TRAVEL BEAT : OF SHARKS AND KINGS.

Byline: Carol Bidwell

Museum fans have new attractions to see right here in Los Angeles.

``Sharks! Fact and Fantasy,'' an exhibit that includes a simulated underwater shark habitat, fossils and other shark displays, is featured at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles through Jan. 5. The museum, at 900 Exposition Blvd., is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday; admission is $6 for adults, $3.50 ages 13-18, students and seniors, and $2 for kids 5-12.

``The Great Palaces of Europe,'' including England's Hampton Court Palace, Fontainbleau, the opera house at Versailles, and the Doge's Palace in Venice, are on display in miniature at the Carol and Barry Kaye Museum of Miniatures, 5900 Wilshire Blvd., on Los Angeles' Museum Row. A miniature of the Vatican goes on display on Christmas Day. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Regular museum admission is $7.50 for adults, $6.50 for seniors 60 and older, $5 students age 12-21, and $3 children age 3-11, but all admissions are half-price until Dec. 31. Information: [phone].

Back in the saddle

Riders from throughout the United States will test their skills at the Santa Barbara National Amateur Horse Show, 10 days of competition that begins Nov. 22 and runs daily through Dec. 1 at the Earl Warren Showgrounds, Highway 101 and Las Positas Road. Events begin at 8 a.m. daily. Admission and parking are free. Information: [phone].

Local hotel deals

If you'd like to get away - well, a little bit away - for a few days and see some of Southern California's sights, two hotels offer packages to help you.

From Nov. 20 through Dec. 28, the Sheraton Universal in Universal City offers a $200-a-night rate for up to four people, free parking, two free kids' (age 3-11) dinners, transportation to and from Universal Studios Hollywood and two adult (worth $34 per day) three-day passes to Universal Studios. Additional passes can be purchased for $30 a day for adults and $22 for kids. Information: [phone].

On Catalina Island, the Hotel Villa Portofino offers a breakfast-in-bed package through Dec. 28 that costs $83 per person per night, double occupancy, and includes round-trip island transportation, a night's lodgings, a choice of an island tour, hotel transfers and continental breakfast. Information: [phone].