I-5, exit Los Feliz Boulevard west . Open Summer 12.30-10pm daily. On clear nights when the city sparkles below, the beauty of LA's psychogeography is mind-blowing. When there are eclipses or comets to be seen, local astronomy clubs set up 'scopes on the lawn and talk shop to anyone who will listen. Don't miss the traditional Planetarium show, and leave time for the Hall of Science and a gander at the Foucault pendulum, the cosmic ray cloud chamber, the seismograph and the giant Tesla coil.
Visitors can walk through the rainforest and observe the apes through glass.
And when your visit to the more than 1,200 reptiles, birds, mammals and amphibians threatens to become too much, cool down in the eucalyptus forest environment inside the Ahmanson Koala House. If you've got kids in tow, take them to Adventure Island, specially designed for small children, where they can meet and touch animals with the Animal Encounters programme. 10am-5pm Sat, Sun. A fine outdoor museum, set up in the 1950s, with restored railroad cars from the Union Pacific, Atchison and Santa Fe lines, an early 20th-century milk delivery truck, more than a dozen steam and diesel locomotives and a nifty miniature train that gives visitors a ride around the museum grounds. All Rights Reserved.