3 years old are free. There are free entrance hours to the museum, but it depends on the type of customer.
• Hours: from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The west coast of the United States is a place that until the nineteenth century was very sparsely populated and most of its population were immigrants. Many of them were African Americans who found in California a place free of slavery and with opportunities for the future. Some of this history is chronicled in the California African American History Museum, also located in Exposition Park in Los Angeles.

This museum is great because it is not too big and you can walk through it in a couple of hours. Most of the space is taken up by temporary exhibits that are under permanent renovation, so every visit to the museum will be a unique opportunity. The range of exhibits varies between telling the African origin of African Americans, but also all the achievements of black artists in the western United States. Best of all, admission to the museum is completely free.

Practical Information

• Location: Exposition Park, Los Angeles, California
• Price: free admission
• Hours: 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Every city has several symbols. In Los Angeles, Venice Beach is one of them, but there is one sculpture that has gained renown in recent years and where hundreds of thousands of tourists have had their pictures taken: Chris Burden's Urban Light sculpture, composed of old and restored streetlights. This fantastic sculpture is at the entrance of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) and visiting it is one of the things you must do in Los Angeles at night.

This museum is mainly dedicated to contemporary art, but with a lot of historical focus. It usually features temporary exhibitions of classic American artists and many newer ones. But also in this museum you can learn a lot about the past of both Hispanic America and the United States. It is a multi-themed museum that is expanding, so it will not stop growing.

Practical Information

• Location: 5905 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, 90036
• Price: about $25 admission for adults not residing in the county. Seniors 65 and older and students can have admission at about 21 €. Tickets for people from 3 to 17 years old cost around 10 € and children under 3 years old are free.
• Hours: 11 am to 6 pm on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. From 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Fridays and from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Closed on Wednesdays.

One of the best science centers in the United States is within your reach in Exposition Park the next time you go to Los Angeles: the California Science Center, which until 1998 was known as the California Museum of Science and Industry, but today it is much more than that. This museum is perfect to take the kids to get closer to science and also to space.

I say space because the California Science Center is home to the space shuttle Endeavour. It is really incredible how imposing this spacecraft is, how big it is and how it works. Just to see it is worth the visit. Besides, the museum also has a module of the Apollo-Soyuz mission and other fantastic space capsules.

But don't stop there, because there are many temporary and permanent exhibitions, many of them focused on biology. That's because the California Science Center has ten ecosystems: galleries illustrating different types of habitats, such as the Kelp Forest, islands, deserts, poles, rivers and even the city of Los Angeles. It's worth a tour, and the best part is that the permanent exhibits are free.

Practical Information

• Location: Exposition Park, Los Angeles, California
• Price: free for permanent exhibitions. Temporary ones can range from 20 €. IMAX shows and simulator tours are also charged additionally, although costs vary.
• Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Traveller Tip
There are some space simulators that require additional admission. If you love the idea, don't miss the opportunity, but remember that there may be sudden movements.

You're in Los Angeles, one of the greatest cities in the world, how about checking out a predominantly local museum? That's the Hammer Museum which is affiliated with the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and focuses primarily on local and California state artists, with a lot of contemporary art, photography and conceptual art in design. This museum is so named because it was founded by oil tycoon Armand Hammer.

Unlike other museums, the Hammer is more of a gallery, because, although it maintains permanent collections, most of the space is occupied by traveling collections. It is also a cultural center, where you can attend all kinds of artistic activities, such as openings, performances or recitals. Today, this museum is one of the alternative centers of Los Angeles and a favorite place for emerging art that can be enjoyed free of charge.

Practical Information

• Location: 10899 Wilshire Boulevard Los Angeles, 90024; on the UCLA campus.
• Price: Admission to all exhibitions is free of charge.
• Hours: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Closed Mondays

The history of California could not be understood without Japanese emigration. For generations, the Japanese and their descendants have built California and endowed it with a strong Asian influence on the West Coast of the United States. Exalting and recognizing the contribution of Japanese Americans is the work of the Japanese American National Museum; a beautiful place to visit on your next visit to Los Angeles.

