Museum’s New Exhibit? Sleeping People Display

A handful of Southern California park and museum sleepovers allow families to have an “Out of Africa” experience on a “Brady Bunch” budget. Many are geared toward making the exotic treks feel more like, well, a walk in the park with a slightly wild (but safe) side.

Besides offering a behind-the-scenes look at exhibits, the sleepovers can give you and your children an irresistible chance to say that, for a night at least, you truly lived in a zoo.

“We have so many halls and galleries. A visitor might spend only 30 to 40 minutes in them,” said Vincent Beggs, director of education at the National History Museum of Los Angeles County. “With a sleepover, you are going to pool energy and focus on components for a particular age group. You can start out with a very informal outlook and get more and more refined. It gives you an opportunity to educate in depth.”

The museum, with the Los Angeles Zoo, is staging its second overnight related to its “Cats! Wild to Mild!” exhibit with a “Sundown Safari” April 26 at the zoo that will include a guided tour of the big cats area, accompanied by educators from the museum and zoo, and the rare opportunity to fall asleep to the sounds of wildlife within the confines of the city of Los Angeles.

“Animals have personalities, and the zoo offers the chance to get into the personality of animals as individuals,” said Beggs of the night the “Cats!” exhibit will partly come to life. (The interactive exhibit is at the museum through Sept. 1.)

The museum also has another “Cat Nap” in the works, planned for Aug. 16, where guests sack out in the museum’s African Mammal Hall. The real things were the hit at last month’s museum sleepover--Wildlife on Wheels brought in a live tiger, serval and bobcat. Specialists are brought in who work with the children and families on projects related to the exhibit. Free time and story time--to wind down campers--also are built into the evening.

The “Sundown Safari” at the zoo begins at 5 p.m. April 26 and goes till 9 the next morning. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Cost is $75 for adults, $50 for children. The “Cat Nap” begins at 7 p.m. Aug. 16 and goes till 8 a.m. Aug. 17 at the museum. Children must be at least 5 and come with an adult. Cost is $50 per person. Call (213) 763-3515.

Because there is always a waiting list for the overnighters, the museum is planning to schedule even more of the popular programs. Sold-out dates and waiting lists seem to be a staple of many of the events.

Other area overnighters:

LOS ANGELES ZOO: Pitch a tent and take part in other “Sundown Safaris” offered on one of 10 weekend dates from June through September. Don’t own a tent or sleeping bags? Rent everything you need through the zoo. A tour at dusk, docent-led activities and a marshmallow roast are included. Children of any age must be accompanied by at least one adult. The program begins at 5 p.m. and ends at 9 the next morning. Cost is $75 for adults, $50 for children, free for children under 2. Zoo members receive a discount. Call (213) 666-4650, Ext. 403.

SAN DIEGO WILD ANIMAL PARK: “Roar & Snore” your way through a night at Kilima Point, which overlooks the East African exhibit at the Escondido park. The overnight includes an evening stroll on less-traveled park paths to observe animals, hands-on activities, an “African style” storyteller at the evening campfire and up-close sightings of such animals as a rhinoceros or tiger.

Tents and food are included. Sleepovers go from 4 p.m. to 8:30 a.m. on various Fridays-Sundays through September. Children must be at least 8 years old, and one adult needs to accompany every two children. Cost is $67.50 for children 8 to 11, $87.50 for ages 12 and up. Call (800) 934-2267.

SAN DIEGO ZOO: “Beastly Bedtimes” take place at Camp Timbuktu, tucked into a back corner of the zoo that serves as a campground. Activities include an after-hours bus tour, a nighttime walk and stories around the campfire. Tents and food are provided, and campers awake to a pancake, egg and sausage breakfast.

Camp convenes weekends from May to October, but nights may be added in summer. The one-night stay begins at 4 p.m. and ends at 9 the next morning. Children must be at least 4 years old; one adult must accompany every two children. Cost is $59.50 per person. Call (619) 231-1515, Ext. 4412.

SANTA BARBARA ZOO: Public “Zoo Snoozes” will start again in the fall. Guests--children only--sleep in the enclosed and heated Nature Room. Campers take the last train ride around the park, dine at the zoo’s restaurant, tour Nocturnal Hall and experience a hands-on animal activity--usually petting a snake. The ratio of adult counselors to children is one to five, and groups are kept under 30. Children from grades one through six can attend these overnighters from 4 p.m. to 9 the next morning. Cost is $35 for zoo members, $40 for nonmembers. Call (805) 962-5339.

SEA WORLD: Campers used to just “Sleep With the Sharks,” but now they also can slip into their PJs with the penguins at the San Diego park. Overnight visitors sleep inside the shark or penguin encounter exhibits; in the morning, the humans wake to a continental breakfast. Campers play games, learn about the marine animals, eat pizza and watch a movie. An “Arctic to Antarctica: Around the World in 13 Hours” program, on seven dates in July and August, will explore nocturnal habits of a variety of animals, with nighttime accommodations alongside the sharks and penguins. Shark and penguin sleepovers are for grades 3 to 6; the Arctic experience has specific dates for grades 2-3, 4-5, 6-7 and 8-9. Sleepovers are from 7 p.m. until 8 the next morning. Cost for the penguin and shark overnight is $55 for students, $40 adults; for “Arctic,” $65 for students, $45 adults. Two-month advance reservation required. Call (619) 226-3610.