This year, the easiest way to spend a fall day on Museum Row is to arrive late in the afternoon. LACMA lets Los Angeles County residents in free on weekdays after 3 p.m. Its Friday jazz starts at 6. The Academy Museum's Halloween party starts at 7, and the Petersen's escape night runs until 10. The D Line now stops at Wilshire/Fairfax and runs until about 12:30 a.m. Meanwhile, the daytime stop that once anchored the middle of the block has gone quiet. The Museum at La Brea Tar Pits is closed for construction.
Three changes came within about twelve weeks this spring and summer. LACMA's David Geffen Galleries opened on Sunday, April 19, 2026. Metro opened Section 1 of the D Line extension on May 8, with stations at Wilshire/La Brea, Wilshire/Fairfax and Wilshire/La Cienega. The George C. Page Museum at the Tar Pits had its last public day on July 6 and closed for about two years. Together they set the shape of this fall.
What the Tar Pits Closure Takes Off the Map
The closure is bigger than one building. The Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County is redoing the 13-acre campus under a master plan led by WEISS/MANFREDI, working with Gruen Associates and exhibition designer Kossmanndejong. The plan includes a 1-kilometer pedestrian loop, fossil labs visitors can see into, new gardens and an accessible roof terrace. As of January 2026, the museum had raised $131 million toward a $240 million campaign. Urbanize LA reported in January that the first phase would cost $234 million and was expected to finish by June 2028. NHMLAC itself says only that it expects to reopen the full campus in 2028, ahead of the Olympics.
Work is underway now. A recent NHMLAC construction update described site preparation, grading and excavation during the current stage, which the museum calls the Mammoth phase. The official phasing map says this stage runs from mid-August 2026 into early 2027. Here is what that means on the ground this fall:
- Closed: the museum building and the museum parking lot
- Temporarily closed: the Japanese Art Pavilion
- Closed for now: the Observation Pit
- Inaccessible for now: the 9/11 Memorial
- Still visible: the Lake Pit, shown outside the construction zone on the map. Project 23 excavation continues in public view, and Pit 91 has a viewing station.
Hancock Park stays open. NHMLAC says paths, lawns and outdoor features will open and close in phases as the work moves. If you want to see the fossil work up close, the Insider Tour is the only option. Scientists lead it on Fridays at 11 a.m. and Sundays at 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m., and it costs $125 per adult and $105 per child. So the casual walk to the pits and the free green space next to LACMA are smaller than usual, and that will stay true through at least early 2027. The fall programs are now inside the other museums, and many of them start late in the day.
The Calendar Leans Toward Evening
Most dates below fall on a weekend or start in the evening. Each one is a short walk from the Wilshire/Fairfax station, which Metro describes as steps from the Academy Museum, Craft Contemporary, LACMA, the Tar Pits and the Petersen.
| Date | Where | What | Cost as listed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, Oct 9, 6 p.m. | LACMA | Jazz at LACMA, Angel City Jazz Festival program | Free |
| Sat, Oct 10, noon–2 p.m. | Petersen | JDM X Street Style with Nadine Sachiko Hsu | Free |
| Tue, Oct 13 | LACMA | Second-Tuesday free general admission | Free |
| Oct 15–18 | LACMA | Third Weekends, including a Stephanie Shih conversation and a Home of the Future curator walkthrough | Varies |
| Fri, Oct 16, 6 p.m. | LACMA | Dave Tull Quartet | Free |
| Sat, Oct 17, 9 a.m.–noon | Petersen | Little Sparks: Car Costume Party | Free |
| Tue, Oct 20, 7 p.m. | LACMA | Melissa Auf der Maur and Shirley Manson in conversation | $22, $18 members |
| Fri, Oct 23, 6 p.m. | LACMA | Marina Pacowski, the last Friday jazz date listed for October | Free |
| Sat, Oct 24, from 11 a.m. | Academy Museum | Monster Mash; Horror of Dracula at 7:30 p.m. | Free with general admission |
| Fri, Oct 30, 7–10 p.m. | Petersen | Escape the Petersen | See Petersen listing |
| Sat, Oct 31, 7 p.m. | Academy Museum | Museum After Dark, 21 and over | Sold out |
The Academy Museum's exhibition The Horror Show explains why October centers on that building. It fills six themed "chambers," covering gothic, psychological, science, slasher, religion and ghost stories, with nearly 400 objects from 62 lenders and 70 film clips representing 167 movies. It runs through July 25, 2027. Monster Mash on October 24 fills most of the day. There are makeup and hair effects demonstrations from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and a vampire-blood workshop for families from 12:30 to 2:30. Monster meet-and-greets run from 1 to 5, with Horror Tours at 1:30, 2:30 and 3:30 and a dance-along from 4 to 5. The Hotel Transylvania screening is at 11 a.m., and Horror of Dracula plays at night. Visitors 17 and under get into the museum free.
