This historic seaside amusement park with a nostalgic beach boardwalk/midway vibe located in the Mission Bay area of sunny San Diego saw its debut in 1925; two of its original rides continue to operate: the Giant Dipper, a classic wooden roller coaster and “The Plunge,” Southern California’s largest indoor swimming pool that actually contained salt water back in the day! Modern attractions Flow Rider and Flow Barrel recreate totally awesome surfing conditions; Sky Climb, a 30 foot rock wall course encourages climbers of all abilities to stretch their limbs and test their skills. Take the Vertical Plunge, conquer the Control Freak and customize your own dizzying “spin” on Octotron; classic amusements like the Libery Carousel, Tilt-a-Whirl and Speedway Bumper Cars tickle your taste for retro fun! Tiki Town Adventure Golf invites the pros among you to hone their skills; Sky Ropes – a swinging obstacle course challenge through the tops of towering palm trees is definitely not for the shrinking violet. The better-than-ever arcade invites you to get your game on while familiar midway challenges with all the traditional trappings taunt you to step right up and test your skills. Plenty of good ol’ amusement park fare-fresh-squeezed lemonade and killer corndogs, the best funnel cakes around, hand-dipped caramel apples and homemade fudge, succulent rooftop sushi and quintessentially classic café and grill menus ensure your gregarious group on Southern California excursion a well-fueled Belmont Park playdate!

While your adult group is in Los Angeles, you should check out the world-renowned Warner Bros. Studio. Visitors can take a tour of the location as part of the experience. You can also see fascinating exhibits on display. The company is a global leader in the creation, production, distribution, licensing and marketing of all forms of creative content. You and your group mates can enjoy the Deluxe Tour which is popular and entertaining. In the course of the tour, visitors will check out the museum which has Batman’s original costume, as well as props and artwork. You will also have the opportunity to venture into the craft shops which is where artisans design sets, props, and costumes. Guests will visit real working productions where you can talk to individuals in the crew and get an up close and personal look at how movies are made. The tour is five hours long. The Deluxe Tour also includes a lunch in the Studio Commissary with some of the stars. The Studio History Tour is informative and a fun experience for the adult group to enjoy. Group members will learn about some of the memorable moments that have happened in Warner Bros. history. You will have the chance to see various areas of the studio which include the Warner Bros. lot, stage 16, and the Warner Bros. Studio facilities. Stage 16 is known to be the tallest stage in the world. The studio has the largest collection of period and contemporary costumes. The lot is 110 acres and it has been transformed into a jungle or a bustling metropolitan area.

When your adult group takes a trip to Los Angeles, you should consider visiting the Paley Center for Media which was formerly known as the Museum of Television and Radio. Group members will see a fascinating collection of artifacts related to television and other media. They also offer educational programs for the team to experience. Visitors of all ages will enjoy visiting this popular attraction. There are several exhibits at the Paley Center for Media for the group to examine. You will find exhibitions which include Television Out of the Box, JFK Assassination and TV: Lesser-Known Facts and Thoughts, The 9/11 Special Collection, The Live Coverage of the March on Washington, and Nick ‘90s: All That, and More, for the Children of the Nineties. The 9/11 Special Collection contains 1000 hours of coverage from broadcasters all over the world. There are 50 countries represented by this collection which includes locations such as Cuba, China, Iran, Australia and the only HD report of the event that was captured on Japanese Television. Television Out of the Box is an entertaining multi-media exhibit at the museum. At the exhibit, group members can check out highlights from various shows such as the Bugs Bunny Show, The Big Bang Theory, The Closer, and the Mentalist. Guests will find costumes, props, photos, set pieces, and video clips that are part of the exhibition. The museum has a research room where your group can listen to television and radio shows for research and entertainment. There are staff members available to assist the adult group as needed. Group members will also have access to the museum’s extensive library database.