Although the Japanese have contributed much, they have also been victims of much suffering in the United States and therefore much of its exhibits focus on the restrictions on their freedom they had in internment camps in World War II or the racial discrimination they have faced.

But this museum also has a lot of cultural, and even deal with the current relationship between the United States and Japan. Topics such as anime, food or the restoration of ceramics are frequent, so history and the present are at your disposal.

Practical information

• Location: 100 North Central Avenue, Los Angeles, 90012.
• Price: about 15 € for adults and 7 € for students and seniors over 62. Children under 5 are free. Certain traveling exhibitions may require additional admission.
• Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. (last admission: 4 p.m.). Thursdays from 12 noon to 8 p.m. (last admission: 7 p.m.). Closed on Mondays.

Although the United States seems like a country that has always existed, the truth is that the entire western part of the country was conquered and absorbed only in the 19th century, unlike much of the East Coast and Latin America. For that reason, many of its migrants and native peoples have been forgotten. The Autry Museum of the American West is the ideal place for you to learn about the western half of the United States, its history and present.

Located in Griffith Park, this museum was born as an initiative of cowboy singer Gene Autry, one of the greatest stars of country and western aesthetics in the country. The museum maintains a good part of Autry's collection, but it has also been dedicated to recognizing the different Indian tribes that inhabited the area and even the Spanish past. The Autry Museum also owns the Southwest Museum of the American Indian, located eight miles from Griffith Park and devoted entirely to the Native American West.

Practical Information

• Location: 4700 Western Heritage Way Los Angeles, 90027-1462 in Griffith Park. The Southwest Museum of the American Indian is located at 234 Museum Drive, Los Angeles, 90065-5030.

• Price: about $14 for adults and approximately $10 for students and seniors 62 and older. Children between 3 and 12 years old have a ticket that costs about 6 €. Children under two years old, active military and veterans are free.

• Hours: from 10 am to 4 pm from Tuesday to Friday. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Closed on Mondays.

Throughout the city, the museum of reference is the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), an institution that has at least three locations, the most important of which is on Grand Avenue, located in Downtown Los Angeles.

The most important is on Grand Avenue, located in Downtown L.A. This museum houses more than 5,000 works of art since its creation in 1940 and was very prominent especially in the post-war period, when different artistic tendencies resurfaced in California.

Here you can see a little bit of everything, always within 20th century artists: from abstract paintings like Jackson Pollock's to emerging local artists from all over the city. The Grand Avenue location has a strong emphasis on permanent exhibitions, so when you go you'll be able to meet the greats of contemporary California art.

Practical Information

• Location: 100 North Central Avenue, Los Angeles, 90012.

• Price: about 15 € for adults and 7 € for students and seniors over 62. Children under 5 are free. Certain traveling exhibitions may require additional admission.

• Hours: Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 11 am to 5 pm. Saturday and Sunday from 11 am to 6 pm. Monday and Tuesday closed.

Since 1996, the Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) has been the most renowned art institution in Los Angeles for the influence of Latin American countries, particularly Mexico.

Incredible as it may seem, it is the only museum of its kind in the entire United States, so it is well worth a visit. It is located in Long Beach, so you're sure to pass by it on one of the tours you take on a tour bus around Los Angeles.

But that's not the only modern thing about this space, because everything is quite avant-garde. Generally, the museum has traveling exhibitions of Latin American artists in the United States, but they also have collections dedicated to each Latin American country. In addition, it is a great place to celebrate different cultural manifestations, particularly the Mexican ones that are deeply rooted in California. Don't leave it out of your agenda.

Practical Information

• Location: 628 Alamitos Avenue, Long Beach, 90802

• Price: about 15 ¤ for adults and 10 ¤ for students and senior citizens. Children under 12 years old have free admission.

• Hours: Wednesday to Sunday from 11 am to 5 pm. Mondays and Tuesdays are closed