The LA Arboretum free day has ended. However, there are still a few opportunities to visit for free. Golden State Advantage and EBT, cardholders get up to two adults and four children under the age of 18 free daytime admissions. All that you need to do is present your Golden State Advantage Card along with a California ID with a matching name at the entrance. There is a Summer Beat Program for teens and youth, which gives 13 years to 18-year-olds with a valid student ID free summer admission. And children under 2 are free!
This post contains affiliate links. That means if you click on a link and buy something, I will earn a small commission from the advertiser at no additional cost to you.
My first visit here was for a Beach Boys concert a few years ago. This is such a fun place to see a concert, so if you’re in the area, be sure to check out the music schedule for the summer. The only bummer about that concert is that I wasn’t able to explore.
The arboretum and botanical gardens are the perfect places to come and enjoy nature. This is such a fantastic place to walk around. It was much bigger than I thought, which was a nice surprise. I immediately saw several peacocks. They were really loud, which freaked me out a bit when I could hear them but couldn’t see them. However, they were harmless and really fun to look at.
Even though I enjoyed exploring the various areas of the arboretum and botanical gardens, I was really excited to see the places that have been seen in movies and TV shows. Various areas have been used as filming locations on and off since 1936. Two of the Jurassic Park movies filmed scenes here, and the house pictured below was used in Fantasy Island and Murder, She Wrote.
The Queen Anne cottage is a California historical landmark and a beautiful building. I can see why it has been used as a filming location. A few years ago, they started giving tours of the inside of the cottage, so you might want to ask when you arrive if tours are being offered while you are there. This must be one of the most popular places to see at the Arboretum because it was one of the few places where I saw other people.
The next time that I’m here, I want to check out the Santa Anita Depot, which has some railroad memorabilia and has been used as a filming location. I wanted to save a few things for when I come back with my family or friends.