Halloween night itself is already sold out. The Academy Museum's page says advance tickets for Museum After Dark are gone. The party includes after-hours access to The Horror Show from 7 to 10 p.m. and a screening of The Craft at 10. If you didn't get a ticket, the Petersen's Escape the Petersen is the night before, Friday the 30th, from 7 to 10 p.m.
November Moves Into the Galleries
The evening pattern continues after Halloween, and the new Geffen building becomes the main venue. LACMA's fall guide lists Paul R. Williams and The Idea of Home on Wednesday, November 18, at 7 p.m. A program on the lighting of the David Geffen Galleries follows on Friday the 20th, and a sound bath inside the galleries is on Saturday the 21st for $20, or $15 for members. On Monday the 23rd there is a conversation with Catherine Opie at 6 p.m., then Addams Family Values at 7:30. Each is $10, or $8 for members. November's free second Tuesday at LACMA falls on the 10th.
Across the street, Craft Contemporary changes shows on a tight schedule. tierra, Earthen Comforts: Airing Earth and Jackie Amézquita's maker residency close October 25. Three new shows open November 15: Carlos Castro Arias: Vandalismo Artesanal, Embers of Generational Memory, and a maker residency with Meztli Projects. All three run through May 9, 2027. Before the changeover there is a free, pay-what-you-wish curator talk on October 18 and a Translation in Clay workshop on October 24, priced at $20 for members and $25 for everyone else.
The Petersen's November dates are Shop Tours on the mornings of the 7th, 14th and 21st, and a STEM Night on Friday, November 13, from 6 to 8 p.m. Its exhibitions run long, so there's little pressure to go on a particular weekend. Made in America closes December 27, 2026, the earliest of the current shows. A Fast & Furious Legacy runs through April 4, 2027.
Getting There and Getting Home
Late programs and late trains go well together. Metro's opening guide said D Line trains come about every 10 minutes for most of the day on weekdays and weekends. Early mornings and late evenings drop to every 20 minutes, and service runs roughly from 4:10 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. On June 22, the Los Angeles Times reported waits of 10 to 12 minutes on several visits. It also found no easy parking near the stations for riders who don't live nearby. For someone already living in Miracle Mile, the parking problem works the other way. The Tar Pits museum lot is closed, and a train ride home after a 10 p.m. screening fits inside the service window.
The station plazas themselves don't offer much shelter. The same Times review called the surface plazas short on shade, greenery and seating. It described a dance class from a nearby studio gathering in a thin strip of shade beside the Wilshire/Fairfax station. October days are shorter, and the evening programs start around sunset, so the lack of shade matters less now than it did in June.
Eating Before the 6 O'Clock Jazz
There are more places to eat on the La Brea end of the corridor this year. Eric Greenspan opened Mish, a Jewish deli at 127 S. La Brea Ave., in early June, about a block from the La Brea station. Inside LACMA, the museum lists Erewhon at LACMA for smoothies and casual food, open every day except Wednesday. LACMA also lists a new LACMA Store in the Geffen Galleries, with a second shop in the Resnick Pavilion.
One familiar storefront saw only a short return. Johnie's Coffee Shop at 6101 Wilshire hasn't operated as a diner since 2000. From May 8 to June 14, it hosted Gary Baseman's temporary exhibition "Off the Menu" instead of reopening as a restaurant.
Here's one plan that uses this fall's setup. Arrive at LACMA after 3 p.m. on Friday, October 16, with your county ID for free entry. Walk through the Geffen Galleries, then stay for the Dave Tull Quartet at 6. Take the D Line home, which still runs well after the concert ends.
If the fall calendar has you thinking about how Museum Row fits into everyday life here, and how the subway and the Tar Pits construction will affect the next two years on this stretch of Wilshire, Paraclete Real Estate is glad to talk it through. Chris Ryder knows these blocks well and is happy to share what he sees. Book an Appointment whenever it suits you.
