L.A. Times Releases Guide to 67 SoCal Activities for Tweens and Teens

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A new Los Angeles Times guide highlights 67 Southern California activities tailored for tweens and teenagers across dozens of neighborhoods. Independently reviewed offerings range from immersive planetarium experiences and themed cafes to pump tracks and maker spaces.

On June 16, 2026, The Los Angeles Times released a comprehensive guide detailing 67 activities across Southern California curated specifically for tweens and teenagers. Compiled by newsroom staff alongside West Coast Experiences Editor Michelle Woo, the wide-ranging report spans dozens of local neighborhoods and cities—including Buena Park, Anaheim, Downtown Los Angeles, Glendale, Inglewood, Santa Ana, and Santa Monica. To maintain strict editorial integrity, journalists independently visited every listed venue and did not accept free meals or complimentary admission.

The guide highlights an eclectic array of hands-on educational, creative, and interactive experiences. For tech-minded teens, the Octavia Lab at Downtown L.A.'s Central Library offers cardholders ages 12 and older access to 3D printing, music recording, and digital archiving equipment. In Arlington Heights, teens ages 13 and up can tackle "The Ladder by Hatch Escapes," a 90-minute corporate-themed escape room spanning five decades of workplace history. Meanwhile, Beverly Grove boasts the Sloomoo Institute, L.A.’s only slime museum, where visitors can walk through a slime lake, launch catapults, and design custom DIY concoctions.

Immersive media and themed dining destinations also feature heavily throughout the report. In Inglewood, Cosm delivers panoramic sports and experiential films on an 87-foot-diameter domed screen, currently showing a 25th-anniversary presentation of *Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone*. Manga and anime fans can head to Downtown L.A.'s Little Tokyo to dine at the nautical-themed One Piece Cafe, which serves dishes like Sanji’s "Diable Jambe" Chicken Katsu Sando alongside official merchandise. For music lovers, West Hollywood’s Mic Drop recently expanded private room karaoke access to guests ages 10 and older prior to 9 p.m. with an adult chaperone, while the Downtown L.A. Grammy Museum provides an educational look at music history.

Active and retro recreational venues round out the regional recommendations. Bicyclists can utilize the asphalt bumps and banked turns at the Grow Cycling Foundation's Inglewood Pumptrack inside Edward Vincent Jr. Park, while rollerskaters can glide across maple wood floors beneath disco balls at Glendale’s historic Moonlight Rollerway. Other featured stops include animal-assisted yoga classes at Laughing Frog Yoga in Sawtelle and Silver Lake's Photo Booth Museum, which houses restored analog booths dating back to the 1950s. Area residents interested in sending additional venue ideas can submit suggestions to guides@latimes.com.

Reported for The Park · Los Angeles Times · August 15, 2026 · Read the full story on The Park