I was staying in Twentynine Palms near Joshua Tree last weekend and decided to stop by the…read moreobservatory on a whim around 11 PM with a couple of my friends. Little did we know that this would be one of the highlights of our trip. Not only were the stars beautiful but we met a very nice and passionate scientist who decided to chat with us and teach us all about the constellations. It was such a treat. He and his wife were finishing up and packing away their telescopes and he told us that they were going to lock the gate of the parking lot that our cars were parked in, but let us know that we could move our car right outside of the gate and stay all night if we wanted to because it was open 24 hours. He also warned us about the coyotes and cougars. Coyotes stay away with noise and cougars are attracted to noise, so pick your battle lol. We definitely can't wait to come back! And it's free!

So many different little areas to put your telescope on and check out the stars. This area is just…read morefor getting together with other enthusiasts and checking out the night sky. Love that this was built just for that purpose.

We had the absolute best time with Starman Steve. I have 3 young "space-obsessed" grand-nephews and…read morethey were all over Steven with questions. He was SO GREAT with them. The boys were jumping up and down in excitement. We had worried about bandwidth with the boys and an astronomer presentation. Well, far from it. They were 1000% engaged. We all loved learning about the constellations, the laser light was a big wow for the kids. We loved looking through the telescope. It was a Giant Win for the whole family. Thank you, Steven you made our trip something very special we will always remember.

Steven was outstanding. Had him come out to our resort for our corporate event. We learned a lot…read moreand had a great time. Highly recommend!!

They have a "folded lens " telescope. Basically, a huge telescope that takes up way less space…read more It's a little difficult to find, the gps failed us on that one. But when we called, they knew exactly how to guide us. We had to find the entrance behind a high school football field if I recall. Great tour, the kids had a blast. Wonderful gift shop as well. They treated us wonderfully.

Great little observatory run by passionate and educated locals! Events are paused for COVID but you…read morecan take a free guided tour of the telescope on Saturdays and visit the gift shop.

I bought a Shannon Telescopics EP tray about two years ago. At first I found it useful for my…read moreeyepieces and the hand controller, plus any other accessories I needed while visually observing including filters and flashlights. But since I moved on to imaging, I have not used it much recently. It is a great item if you are into visually observing as it provides numerous holes for you 1.25" and 2" eyepieces. Plus it has to cutouts for the hand controller of your goto Nexstar telescope. As I said, since i moved on to imaging, I have not had the inclination of using the EP tray, but I would recommend it to anyone who is using their telescopes for visual observing. It is a great accessory to have.

From the owner: Manufacture of custom eyepiece/accessory trays for Celestron and Meade telescopes.read more

Took an incredible tour with two very informative and incredible tour guides. We were able to get…read moreclose to the telescope and operate a simulation on how it works. It was very cool and we enjoyed our time here.

Yesterday (March 18th, 2025) we made the drive up to Mt. Palomar Observatory, something my…read more93-year-old father-in-law said he wanted to do. Seeing this wonder had been in the back of my mind as well, so I said, "Let's do it!" Having only recently lost his wife, through tears he explained to our amazing, friendly and knowledgeable guide Christi that he'd hoped to bring her up to the observatory someday, but she passed before he'd had the opportunity to do so. To Christi, he said, "I'd love to look through that 200" telescope and try to find my wife in Heaven." Definitely a tug on the heartstrings moment... and she responded with the sort of compassion one would expect from a family member. As other reviewers have noted, the public is not allowed to look through the scope; that privilege is reserved for nighttime astronomers. News to this 70-year-old reviewer... learn something new every day! That said, Christi explained to us the intricate construction of the telescope, the "re-mirroring" every two years, how the entire dome rotates to accommodate the different astronomers' needs, why the inside of the observatory is kept at a chilly 40°, and so much more. She told us she was "...new here..." but would answer as many questions as she could. Well, I'm a questioner, especially when seeing an incredibly complicated device such as the Hale Telescope (named after astronomer George Ellery Hale). Christi was able to answer most of my inquiries, and I have no doubt she will research the answers to any questions that stumped her. I cannot recommend this young woman highly enough to the powers that be at Mt. Palomar Observatory. Next to the gift shop is a small but very informative room for visitors thirsting for more information. The infinity of the Universe has always fascinated me, along with the mind-boggling intelligence of those who wish to explore its vastness. This tiny room is bursting with their stories. To those who posted "glass-half-empty" reviews here, I'm sorry the wonder of this landmark was lost on you. Perhaps you'll give it another look sometime. Getting a feel for how tiny our little planet Earth is when compared to the infinite puts our very existence into an entirely new perspective.

