MILITARY VACATION: Maybe you don’t see the...

MILITARY VACATION: Maybe you don’t see the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station as a tourist spot--especially when the gate guard needs to hear a pretty good reason why you want to enter. But the base Historical Center and Museum, which includes World War II fighter planes, has drawn an increasing number of tourists since talk that the base will close. . . . “Many of our visitors are from other countries, very interested in American military history,” says a spokeswoman. . . . You can enter the base to tour the museum 10 to 4 Wednesday through Sunday.

UNIVERSAL TRUTH? When Universal Studios recently opened an office on Katella Avenue in Anaheim to promote its public tours, its marketing people knew it might look like they were trying to piggyback Disneyland for business. . . . Not so, says Universal Vice President of Sales Heidi Geier: “Orange County is a major market for us. We also wanted to be closer to some of the major hotels. Of course, we recognize that were it not for Disneyland, those hotels wouldn’t be there.”

LONG ADVENTURE: The hottest tourist happening around? It remains Disneyland’s Indiana Jones Adventure, which opened in March. “They start sprinting for it the second the door opens; we have to slow them down,” says spokeswoman Pam Espinoza. . . . The wait is one to two hours. But Paul and Kathryn Smith of Manchester, England, who took their 9-year-old daughter Ceri last week, raved that it’s worth it. “We couldn’t believe the queues [lines],” says Kathryn Smith. “But once you’re there, what an experience.”

MONTEZOOMA UP CLOSE: The people at Knott’s Berry Farm are hoping that Indiana Jones will soon be chasing a Jaguar. That’s the name of its new roller coaster, scheduled to open June 17. Its passengers will ride right through the loop of Montezooma’s Revenge. . . . “We’re emphasizing it’s for the whole family,” says spokeswoman Dana Hammontree. “You never go upside down on it, which can be hard on those with weak stomachs.”. . . The three-minute ride will cover about one-sixth of the Buena Park amusement center’s land area.