What a delightful little jewel in Campbell! I had no idea this place existed until recently based…read moreon some volunteering work that someone I know did here. Each of the rooms has been decorated by a different organization for Christmas and it looks awesome. The volunteers here were so friendly and earnest. Loved it! Check out a slice of history in our backyard!

I find the docents at the Ainsley House very friendly, knowledgeable and very passionate about…read moresharing historical information about this beautiful home located in downtown Campbell. I have been here at Christmas time and every room has a Christmas tree and well decorated by different organizations or individuals. They have two nights were you can visit the beautiful gift shop and enjoy appetizers and wine. Really well done and so magical!

5.26 You'll find the cheapest, best, most comfortable…read moreentertainment ANYWHERE here. And then there's the sound system - as good as ANY theatre. We saw the ABBA light show - more spectacular and longer than any fireworks you'll ever see. Very few people proving this is grossly under appreciated and I'd like to help fix that here. You WILL NOT REGRET attending and supporting this treasure in our backyard!

I came here for the Taylor Swift laser show and it was a fun way to spend an hour. It was just fun…read moremusic, lots of screaming kids singing the lyrics, and some cool lasers to look at. I did have to close my eyes a few times to give them a break from all the colorful lights. You can choose where to sit when you come into the planetarium room. The presenter did a good job. The visuals were a bit older, but it was still fun and the ticket prices were pretty reasonable/affordable. There were lots of parking available in I think Lot E.

Located in downtown San Jose so parking on a weekend can be tough to find on the street or pricy in…read morenearby garages. Inside the museum is pretty great. It's a compact place with exhibits across 3 floors. And an IMAX theater showing short movies. The schedule was posted by the theater entrance. They even have popcorn like a real movie theater. IMO The exhibits would be for kids 8 and up. It's great that the tech exhibits have tech and biotech. The interactive stations are great for kids to focus and learn. It would probably take a solid 3 hours during low crowd time to try everything. It is a place where kids roam and touch everything so some surfaces will be sticky or gross feeling. Staff at the museum were all very friendly and helpful. Overall, the place was inviting with lots of great learning and info for everyone interested.

Having visited science and tech museums both domestically and internationally, The Tech Interactive…read moreis a fun spot for children but it really leaves a bit more to be desired. Tickets were $40 for adults, which is a premium. Some attractions included exhibits to build robots and revisit the childhood experiences of building a roller coaster, working with shapes, and seeing how coding and cryptology work. Those were all housed in the basement, while the biology section was on the top floor. A few frustration points were that some of the machines were either not working or had no instructions. There were at times background, but with so many exhibits, the experiential learning is quite high-pressure. Although I visited with another friend, we both could see the frustration with other parents who also couldn't solve some of the puzzles. Additionally, some of the exhibits were very difficult and/or laggy, and required a full restart upon failure.

What would your dream trip to Paris include? I had a dream trip, told Celine Glon of Et Voila Paris…read moreabout it, and she made it happen. I had very specific ideas. I'm a writer and have just finished the first draft of a mystery novel that involves the life of Georges Bizet, composer of the opera, Carmen. I wanted to go to Paris and various places there to see where Bizet lived and worked so I could add such settings to my book. Celine made an itinerary for me, got me wonderful guides to drive me to these places and to tell me about their histories and even explore with me. NOT ONLY THAT, Celine got me introduced to people knowledgeable about Bizet, and she got me into places where people normally can't go. For example, there is a house in the town of Bougival near Paris where Bizet lived when he wrote Carmen. Celine got me a private tour of this privately owned house (not open to the public) AND an introduction to a board member of a society that promotes art and artists as part of the memory of Georges Bizet. She also got me introduced to a gentleman who speaks excellent English and who is extremely knowledgeable about classical music and opera so he could go with me to meet with the board member and see the home. There are many other things I could mention about the Bizet part of the trip, like my private tour of the Opera Comique (where Carmen opened in 1875) and lunch with the Comique's dramaturge. Again, the Opera Comique is not open to the public for such tours, but Celine arranged it all. Celine also booked me private guides to take me other places just for fun, such as Chantilly, which has the biggest collection of French paintings after the Louvre, and Malmaison, the home of Josephine and Napoleon Bonaparte. I could go on and on, but that would make this review too long. I'll close by saying that I would recommend Celine to anyone, including my closest family and friends. I trust her totally to come up with customized trips that will fit any needs. I highly recommend her. She has a million connections and I can see she is an expert in the art of making people's dreams come true in Paris and all over France.

We had a great tour of Versailles , its park , and the " Petit Trianon , of Marie Antoinette" with…read moreEt voilà Paris in June 2017. We highly recommend Celine and her guides for anyone wishing an amazing journey in France and through time!!

I had a ghost experience!!! And that never happens... so worth it if you're into that kind of…read morething. Our tour guide Courtney was awesome, especially for being 103 yrs old! she made it super fun, kept a good pace, answered lots of questions and had the perfect vibes for hosting. Anyways, my ghost story was somewhere between the transition from the 1st and 2nd floors, just after the room with the piano music playing, my cousin and I were chatting not even during one of the guided portions it was literally during the walking part and someone clear as day shushed me right in my ear, but there wasn't anyone next to us, and my cousin didn't hear the aggressive "shhhhhh!!!". It was weird and freaky, but not scary. Super fun experience, great to learn so much about Sarah and her eccentric life - she's my kind of heiress!

