Griffith Observatory Insider Tour

Estevan was an incredible host. He made the tour fun, lively and interactive. But more importantly, he really knew his stuff and was good at making the experience both fun and informative.

In Nov 2025, our first tour of the Griffith Observatory, with Guide Barry, was excellent, thus the 5* rating for the guide. He focused on the key architectural and scientific components of the Observatory. The 90 minutes seemed to fly by quickly. The tour ended with a show at the Planetarium. Unfortunately, because we had a late afternoon tour, we did not have time to continue visiting the Observatory after the tour despite the Observatory being open for a few more hours. Thus, we decided to take our 15 year old grandson, who loves space and science, on the same tour of the Griffith Observatory. Unfortunately, the tour was cancelled. I called the Experience First New York office phone number after the Guide was 20 minutes late. The representative told me the Guide had an emergency and the tour needed to be cancelled. They promised a full refund, which is appropriate. As the Guide was to meet us at 1:45pm, the Guide should have at least informed the New York office by that time, at the latest. Instead, all the tour participants were left baking in the sun for over 20 minutes in 90F+ weather. Experience First should have known of such an emergency at least by 1:45pm and notified the tour participants much sooner. Thus, the lack of timely communication reflects poorly on Experience First. The mark of an excellent company is how well it does when things do not go as planned. Thus, the 1* rating for the meeting or pickup and the 3* rating overall. Note: We did go visit the Observatory nonetheless, and had a nice time, but it would have been better with a knowledgeable guide to provide more in depth insight.

Barry was our guide! He was incredible! He had great information. He was interesting to listen to. He took us to all the best places told us what we needed to know. He was very informative. I would tell anybody I know to take this tour. And if they can get Barry even better! My family is so happy to have done the tour, especially my 23-year-old son.

Our guide Barry was very knowledgeable and interesting to listen to. August is very hot, so if I was to come back, I would choose a cooler month. Overall a great experience!

We went on a very busy Saturday. Give yourself an hour to get to the observatory as they had us park down the hill about a mile away. Were able to meet up with guide who had an orange hat that helped us find him in the crowds. It was difficult sometimes to hear him clearly and he did speak pretty fast. Lots of great information and details about the observatory. One person in our group did have a problem with the heat and he was very helpful. Great was to see the observatory.

The guide was a no-show. 8 of us waited in the 90º sun from 1.45-2.45 without any communication. Eventually an email was sent saying the guide had an emergency. I recognize that emergencies do happen. But why not notify us by phone (not everyone is glued to their sceen)? They offered a refund or to have us wait another 3 hours and join the 5.30 tour. Their was no mention of the loss of $60 spent on parking.

I really enjoyed the detailed explanations provided by the guide. The tour culminates in a panoramic show with priority entry for participants. I recommend the evening tour, as you can use telescopes to observe the planets at the end. You can also enjoy panoramic views of the city skyline at night.

We waited at the specified location and no one ever arrived. We received nothing about the cancellation. Had to call at 2:30 to find out what was happening. The First event company should be removed from your site. We had paid $60 for parking. Extremely unprofessional.

Very informative, but it is quite loud inside the building, so consider this with those with hearing aids.

Great tour, guide Esteban was very enthusiastic and friendly.