There are many things to do for both the tourist and the resident with a zip in Long Beach. You can of course take in the sun on the beach that the town is named after, or you can take a tour of the factories which help the city to run. If you have an interest in industrial valves and other equipment, that type of tour might be perfect for you.

If you want to take a look at a proud piece of the city's history as well as a very unique tourist attraction, plan to take a trip down to the water front to see the shell of the ocean liner The Queen Mary. We say shell because for all intents and purposes, the exterior is the only thing which makes the Queen a ship anymore. The central heating boiler, water softening plant, funnels, rudders, and everything else that helped the ship sail have been removed or converted. Even the United States Coast Guard has stated that the Mary is more building than ship now.

The reason for all the changes was to convert the ship into a tourist attraction. While many of the nautical tools of the Queen Mary have been removed, several of the decks still retain the rooms and equipment which helped it ply the Atlantic for three decades, as a troop transfer vessel and then as an ocean liner used for passenger transport between Europe and New York. In other rooms, equipment has been replaced by vanity cabinets.

Those cabinets are in place because today the Queen Mary serves three different purposes. The first is as a hotel. Many of the rooms for guest use when the ship sailed have been turned into modern hotel rooms, offering unique accommodations for those who want to stay aboard overnight. Down below, the old fire sleeves and paint have been taken out and changed to create a theme style restaurant which attracts many visitors to the Queen Mary every day.

The remnants of the ship's equipment are there to help people get an idea of what the ship would have looked like when it did cross the waters from old countries to new. People can view blow through valves and understand their purpose on what is today defined as a ship museum.

The Queen Mary in its current form is a singular attraction in Long Beach, well worth a look and maybe even an overnight stay.