Last night's show was SO FUN!! 1. Opener: Megan…read moreMcDuffee--beautiful vocals, danceable beat, lovely personality on stage. 2. Magic Sword--we'd seen them live at the Wiltern when they opened for Avatar in 2021. Three band members: drums, electric guitar and keyboard. Superbly entertaining, with their mythology about a magic sword that the keeper wields to fend off the evils of the universe. People in the audience were waving their LED blue swords and glow sticks along with the beat--exhilarating and mesmerizing! 3. Dance with the Dead --last saw them in San Diego in 2017, tried to see them again along with magic sword and avatar in 2020 but that was cancelled because of COVID, finally got to see them live last night and it was epic! No wonder this tour is called the FACE OFF tour! Dance with the Dead and Magic Sword brought their kick$&* danceable energy and the crowd went wild! So, the concert was 5/5! The venue was 4/5-love the intimate space, appreciated that the sound was balanced and not too loud. However, the parking situation was crazy. I realize the street construction by Santa Ana wasn't the venue's fault and they DID try to notify us that there would be detours... however, to designate three levels of parking as general-general; premier-general; and premier-premium is just stupidly confusing. We had the middle tier which made us think we went through the premier entrance but no, we had to do a U- turn in an already trafficky situation to go to the general entrance. Whatever. We got there. But maybe designate the tiers more succinctly and clearly?! Anyway the FACEOFF tour rocks! And the Observatory is still cool as a concert venue and we'll likely go again!

Entrance is HORRIBLE. Went to see Yellowcard last night. We arrived to the shuttle at 5:30. Crazy…read morelong line there. Took about 45 minutes to get on a shuttle, another 15 to get to the venue, and when we got there we were welcomed with a line that was a little over a half mile long. 40ish minutes later we finally got to the gate after missing the first band entirely (Plain White T's) and 3 songs of the second band (NFG). When I was approaching the metal detectors, I heard security say "screw it, let them in!" And stopped checking bags or people setting off the detectors in an effort to speed up the process. The sound was great (parking lot show) but the parking situation with shuttles was atrocious. They need more than one entrance, and they need more gates. Absolutely no reason that line should have taken so long.

We did the private tour of the observatory, and let me tell you it was so worth it. I booked the…read moreprivate tour as an anniversary gift for my husband, he's a physicist and I knew this would be right up his alley. The tour guide was so friendly and knowledgeable about the observatory. The tour takes you through several parts of the observatory with experts at each stopping point. As someone who isn't into physics, I can honestly say I actually had a blast. There's also a small cafe that serves sandwiches and soups that was also really good. The observatory and cafe are open only during part of the year, so definitely check out their site for the hours.

This is a must visit for all Angelenos and tourists and anyone interested in matters earthly and…read moreuniversal. We did the 2+ hour docent tour, worth every penny. Everyone here is a volunteer (docents, scientists, and all) so they rely on donations and purchases of merch and all the really special events they plan. You need to get a $5 daily pass to park in the lot since it's a national forest. Easy to get at the Cosmic Cafe upon arrival. Sign up online for their newsletter so you can be in the know of some very cool happenings at the observatory.