I visited this museum on a whim and didn't have much time, but it is definitely on my list to…read morerevisit before summer ends! General admission is $25, but they participate in Museums for All, which is a great perk. I brought my 20-month-old and was thrilled to find so many age-appropriate activities for him to explore. The absolute highlight was the moving dinosaurs outside, set against a beautiful backdrop of the bay, a view that adults will definitely appreciate even if the toddlers don't notice! Definitely a great place to snap some photos. The bottom floor features animals and exhibits, and I noticed a cafe that I'd love to try for lunch next time. My only critique is the customer service. Some staff members, including those at the front desk, weren't very welcoming or acknowledging. Since this is such a family-oriented space, a simple smile would go a long way! It didn't ruin my experience, but better service would prevent it from taking away from anyone else's visit. Highly recommend overall!

Well when I came in to pay. This young lady was very I tentative! She explained everything to us…read more So on our merry way. We are the first floor so many activities to do. My cousin and daughter loved the . And outside where they were was an amazing view of Berkeley. We were sitting on top of the world. A little girl came over and talked to us. Her father said it was ok to film her. She was five years old! A very bright, intelligent, fun loving girl! Her favorite pass time was golf. She knew the stands to when u putt! She was amazing. She came and brought us flowers. My daughter n I put them in our hair. Ok down to the exhibits down stairs. Well we walked in no one spoke. Parents kept asking the young lady so what do we do! Horrible horrible horrible! Customer service! Young ladies you should say hellli when someone walks in the door! You should come and explain what to do. Not just stand in the lockers. So, went to the souvenir shop! We all couldn't wait to spend some money. The gentleman never said hello! He kept flipping his hair looking off into space! Wow! Very easily for people to steal items! Tighten up! Greet people pay attention! Speak to the customers! Terrible customer service March 21,2026 3pm-5pm! Do better! I didn't get a chance to give anything I. The suggestion box! Next time I will! Thanks we guess!

So much nostalgia with a good county fair! The San Mateo County Fair had a good amount of food and…read moreattractions that felt like a bang for your buck without feeling too over-the-top (not sure if it's just because it's been years since I last went to a county fair, but there have been some that made me feel like I was in a labyrinth and it was impossible to peruse everything it had to offer). I love that it had all of the classic games and rides, albeit that the cost of game tickets was far more expensive than I recall them typically being. The wristband system was nice, though. On the contrary, re: food, I got lobster fries that were cheaper than what I would have expected for the usually up-charged fair prices. The serving size was quite hefty, and they didn't skimp on the lobster. The coolest thing about the SMCF for me was that their concert series was free to fair attendees. I'm so used to OC Fair's extra concert ticket charge, so this made admission cost feel worth it. The line-up felt pretty stacked this year for the caliber of this event, and I was able to catch Jay Sean. It was cool to see a legend from my teenage years play live; it was less cool to hear the teenagers whom we shared a bench with ask who Jay Sean is. Overall a fun event that I would do again for the vibes more than what it has to offer at face value.

This was not the fair I was expecting. Minimal attractions and food, sigh. We were ready to leave…read moreafter one hour. I will say it addressed my fair fix. Parking was easy too, but for a total of $60 for 2 tickets and parking (not including food) this is not a good value. Bathroom lines were long and didn't have good air flow. I'm glad I tried it, now I know.

We were visiting the free-admission Museum of American Heritage to check out the current exhibit…read more"Trains, Games, and Wheels". And while there, we paid the extra 4 bucks per person to attend the BayLUG LEGO Holiday Show on site. They have a few displays and LEGO sets for sale outside near the garden, but the actual exhibit in the building was far more impressive with lots of little details not to be missed. The 2025-2026 theme "Great American Road Trip" included a scavenger hunt for kids to spot a list of items and characters within the diverse and colorful LEGO displays. Delightful scenes set up in a single room, including a whole collection of flowers, an adorable rabbit, rainbows, pirate ships, vehicles of all kinds, Disneyland's Radiator Springs, railroad tracks with moving trains, aliens and flying saucers, skyscrapers, a forest of trees, a clown motel, and even a street parade happening in the city. Enough to fascinate both kids and adults, and well worth the small entry fee, especially if you're a LEGO fan. The theme changes each year, so it's a joy to experience time after time.

