Itinerary: Planes, Trains & Automobiles

Once upon a time, a trip was something to get excited about. Automobiles meant an adventure, not a traffic snarl. Trains signified cross-country journeys, not commuting from the suburbs. And planes embodied the cachet of the jet set, not some long-overdue flight at Los Angeles International Airport. This weekend, taste the thrill of old-style travel without ever leaving town.

Friday

Face the two circles of traffic hell at LAX if you like, but first consider a more pleasant stop at the Santa Monica Airport, where you can watch small planes take off and land most frequently on weekdays. (The airport often is the destination for celebrities whose chartered or personal planes land here.)

Take in the Museum of Flying (2772 Donald Douglas Loop North. Tuesday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. $7; $5, seniors; $3, age 17 and younger. [310] 392-8822), where they house 30 still-flyable World War II airplanes. Also on display is a World War I triplane, and one of only two flight-ready Japanese Zeros in the world. From the second-floor lookout, visitors get a view of the airfield, and on a clear day, of the tower at LAX. Phone receivers allow for eavesdropping on the conversations between the towers and the pilots.

You’ll have a similar view from two restaurants abutting the airfield--DC3 (next to the museum, open Monday through Friday for lunch; Tuesday through Saturday for dinner. [310] 399-2323), which serves new American cuisine, or the pan-Asian restaurant, Typhoon (3221 Donald Douglas Loop South. No lunch on Saturdays. [310] 390-6565).

Saturday

The Nethercutt Collection at San Sylmar (15200 Bledsoe St., Sylmar. Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. [818] 367-2251) has an amazing array of classic cars. Free tours are available, but reservations are required. (Saturdays fill up eight weeks in advance; weekday tours are easily available.)

Collector J.B. Nethercutt made his millions as chairman of the cosmetics company Merle Norman, so the building also has been dubbed the Tower of Beauty or the Beauty Collection. The heart of it is the Grand Salon, a luxury garage--complete with marble floors and chandeliers--for classic cars such as a $5-million 1933 Duesenberg Arlington Torpedo.

Prefer hot rods to luxury sedans? Check out the year-old NHRA Motorsports Museum (Los Angeles County Fairplex, Gate 1, 1101 W. McKinley Ave., Pomona. Wednesday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. $5; $3, kids and seniors; 5 and younger, free. [909] 622-2133). Early hot rods and drag racers are complemented by photos and memorabilia.

Sunday

The largest collection of steam locomotives west of the Mississippi River is sitting in Griffith Park. Travel Town (5200 Zoo Drive. Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. [323] 662-5874) has boxcars, dining cars, cabooses--all available for kids to climb aboard. Indoors is a display of antique firefighting equipment and a one-third scale railroad ready for riding. Admission is free; train rides cost $2 adults, $1.50 for kids.

Ride the real rails at Union Station (800 N. Alameda St., [213] 683-6875), or just admire the architecture, a fantastic blend of Spanish style and Streamline Moderne. Built in 1939--the last of the major U.S. passenger stations--it has wood-beam ceilings more than 50 feet high and arched doorways leading to outdoor plazas. From here, Amtrak runs up and down the coast daily, or you can catch the Red Line subway to Hollywood, or connect at the 7th Street Metro Station in downtown to the Blue Line to Long Beach.

Though it’s closed on Sundays, a great meal can be had other days of the week at Traxx, (213) 625-1000, the quirky but elegant restaurant near the entrance to the station.