Griffith Observatory Review & Guide

Griffith Observatory is a planetarium & astronomy museum, one of the best free things to do in Los Angeles, California. It’s also great for hikes with excellent panoramic views of the Hollywood Sign, Downtown L.A., and Pacific Ocean on clear days. This offers a review, photos, tips for visiting and everything you need to know. (Updated March 14, 2024.)

Griffith Observatory is generally open Tuesday-Sunday, from noon to 10 p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekends. During peak season, Griffith Observatory can be very busy, resulting in visitor capacity control measures to enter the building during the most crowded times that might result in a line to enter of 5-15 minutes.

The exterior grounds, terraces, and sidewalks around Griffith Observatory are open every day. The greater area of Griffith Park is open daily from 5:00 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. This makes it great for a sunrise hike, which can allow you to snag a parking spot before the morning rush and beat traffic crowds. Speaking of which, there’s limited parking near the Observatory. Road closures are likely when traffic becomes congested. See below for more details.

Griffith Park is a popular spot for a variety of reasons, and the Observatory is chief among those. If you’re looking for other ways of rounding out your visit to Griffith Park if you choose to visit on a weekday when the interior of the building is closed, we also highly recommend the Los Angeles Zoo. Another under the radar pick, albeit a taste-specific one, is the Autry Museum of the American West.

Suffice to say, there’s a lot to do in Griffith Park, and the observatory exhibits are just one of the draws. We love it so much that it’s one of the places to visit on our 1-Day Los Angeles Highlights Itinerary. In fact, Griffith Observatory isn’t just a highlight, it’s our #1 recommendation on our Top 10 Things to Do in Los Angeles. It’s one of a handful of quintessential experiences everyone should have while visiting Southern California.

Of course, there’s one main reason everyone goes to visit Griffith Observatory. You know what I’m talking about: Terminator. Obviously, when you visit California, you’re going to want to tour the Terminator filming locations.

The obvious highlights on that fun-filled itinerary are the 1990s mall where John Connor plays arcade games, the Los Angeles River basin, and the random alley where naked Terminator appeared. Now, I’m not going to pretend that it’s as exciting as some random alley, but Griffith Observatory is pretty awesome.

Kidding, of course. Well, sorta. The Terminator series is just one of many that’s filmed at Griffith Observatory. The Rocketeer, Gangster Squad, Yes Man, and Transformers all filmed at Griffith Observatory. More recently, Oscar nominee La La Land had a couple of sequences at Griffith Observatory, including inside the planetarium.

The most notable movie to film at Griffith Observatory is probably Rebel Without a Cause, with both the inside and outside being featured fairly prominently. As such, there’s a James Dean bust memorializing the Observatory’s depiction in film. If you’re familiar with any of these movies, it’s cool to visit an iconic location from them.

Of course, Griffith Observatory’s cultural significance and history goes well beyond the movies that have used it as a filming location. In the late 1800s, baron and Bond-villain name candidate Griffith J. Griffith donated 3,015 acres to Los Angeles to create what is known today as Griffith Park, which is a sprawling public park that is home to Griffith Observatory.

The baron donated an additional $100,000 for the construction of the observatory, and a public works program allowed the original construction of Griffith Observatory to be quite lavish, and much of the artwork and original Art Deco style of the building survives today, even after a $93 million renovation in the mid-2000s.

Griffith Observatory was built to make astronomy accessible to the public, and compete with some of the best mountaintop observatories already existing along the West Coast. Inside the exhibit area of Griffith Observatory today, you can see comparisons to some of these observatories today.

Part of me wonders if Griffith Observatory is still competitive on the astronomy front given all of the light pollution (and regular pollution) from modern-day Los Angeles that must impact it. You can still see a ton of stars at Griffith Observatory on a clear night, but I wonder how it compares with observatories in more remote locations.

When you visit Griffith Park and Observatory, plan to park in one of the lower lots just after you enter Griffith Park in Los Feliz. Parking in the main lot in front of the Observatory, as well as West and East Observatory roads, and Western Canyon Road each charge for parking.

