La Brea Tar Pits

Crude oil rises along a fault beneath this part of Los Angeles, and as its lighter parts evaporate at the surface, what is left is a heavy, sticky asphalt. In warm weather it softens into pools that are easy to walk into and nearly impossible to escape.

A large plant-eater caught in the asphalt would draw predators, which then became stuck as well, which is why the site holds so many meat-eaters. Only a small amount of asphalt is needed to trap even a big animal, and the same slow burial that killed them also protected their bones for the ages.

The fossils recovered here map out the animals that lived around Los Angeles during the last Ice Age: mammoths and mastodons, ground sloths, ancient bison and horses, and predators like the saber-toothed cat, which is the California state fossil, and the dire wolf.

The dire wolf is the site's most famous resident. Hundreds of their skulls have come out of the asphalt, and a wall of them at the museum is one of the most striking displays in any natural history collection. The pits have also yielded countless smaller creatures, from birds and insects to plants and pollen, that together reconstruct a whole lost world.

The Tar Pits are not a finished dig. Paleontologists continue to excavate deposits on the grounds, and a glass-walled lab lets visitors watch scientists clean, identify, and catalog fossils that came out of the asphalt.

One find, a partial mammoth skeleton nicknamed Zed, was uncovered during nearby construction and moved here for study, a reminder that the fossil beds extend far beyond the fenced pits and under the surrounding neighborhood.

The pits sit in Hancock Park, a shady green square in one of Los Angeles's densest districts. The land was once part of a Mexican-era ranch and later an oil field before the fossil riches were recognized and the site was donated for preservation.

The block has become one of the city's great cultural clusters. The Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures are next door, and the Grove and the historic Farmers Market are a short walk away, so the Tar Pits fold easily into a full day in the city.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is a place we chose through independent editorial review, never a paid placement.

The La Brea Tar Pits, in the heart of Los Angeles's Miracle Mile district, are a world-famous Ice Age fossil site where natural asphalt, or tar, has bubbled up for tens of thousands of years, trapping and preserving prehistoric animals. One of the richest fossil deposits on Earth, the pits have yielded countless remains of mammoths, mastodons, saber-toothed cats, dire wolves, and more. With an on-site museum displaying the fossils, active excavation, and bubbling tar pits right in a city park, the La Brea Tar Pits offer a fascinating and unique window into prehistoric California.

You can view the bubbling tar pits in the surrounding park, including a large lake pit with life-size mammoth models, tour the on-site museum displaying thousands of Ice Age fossils, from towering mammoth and mastodon skeletons to saber-toothed cats and dire wolves, watch paleontologists at work in the fossil lab, and see ongoing excavations. Interactive exhibits explain how the animals were trapped and preserved. With its real tar pits, spectacular fossils, and active science, the site offers an engaging and educational experience for all ages right in the city.

Yes, the La Brea Tar Pits are a wonderful, engaging destination for children, who are captivated by the giant Ice Age fossils like mammoths and saber-toothed cats, the bubbling tar pits with their mammoth models, and the chance to watch scientists cleaning fossils in the lab. Interactive and hands-on exhibits make learning fun. The combination of real prehistoric creatures, active science, and the fascinating tar pits sparks curiosity and imagination. It is an entertaining and educational outing that appeals to kids and adults alike in the middle of Los Angeles.

As a museum with an outdoor park, the tar pits are enjoyable year-round in LA's mild climate, with the indoor museum comfortable in any weather and the surrounding park pleasant on clear days. Weekdays and mornings tend to be less crowded than weekends. Checking current hours and any special programs or tours before you go helps you plan. Allowing a couple of hours lets you enjoy both the museum and the outdoor pits. The consistently mild weather means almost any time is good for a visit.

The La Brea Tar Pits are in the Miracle Mile district of Los Angeles, right next to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and near other Museum Row attractions, with the shopping and dining of the Fairfax and Beverly Hills areas nearby and Hollywood a short drive away. That makes the La Brea Tar Pits an easy cultural stop to combine with the neighboring art museum, Museum Row, and the many other attractions of central Los Angeles on a Southern California visit.