Situated within what was once the Mexican Land Grant of Rancho La Brea, and now part of Urban Los Angeles in the Miracle Mile District, the La Brea Tar Pits and C. George Page Museum in Hancock Park are a fascinating detour from the standard tourist fare and fascinating attractions that should find their way to every closet Paleontologist’s must-see agenda. Surely you’ve heard of them somewhere in your studies, years ago perhaps…3rd grade, maybe? In all likelihood you’ve stepped in viscous, hot tar on a scorching Summer’s day and been frustrated by its persistence on your shoe. Imagine, if you will, a hungry pack of fearless Dire Wolves tearing through the grasslands, hot on the trail of a single, startled young deer…racing to flank their intended prey, a favorite feast on the night’s menu. Now…they pull up short, when the Alpha male nearly vanishes from view; a second wolf stumbles face first into the muck and flailing, starts to sink; fierce growls and blood-chilling howls turned to panicked staccato barks and a few terrified screams as the wolves struggle and slip rather quickly beneath the surface of the stick and leaf covered dark pool. The intended prey escapes; the rest of the pack backs slowly away from the bubbling pit ahead but quickly meet the same demise a few yards away from the mysterious blackness that devoured the first two hunters. And so it went. Today, as the ever-changing La Brea Tar Pits are excavated, similar stories are imagined in the minds of Paleontologists and their fervent volunteers mining the asphalt pits of their victims, and retold time and again through careful reconstructions of these fine specimens displayed at Page Museum.

Exploring America > U.S. Cities > Los Angeles Tours

Site of one of the most complete coastal defense batteries in the U.S.

While your adult group is in Los Angeles, you should spend some time at the California Science Center. The team can see interesting exhibits, participate in educational programs, and watch a film in the IMAX Theater. The location is a fun attraction for you to learn about science. The exhibitions at the California Science Center are informative and interactive. You will have hands-on experiences at the different galleries. Participants will find galleries such as the Ecosystems Gallery, the Creative World Gallery, the World of Life Gallery, and Air and Space Exhibits. The Ecosystems Gallery consists of eight zones that represent different environments. Guests will find zones such as the Extreme Exhibits Zone, the Forest Zone, the River Zone, and the Island Zone. In the Forest Zone, group members can explore the kelp forest and also learn about the various life forms in an ecosystem. In the World of Life Gallery, members of the group will have the opportunity to examine how people, plants, animals, and the tiniest cells all perform the same processes in order to survive. The group can enjoy live shows and presentations as part of the experience. There is a series of shows known as Science Spectacular. The presentations are 15-20 minutes long. They cover various scientific topics. Visitors will learn about topics such as chemical reactions, kelp forest biology, and nanoscience. There are programs and activities that can be customized to fit your group’s specific scientific desire. Visitors of all ages will enjoy this fun scientific museum.

The galleries explore broad themes relating to the history and diverse cultures of the American West.

As you plan for your adult group to visit the Los Angeles area, you should stop by and check out the magnificent Malibu Pier which is a Southern California icon. The area was formerly known as the Riviera of America. There are a variety of restaurants that serve delectable seaside dishes. Group members can also participate in entertaining activities as part of the experience. Visitors of all ages are sure to enjoy having fun in the sun and eating quality cuisine. There are a variety of activities offered at the pier. Your adult group can enjoy the breathtaking views of the coast on a Coastal Harbor Boat Tour. If you like to fish, you can go deep sea fishing or Sport Fishing. Visitors can also enjoy Whale Watching or spend some time on the beach riding the waves. The Malibu Pier Whale Watching Company offers ocean adventures to groups of all sizes. Whale migration takes place from December until the end of March. During the experience, Group members will have the opportunity to see interesting wildlife such as grey whales, dolphins, California sea lions, cormorants, California brown pelicans, and other marine wildlife. The tours are led by California State Park Rangers. Your adult group may want to take a Coastal Boat Tour during the visit. You will climb aboard the Malibu Surfrider and leave from Malibu Pier. The tour is 90 minutes long. During the excursion, guests will view sights such as Surfrider Beach, the Historic Adamson House, Malibu State Lagoon Beach, and the Exclusive Malibu Colony. The group will enjoy the fresh air and magnificent view of the ocean during the tour.

