La Brea Tar Pits Museum Is The Most Unique Museum In Los Angeles
March 22, 2024
La Brea Tar Pits Museum: Where Prehistoric Excitement Come to Life
On a 2023 trip to Los Angeles, I set aside time to visit the La Brea Tar Pits Museum. This is the most interesting museum I’ve ever visited and is an LA landmark. There are fossils of ancient creatures bubbling up through the asphalt in the ground. In fact, cones or small fences mark random areas on the property. Inside the building are thousands of beautiful fossils and exhibits. Everywhere I looked, I learned more about the fossils and the “tar” or asphalt bubbling to the surface.
The tar pits museum, not designed as a museum campus, sits beside LACMA, the Academy Museum, and Petersen Automotive Museum. In 2025, I returned and spent the day visiting several world-class L.A. museums.
Visitors step through the museum’s doors. They are instantly immersed in a time when mammoths roamed the earth. Saber-toothed cats prowled the lands. The museum’s exhibits bring to life the stories of prehistoric creatures trapped in the tar pits, perfectly preserved for millennia. The smell of this tar, or asphalt, permeates the museum grounds.
Highlights Of La Brea Tar Pits
One of the highlights of the La Brea Tar Pits is its interactive displays that let visitors like me explore science and history. The museum’s centerpiece is the Fossil Lab, where scientists clean and study recovered specimens. Although no one was working, visitors could still see where these experts uncover the secrets of our ancient past. The exhibits also explore the Ice Age, a period that shaped Los Angeles’s landscape forever.
I really enjoyed walking around the property and seeing the actual tar pits that were being excavated. I stood there knowing that ancient creatures stood exactly where I was standing. It was hard to believe
Education
In addition to the exhibits, the museum hosts educational programs, lectures, and workshops. I didn’t have any time to do the educational stuff this time. No visit to the museum is complete without exploring the surrounding park, my favorite part. The Miracle Mile is dotted with life-sized replicas of prehistoric creatures, giving visitors a taste of what it felt like to live alongside these magnificent beasts. The weird thing is that surrounding the museum is nothing but buildings and businesses.
For another cool attraction in downtown L.A., check out the observation deck at L.A. City Hall. For a more sports-related attraction, check out SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.