This was the first time I visited the Museum of American Heritage in Palo Alto and was amazed by…read morethe Lego show by BayLUG. It runs through January 10, 11am - 3pm. Go see this and bring your kids! It is something you will never forget about this amazing experience!

If you're expecting an immersive, interactive experience where you'll feel like you won't have…read moreenough time to do everything, then you'll be sorely, sorely, sorely disappointed. The first problem is that it's called a museum--I know, where else do you keep T-rex fossil casts other than a museum? you've got me there, but I want to let your hopes down so that you'll have a properly amazing experience here. The first thing to know is that it's housed in the Valley Life Sciences Building, or VLSB for those of us in the know who use University of California campus building-name acronyms on the regular. It's a living, breathing, working building on campus, which means there are offices and a library, in addition to "museums," which again is a disappointing misnomer. When it was built in 1930, not only was it the largest building in the City of Berkeley, but it was also the largest concrete building in the US west of the Mississippi. It's still the largest building on campus, I believe. When I worked on campus, my classes were often (and my office hours were always) in Wheeler Hall, whose bathrooms leave a lot to desired, to understate it quite ridiculously. So I was always on the lookout for better, less traveled bathroom options. Not just near Wheeler, but everywhere on campus and especially between Wheeler and the western edge of campus, because I often worked part time at my current job while also working as a reader at UC, so I was always walking back and forth between campus and our office in Downtown Berkeley. Anyway, I thought i had found a perfect candidate in a particular men's room on a particular side of a particular floor of VLSB. Who would enter this random, imposing building looking for a restroom, and even if they did, who would go anywhere but the bathrooms on the first floor? Happy with myself, after my second visit to the secret bathroom, I was about halfway back to my office when I realized I didn't have my wallet. I remembered taking it out of my pocket in the stall, so I rushed back up there. And what did I find? My wallet was sitting there on the toilet-paper dispenser, my ID, debit card, and credit cards still there. Whew! But I was also aghast, because the $36 I had in cash was missing. I'm still conflicted to this day--replacing my license and credit cards would have been a huge pain, and if someone had returned my wallet to me, I probably would have rewarded him with at least $20. So should I be angry for this person for stealing from me but not making it as bad as it could have been? I don't really know, and I haven't been back to that benighted bathroom since. So here's the best way to experience the Museum of Paleontology: By total surprise. The first time I came in here, I had no idea I'd find these Pteranodons floating around or this Tyrannosaurus rex hanging out near the staircase. Yes, take the elevator to the fourth floor and then take the stairs down. You'll be so wowed. It's amazing. And that's how you have a four-star experience. Just don't give kind thieves the opportunity to steal some of your valuables.

Fantastic exhibit- open to the public for free during museum hours. Great for toddlers- you can…read moretell because all of the glass for cases below 3-4 feet is stained with hand prints. Amazing nearly complete T-Rex skeleton on display with a pterodactyl in flight above it. They are arranged beautifully in the atrium, ringed by a spiral staircase. I also loved the entomological displays- especially the beetles. Park in the lower Sproul garage and walk less than 5 min. Pack a lunch to eat in the courtyard or under the canopy in the eucalyptus grove by the creek outside.

Yay. Mine and hubby's first Independence Day celebration with many more to come…read more Dropped by for a few hours this afternoon to check out the Live entertainment and dog show. The park was packed already by 1pm with many people coming down early to 'reserve' spots by laying blankets out / putting up gazebos with the intent to come back later in the day which I thought this was a little cheeky if people don't intent to be there for quite some time. Entertainment was good, very laid back verging on disorganized in parts but the dog show in the Amphitheater was so cute! It was great to see so many taking park and clearly put in a lot of effort in some of the cute little outfits. Also had live band entertainment and many tents set up selling Kettle Corn, Drinks (including beers and wine), Sunglasses, Jewelry ect with what I suspect to be a local DJ playing among the swarms of tents. Activities were a little sparse - slides, bouncy house and one or two rides. Rest rooms consisted of a handful of Porta Potty's on each end of the park (one lot near the rec center and the other opposite CVS) which were surprisingly clean and stocked with tissues. Parking $10 which is fairly reasonable for the whole day, many people were seen to be parking in the local mall strip car park but towing trucks were seen to be in operation with Safeway in particular enforcing the 1 hour maximum parking rule. I love that it takes place in the Leo J park, right on the lake with the boat hire at the far end it's a great place to spend the day. But a big negative to the evening festivities though - The huge amount of people ignoring the fact it was a 'smoke free' event (dozens and dozens of signs stating so). Would have been nice to have event workers enforcing the rule. Nothing worse than someone second hand smoke. Eeaw Fireworks were for me were the highlight of the event which we went back for later in the evening after dinner. They started at 9:30pm over the lagoon, lasted about 25 minutes and were fantastic! With Foster City being quite a small town they now how to celebrate. I would rate 3.5 but rounded up.