Sarah Winchester is an interesting woman in local history, so we decided to tour San Jose's…read moreWinchester Mystery House. Booked and paid for our reservation online. I received an immediate confirmation and additional info, like parking, etc., which I appreciated. They also texted a reminder 24 hours ahead. Parking was a breeze and their lot wasn't full, but that may have been due to it being a dreary Sunday in April. The grounds are nice and we enjoyed walking around a bit before our tour. Lots of vibrant flowers and everything appeared well cared for. There was a private wedding party going on, so some of the grounds were blocked off. Our tour guide, Savanna, was very knowledgeable and seemed to really understand and care about the history of the house. The only problem we had was the size of the group we were put in. Most of the rooms are quite small, as are the hallways and staircases. We couldn't all fit in the room to hear her speak so missed some of what she said. There was another group right behind us, and sometimes I could hear that guide better than my own. They offer discounts for seniors and kids 12 and under, but otherwise is a bit pricey at $48 for adults to spend an hour walking through the house. I was disappointed that none of the furnishings are original. It's just been staged with furniture from the approximate period. We also paid for the basement access, and at $13 each (no discounts) it was an absolute waste. Very little to see there. It's just a basement. The cafe was closed while we were there, which was disappointing. Interesting to read about Sarah Winchester and her house, but not really worth the price to visit.

The Rosicrucian Museum has the finest collection of Egyptian artifacts in the country. The docents…read moreare knowledgeable and helpful. The stone tomb is atmospheric. I felt like I was in ancient Egypt. A person can learn a lot about Egyptian history by going there. The garden grounds are lovely. I enjoy walking through them. Be sure to bring a camera. There is ample parking so there is no need to worry about parking on the street. Visitors from outside the area will delight in the experience.

This is one of the places you have to see if you live in San Jose. It's not one of the bigger…read moremuseums in town, but it is interesting. I found out that this is the world headquarters for this religion. Make sure you get the free tickets to the stone tomb. It's a recreation of a governors tomb. There's plenty of free parking in the back. Also it's only open on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

ICA is a large cool funky art space that also hosts events…read more Among the many cool restaurants and bars along south First Street are the cool artsy venues. The Institute of Contemporary Arts (i.e. ICA) is fantastic. It showcases local Bay Area artists' works among others. Super friendly staff are on hand and have the latest scoop on upcoming happenings. Go online to see upcoming events at the ICA. You may discover some cool-funky talks and art shows. Happy adventures!

Feeling arty-farty, I decided to go check out the Institute of Contemporary Art. It's located in a…read morereally cool area of First St. Admission is free which is always nice. I wanted to donate and the friendly guy asked if I wanted to sign up to get information, but I declined. I was the only one in there. The exhibit was called "Allegedly the Worst is Behind Us" which featured 12 artists and their work expressing intergenerational trauma. The work was very personal and moving and inspiring too. The work was much more interesting than the San Jose Art Museum. I felt the work would definitely resonate with others who may have experienced the same thing. Since I saved $20 on the last museum, I put it in the donation box in the front. Great place to come to!

This place is awesome! I've only been twice so far and have already signed up for a membership…read morebecause I can see myself coming here with my family more during the warmer summer months. My 1.5 year old's favorite exhibits are the water/ball area, outdoor bubbles, market stand with the pretend food, and the dancing room. They also have a room that you can rent out for birthday parties, which would be so fun for all the guests!

Love this place!! We got lucky and came the day they were celebrating their birthday, there were…read morefree complimentary cupcakes! The activities were ENDLESS, even fun for older people ! They had an outdoor area with various activities: bubbles, pop it, bees. The indoor play areas included a water area, painting with markers and water, and a pretend kitchen area.

Parking is seamless and stress-free. While admission is free, the high quality of the exhibits…read moremakes you feel it's genuinely worth supporting. I deeply appreciated their tasteful, low-pressure approach to donations, it creates a welcoming atmosphere that actually inspires visitors to contribute willingly. A beautiful space that deserves to be recognized for its quality, not just its price tag.

Cute museum, was a little hard to find the entrance, but overall quiet and nice atmosphere.read more

This place is a hidden gem in Palo Alto, in an industrial area surrounded by factories. It is a…read moremuseum of the work of Tony Foster, an artist from UK who paints beautiful watercolor landscapes. It's free, and a nice place to visit for an hour or so ... highly recommended.

We tried Story Time with Anna on Sunday. It was an hour experience that our grandson enjoyed. We…read moresigned up ahead of time and street parking was easy. There was also a sign that there is additional parking behind the museum. After checking in there was a craft/art activity with stickers and tempera paint sticks. Low mess :). Adjacent was a play area with colored scarves, a pretend campfire, felt board for the children to explore, and books. Before entering the museum area Anna gave an introductory talk describing what to expect. She made it interactive which was very nice. They also did a song to get their wiggles out. She then guided the group through the museum to the carpeted area with cushions for the kiddos. Ana talked about and asked questions about the art on the walls. She read Under the Same Sky to the children and made this an interactive experience also. It was just the right length of time, thirty minutes. This was just right for our 18 month old grandson.