California Science Center

The California Science Center in Los Angeles is a large, free science museum whose star exhibit is genuinely once-in-a-lifetime: the Space Shuttle Endeavour, a real flown orbiter you can stand beneath and marvel at up close (it's being reassembled into a full launch-stack display with its external tank and boosters). Beyond the shuttle, hands-on galleries cover ecosystems, the human body, physics, and air-and-space, and there's a kelp-forest aquarium tank and an IMAX theatre.

It's one of LA's best family attractions and remarkable value, general admission is free, with only special exhibitions, the Endeavour timed entry at busy times, and the IMAX charging. Set in Exposition Park alongside other museums and the Coliseum, it's an easy, rewarding half-day for all ages.

Don't miss

• Space Shuttle Endeavour, a real flown orbiter
• Free general admission
• Hands-on ecosystems and human-body galleries
• The kelp-forest aquarium tank
• The IMAX theatre

Tickets & tours

Ways to visit California Science Center

Cheapest way inCalifornia Academy of Sciences NightLife Admission Ticket4.3★ · 50 travelers~4 hoursFree cancellationFrom$26 per personSee dates →Best full dayFull-Day Iconic Sights of LA, Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Beaches and More4.9★ · 6,485 travelers~8 hoursFree cancellationFrom$99 per personSee dates →Private & flexibleLos Angeles: Private Transfer to/from Los Angeles LAX Airport4.4★ · 33 travelers~0 hoursFree cancellationFrom$36 per personSee dates →

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How travelers rate it

Know before you go

• General admission is free, only IMAX, special exhibitions, and parking cost money.
• Reserve a timed Endeavour slot in advance at busy periods.
• It's in Exposition Park with other museums, easy to combine.
• The shuttle is being moved into a full vertical launch-stack display, check the current setup.

A bit of history

The California Science Center opened in its current form in 1998 (succeeding an older museum on the site). In 2012 it became the permanent home of Space Shuttle Endeavour, retired by NASA, which was transported through LA streets in a famous public spectacle.