Parking is still free before noon or after 10 p.m., which is great for those doing sunrise hikes or late nights in Griffith Park, but this change to paid parking was–unfortunately–necessary. During busy times, congestion can bring traffic to a standstill, as people wait for parking spots to free up. The lower lots offer free parking and a convenient shuttle.

If you are able to walk up to a mile up hill, you can park for free in the area around the Greek Theatre. Parking in the Greek Theatre area is NOT available after 1:00 p.m. on concert evenings. Check the Greek Theatre concert schedule before you visit.

Even if you only plan to be up at Griffith Observatory for an hour or two and don’t care about the money, we recommend using the free lower lots. Lazy people will be driving around the main parking area waiting for people to leave, but you are far better off just parking and walking, as traffic backs up waiting for the main parking area (and on weekends police will be there directing traffic).

Angelenos are used to waiting in traffic, but if you’re impatient like me, you won’t want to mess with this. Fortunately, Griffith Observatory is free to the general public–including the cool exhibits on the inside–which can take some of the sting out of paying for parking if you do go that route.

Thanks to the recent $93 million refurbishment, the exhibits themselves are modern and illuminating, providing bite-size pieces of information view graphics throughout the main hall that are supplemented with interactive displays and other captivating items.

Nothing is especially deep or probing in the first floor area, but it’s all pretty cool, and a fun way to learn about some of the basics of astronomy. What’s doubly nice about this area is that it’s all free. I’d recommend setting aside about an hour to explore the interior exhibits, maybe only 30 minutes if you just want to breeze through.

The first thing to do upon arrival is to check the times for the Tesla Coil demonstration, as it is awesome. When asked why an observatory has a Tesla coil, the employee operating the coil said: “Because we were offered one, and when you are offered something cool like a Tesla coil, you don’t turn it down.” Fair enough!

There’s a cafe at the Observatory, but I recommend eating before or after your visit, as the food there looked overpriced and very basic. Definitely not the best you can do for a meal in Los Angeles. The gift shop is marginally better, with some Griffith Observatory logo items, but mostly generic, overpriced items you could find much cheaper online.

The exhibits focused on actual astronomy are significant, but the art of Griffith Observatory is just as key. The rotunda’s ceiling is the highlight, featuring original art by Hugo Ballin illustrating what humans once made of the sky and its mythos.

Below that rotunda is the Foucault pendulum, which is a huge, strung ball that was conceived as an experiment to demonstrate the rotation of the earth.

Below the rotunda are eight murals portraying scientific advances that led to greater enlightenment through the work of metallurgists, engineers, and mathematicians over the course of time. This art showcases a classical depiction of an anthropocentrist universe.

Rounding out the free slate of attractions and activities inside Griffith Observatory is the Leonard Nimoy Event Horizon, which offers hourly programming. This includes the 24-minute film, The Once and Future Griffith Observatory.

On the first Friday of each month, you can watch the live astronomy update program, All Space Considered. This lecture is free to the public at 7:30 p.m., with first-come seating. We recommend arriving early for these lectures, as people do line up to get inside (and no reserved seating is available).

In terms of paid programming, Griffith Observatory has the Samuel Oschin Planetarium theater. This is billed as “the finest planetarium in the world” thanks to its state of the art Zeiss star projector, digital projection system, aluminum dome, and theatrical lighting.

There are three different shows in the planetarium–Centered in the Universe, Water Is Life, and Light of the Valkyries–herewhich have a rotating schedule that can be found . Tickets range in price from $3 to $7. If you have the time, it’s worth seeing one of these shows in the Samuel Oschin Planetarium.

Outside the building, the views from Griffith Observatory are the other main draw. If you want a great view of the Hollywood sign and Los Angeles, this is a good spot.

For a closer view, you can actually hike to the Hollywood Sign from Griffith Observatory. Charlie Turner Trailhead is the starting point for most of these, including other hikes that lead to the Dante’s View summit of Mount Hollywood. These hikes vary in difficulty, but most offer beautiful views of Los Angeles and Santa Monica. Some also offer views into the Valley, including the studios in Burbank and Glendale.

