Burbank Attractions

For movie buffs, Warner Bros. represents hallowed ground where Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney and Bette Davis once walked, where classic films and television shows were created — The Maltese Falcon and Rebel Without a Cause, Maverick and The Waltons. These days, fans take the two-hour Warner Bros. Studios VIP Tour with hopes of seeing Clint Eastwood and George Clooney, and exploring sets from such shows as Two and a Half Men, Cold Case, Without a Trace and The Big Bang Theory. Guest ride in electric carts over the studio's 110 acres, 29 sound stages, many outdoor sets, backlot streets and craft shops; highlights include the costume department, the massive 247,000-square-foot property department and the Foley stage, where post-production sound creation and editing takes place. Tours run 8:20am-4pm on weekdays (longer hours in spring and summer) and end at the Warner Bros. Museum. There's also a Deluxe Tour, which runs five hours and explores in greater depth the art of making, ending with lunch in the studio Commissary Fine Dining Room.

The television studio that helped make Burbank famous opens its doors to fans for 70-minute tours of the sound stages and facilities that have been home to many top game shows, soap operas and variety programs—including the venerable Tonight Show. By 2011 most of the production will move to Universal City, but until then guests can prowl around the sets of Access Hollywood and Days of Our Lives and get behinds-the-scenes insight into television production, including demonstrations of special effects and sound engineering, a peek into the wardrobe department, and a video demonstration of makeup artistry. Tours leave every hour, 9am-3pm.

A reasonably priced municipal course, DeBell was built in 1958 and named after its designer, William F. Bell. Set in the Verdugo Mountains, the scenic 18-hole golf course provides a challenge to players of all levels and features a driving range, low-cost golf club rentals, and both group and private lessons. There's also a par 3 course that's suitable for beginners—and, for the all-important 19th hole, a restaurant serving food and drinks along with the spectacular views.

In the 1940s, Alfonso D'Argenzio started a woodworking business in Burbank. As a hobby, he made his own wine—a tradition that took root in 1993 when one of his sons, Raymond D'Argenzio, founded a winery in Sonoma County. In 2005, the family businesses grew together: Alfonso's son Richard opened a tasting room back home in Burbank. Every Friday and Saturday (usually 5-9pm), the D'Argenzios provide tastes of award-winning Zinfandel, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon wines, primarily from the Dry Creek and Russian River valleys, along with cheese, crackers and the occasional pizza. The room also is available for private parties by appointment.

Located next to Griffith Park, the Los Angeles Equestrian Center covers 75 acres with goods and services devoted to all things equine. The center is on Riverside Drive, in a horse-friendly neighborhood where street-crossing buttons are set at the height of a mounted rider. The complex puts on 45 equestrian events a year (some of which are free), maintains more than 500 boarding stalls, runs a tack shop and equestrian gift shop, and rents banquet and meeting facilities. The Equidome, a 3,500-seat indoor arena, features rodeos, equestrian shows and occasional concerts. More than a dozen trainers work in various disciplines, including Western and English riding, and some, such as J. Bennett Farms, offer boarding as well. Casual riders can rent horses by the hour (first-timers can try Griffith Park Horse Rentals).