4 stars for the fireworks alone, however, I can't imagine being here all day. We arrived around 3pm…read moreand even left before coming back for the fireworks show at 9:30pm. The parking garage closest to the park (maybe 2 or 3 blocks away) had a bunch of open spots with a flat rate of $10 for the event, but filled up quickly when we came back maybe 2 hours later. They close the surrounding streets down. There were a bunch of food trucks, but we opted for the taco booth. Not bad. They had cantaloupe and watermelon frescas as well as horchata. Honestly, there's not much to do. A few vendors selling hats, popcorn, etc. Cheap carnival games where you can win stuffed animals, rides and snacks. Lots of open field where people set up tents, canopies, anything to reserve that prime spot, especially near the lake. People even set up on the deck. People were bbqing and just hanging out, but no play equipment for kids so come prepared. We missed the dog parade earlier in the day, but there were still a bunch of four-legged friends wandering around. T-pumps is across the street, but the line was super long. The employees did a good job of getting the line to move pretty quickly. You cannot park in this lot. There are tow trucks on site that will mark your tires. They are serious about their no event parking here lol. My suggestion would be to come early to get a good spot and uber if you must. Otherwise, buy some lawn chairs from the CVS? next to T-pumps and park in the lot further away from the park. About a 10 min. Or less walk to the lot where everyone sets up for the show. We were right below the fireworks, which was a dope show. Bring earplugs or ear protection for the little ones if they scare easily. It gets loud. The walk back is crazy because there's sooo many people trying to get out. Leave before the finale or be prepared to wait an hour just to get out of the parking lot.

Took my grandson there and he loved it. Fun for all ages and we spent hours there exploringread more

We were walking to lunch when our toddler spied the red fire engine inside Habitot on Bay Street…read moreEmeryville, and refused to leave. Literally we bought a ticket on Eventbrite on the spot because he loves children's museums - tot registers with tot-sized grocery carts, fire trucks with hoses and tot-sized fire fighting outfits. There's also build-your-own-pizza station, wiggle wall, rocket launcher, plenty of crafts, and infant zone. Delighted with the option to buy 5 visits for $75 (saves you $5 a trip, now tickets are $20/kid and worth half a day of entertainment.

This is a cute carousel, located in the back area of Pier 39. Great for adults and kiddos. $9 is…read morethe steep price for an adult; young kids are free with an adult ticket purchase. This is nice carousel and is two levels high. For sure brings back memories. The ride is pretty short though, maybe could go around a few more times to get your monies worth.

Always a classic when visiting Pier 39, this double decker Carousel is fun for both adults and…read morechildren. Pick your animal of choice, and enjoy the spin. Wish you could get a better view of the bay when riding it, but it's still a nice time. Definitely pricey for a ride - I believe it was $9/person to ride, which was definitely a little pricey. Not to mention not all of the "horses" worked properly, so I ended up on a panda that was broken. Overall, it's a nice Carousel, but it can definitely add up if you're coming with a family.

Awesome show!!!! Love all the cirque shows I've seen. Must see them when they come to town. Wish…read moreseats were a bit cheaper. I live shows are always a little interactive with the audience.

This was my first time seeing a Cirque du Soleil show and it certainly did not disappoint. I…read moreattended with my husband and my two children. I often worry when taking my kids to live shows if they will stay interested. They sat with their mouths gaping in awe and when intermission came all they wanted was the show to resume. There so many talented actors, acrobats, jugglers, clowns, etc that you never had a dull moment. Not to mention the incredible musicians and beautiful story line that went along with the show. There were so many times that while someone was performing I found myself holding my breath in awe. It is a show of beauty, wonder, amazement and music. I would recommend anyone to go see it and I want to go back. There are wonderful outdoor amenities so if you have to use a restroom no worries...the porta potties flush and don't smell!