Credit: Travis Conklin

Sprawled over the site of a sunny Buena Park berry farm once owned by founder Walter Knott and his family, this 160 acre entertainment destination with a patently Wild-Western flavor is now one of America’s most popular theme parks! What began in the 20′s as a roadside farmstand plying travelers to the area with wonderful wares-homemade jams, preserves and boysenberry pies-soon grew to include a down-home fried chicken and biscuit dinner served in a small tea house. As the Knotts flexed a healthy entrepreneurial spirit and expanded their horizons, new shops and attractions sprang up all over the property-a classic replica ghost town among them. By 1968 the family began charging eager comers admission to “Knott’s Berry Farm”-and America’s first family theme park was born! Open year-round and featuring scores of attractions including vibrantly colorful live entertainment like The Calico Saloon Show at Ghost Town, good time bluegrass with Crazy Kirk and the Hillbillies at the Birdcage Theater,  flamboyant Native American Dancers on Indian Trails, and Fool’s Gold Stunt Show at Wagon Camp, and a total of 40 mild-to-wild rides- ten roller coasters among them-a visit to Knott’s Berry Farm promises and delivers a great time for all ages and inclinations-even John Wayne, who took the inaugural seat on the Timber Mountain Log Ride’s opening day in 1969! (To this day it remains one of the most elaborate log flume attractions in the Country!) Hop aboard the Silver Bullet, brave The Ghostrider, grab your seat on The Sierra Sidewinder, scare yourselves silly on Supreme Scream or try your luck on the Timberline Twister! History buffs in your group-there are always a few-will want to travel back in time to witness the signing of the Declaration of Independence at Knott’s own Independence Hall, an indistingishable replica of the iconic historic landmark, right down to its perfectly-cracked, full-sized Liberty Bell, or watch a skilled Ghost Town wood artist painstakingly restoring the park’s unbelievable hand-carved model display of the 21 Historic California Missions. Your travel group is sure to delight in the dozens of exciting Camp, Marketplace, Village and Boardwalk dining and shopping opportunities –a veritable piñata of pleasurable possibility- in this “First American Theme Park!” An afternoon’s prospecting and playing  is sure to work up a hearty appetite; grab a killer burger at the largest Johnny Rocket’s in North America, enjoy hot, fresh pizza and ice cold beer at Hollywood Hits or dig into Mrs. Knott’s homestyle fried chicken and biscuit dinner-be sure to save room for a slab of that famous home-baked boysenberry pie!

Credit: Knott’s Berry Farm

Established on illustrious Hollywood Boulevard, in the shadow of the iconic Hollywood sign and along the legendary Walk of Fame, this longest-running wax museum in the United States debuted on busy Hollywood Boulevard February 6, 1965 in a historic building that once housed the fabled Embassy Club, host to ultra-exclusive, star-studded gatherings of Old Hollywood’s top 300 celebrities and industry executives.  Launched with entrepreneur Spoony Singh’s vision of bringing doting fans closer to their big-screen idols, the Hollywood Wax Museum, the only wax menagerie in the country to feature VIPS exclusively, has been treating star-struck travelers to dazzling Tinseltown to an extraordinary meet and mingle with their favorite heros and heroines  for the past 45 years. A visit to this renowned Hollywood attraction gets you face time with venerated icons of the silver screen, contemporary A-listers and all your television favorites–so painstakingly, glamorously and faithfully recreated you’d almost swear they were living, breathing movie stars! When you’ve gawked, posed  and snapped ‘til you can pose no more, step outside the museum for a little “real people of Hollywood” espial, then grab a legendary burger and frosty shake at neighborhood favorite Mel’s Diner or duck into Musso and Frank’s–the oldest eatery in Hollywood-for tried-and-true American/Continental fare and a classic cocktail or two! Your quintessential *Heart of Hollywood* experience is now complete!