The Hollywood Sign hike is definitely the most popular. While there are a number of routes starting from other locations, if you search Google Maps for “Hollywood Sign,” it’ll direct you to Griffith Park.

If you are considering the Hollywood Sign hike from Griffith Observatory, note that the hike takes you behind the Hollywood Sign, and not in front of it. We highly recommend this hike, and have more info about the different routes in our Tips for Hiking to the Hollywood Sign post.

Fortunately, even if you have no desire to hike, you can see plenty from the deck of Griffith Observatory. In addition to the Hollywood sign and Los Angeles skyline, you can see other surrounding cities on a clear day. I highly recommend arriving to Griffith Observatory about an hour before sunset unless you intend upon seeing one of the paid exhibits currently showing at Griffith Observatory.

You will want to visit on a weekday, if possible, as weekend crowds at sunset are insane. Midday in the week is the least crowded time, but why on earth would you want to visit an observatory during the middle of the day?!

This way, you can park and get up to the Observatory in time to watch the sunset, then head into the Observatory to check out some of the exhibits, then head back outside to see the skyline lit up at night, as well as the stars of the night sky above. Where else in Los Angeles are you going to see stars at night? (Celestial stars, not Hollywood ones.)

Since you will be able to see stars on a clear night, if you’re not used to seeing night skies (city slickers!) I recommend downloading a star gazing app before your visit to get more out of the experience.

Griffith Observatory can get busy in the late afternoon, especially on weekends or during astronomical events, but there is a ton of room on the viewing decks, and multiple levels.

The inside doesn’t have quite as much room, but it seems to clear out pretty well later in the evening.

There are viewing stations (some of which work, some don’t) so you can look into the city. That’s definitely neat to have, but I’d also recommend packing your telephoto lens–many of my photos in this post were shot at or around 200mm.

Another cool thing: depending upon when you visit, you might find amateur astronomers setting up telescopes on the lawn in front of the Observatory to gaze into the sky. Griffith Observatory usually holds public viewings for major events–there’s one for the partial solar eclipse!

One time when we visited, there were 5 such amateurs there with telescopes, all of whom were happily allowing other guests at the observatory to look through their telescopes. Your mileage may vary on this, but I thought it was pretty cool to see random strangers so happily sharing their hobby with others. Other days, we’ve gone early in the morning for sunrise and found athletic clubs having makeshift meetings on the lawn. Since it’s a prized park for Angelenos, you’ll find Griffith Park is just as much a hangout spot for locals as it is a tourist destination. (And in our experience, the people at Griffith Park and Observatory are incredibly friendly.)

Overall, I can’t say enough positive things about Griffith Observatory. Out of the places I’ve visited in Southern California, it’s one of my favorites, and absolutely belongs on any itinerary to Los Angeles, regardless of how much time you have in the city. It’s an understatement to think of it merely as an observatory, because it really brings so much more to the table than that, from its art and architecture to the stunning views to its cultural significance in Hollywood.

In a city where you can spend a lot of money, it’s principal offerings are all free, which is another huge plus. The exhibits mostly take the accessible approach of a children’s science museum, but there is enough of substance in them to make them appealing to adults, as well. With the variety of exhibits, plus the great view, and interesting walking trails, Griffith Observatory is high on our list of things to do in Southern California.

If you’re planning a trip, check out our Ultimate Guide to Los Angeles or our California category of posts. For even more things to do, The Best Things to Do in Los Angeles: 1001 Ideas is an exceptional resource, which is written by other locals. If you enjoyed this post, help spread the word by sharing it via social media. Thanks for reading!

Your Thoughts…

Have you been to Griffith Observatory? What do you think of it? Do you consider Griffith Observatory–and Griffith Park as a whole–to be one of the best things to do in Los Angeles? Any tips of your own to add regarding things to do at Griffith Observatory? Share your thoughts on this or anything else, or questions you have in the comments!

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