This place is awesome. They have scavenger hunts for you to do and it's a great place to bring the…read morekids and have them be interactive, in the cool AC, off of their devices. There's so many things to see and the center dome is super cool with how the sound bounces back straight to you standing in the center. The front door is a HUGE door so you look mini compared to it. Great place to check out when you're in Tucson! They are a part of the museums for all program so if you have an EBT card you can get in for $3 per person up to 6 people.

This was somewhat unusual. It is a museum dedicated to various sorts of 'miniatures' - small…read moredioramas, dollhouses, architectural models, etc. We checked it out one Friday afternoon. They have their own parking lot, though the sign was hard to spot initially (I had to loop back to get in). I think the admission fee was around $15 per person. The space is divided into several rooms. One is devoted more to fantasy / sci-fi themes. The rest is mostly segmented into a series of rooms with dollhouses and architectural models. Most of these are highly detailed. You may find something based on a place you've been - there was a Chinese structure from Shanghai that we'd coincidentally seen a long time ago, for example. There are also some figure models (historical figures) in one area. My impression was that many of the pieces were donated to the museum after the original owner / collector passed away, and their heirs wanted to do something useful with the items. The museum is a great solution to cases where you suddenly have a refrigerator-sized dollhouse that you are not personally that attached to, and don't want to store it in your own house forever. There was also a special exhibit (which I assume changes regularly) which, at the time, featured miniatures and models made by Ray Harryhausen. There is a gift shop at the entrance which you can browse without paying admission. This is worth checking out once at least, if you find the description remotely interesting. It was certainly unique.

What a transformation! It had been years since my prior visit, and the investment made and…read moreresulting upgrades are phenomenal! The planetarium theater itself is stunning and the amazing seats are so comfy. But note that the attraction has been renamed "Science Center and Planetarium" because there's also the Wild World of Bugs, Undersea Discovery, a fascinating shark exhibit and an asteroid cave! Various spaces are also available for rental for private events, too, including BIRTHDAY PARTIES! Pro tip: there is limited FREE STREET PARKING on the south curb of Hawthorne St, immediately behind the Center. Let staff know you're parked there to get a dashboard display ticket!

This was a fun place to go if you have a couple of hours. This is more geared towards families with…read morekids, however I was solo and had a great time. I loved going to the show in the planetarium. It was about an hour long with a short show and then a presentation of what the current Tucson skies look like. There are two stories to explore with a small gift shop. There are interactive displats throughout. Glad I got to experience the Flandrau and then had a walk along the mall of the UofA.

Really enjoyed our visit to the Arizona State museum on the campus of ASU. This is an anthropology…read moremuseum focusing on Southwest indigenous cultures. Considering the nature of the displays (delicate and a lot of reading), the exhibits may not be that interesting for young children. All exhibits were on the first floor. The museum houses an extensive collection of southwestern indigenous pottery, with over 24,000 pieces spanning 2,000 years. Although most of the pottery collection is kept in a controlled vault to protect from humidity and temperature, there are still many pieces on display and lots of opportunity to learn. There's also a virtual tour option for the pieces in the vault. There's also a wonderful collection on the art of Native American basket making, and according to their website they house the "world's largest and most comprehensive collection". Two temporary exhibits were on Native American jewelry making and a photography exhibit on the Sámi indigenous people in Northern Europe. In the hallway, there was information on the 19th amendment, which although I appreciated, I felt that it was out of place. Overall, I learned a lot during the visit and appreciated that the museum respected the history of past and present indigenous cultures.

I loved it!!! I had not been in years and they had really updated it. The exhibits are well curated…read moreand all the descriptions are informative and interesting. I could not believe the amount of artifacts were on display. The flow of the museum was easy to follow and it took about 2 hours to see the whole place. You could take longer or just hit a few of the exhibits. I believe everyone who lives here should go, and it's a great thing to take visitors to. It's always good to know where you live.

I have seen stories about Ignite Neon Sign museum, but didn't know where it was. Today I left the…read morenew Trader Joes off Broadway and drove by. I stopped and took a look see with my husband. It's currently closed due to a fire ( a big banner posted at the entrance says this ). I am looking forward to coming back once they reopen to see the inside. I saw many things in their back area that stirred up fond memories of neon signs in Tucson.

What a fantastic walk through time!…read more This place has more than just signs - their extensive collection of unique items from our colorful advertising past is so much fun to explore. Besides the nostalgia, you can also learn the details behind how sign artists create neon signs. We went on one of their free demonstration days where a delightful man named Chuck showed us how to make a neon sign. The space is also available to rent for special events - what a cool venue for a party!

A varied collection, well curated and tastefully organized. Was a true find on a hot day.read more

Based on the museum's name, I didn't expect to find about a dozen very good paintings by 19th and…read moreearly 20th century masters lining two walls in a corridor that leads from one gallery to another. I was rewarded by what I did expect: galleries of Native American rugs that looked like an exhibition of minimalist paintings. Staring at the repetitive patterns employed by skilled artisans didn't put me in a trance but these rugs held my gaze for a long time. I took a break and watched a video on the challenges of modern rug makers; water shortages are becoming more prevalent and it affects all stages of production from ensuring sheep have enough to drink to finding the natural sources of the dyes used.

We came here via the Pima county library experience passes…read more You can park in the parking garage adjacent to the museum and get it validated at the front desk. The museum goes in a path around and through the building, starting with the history and background of how AZ became a state, notable people from AZ history and then goes into the history of Geronimo, mining & unionizing. There were various display cases of rocks and minerals. There are exhibits that have some audio, although not all the buttons were working. There is info about how motorized vehicles came to AZ, as well as WWII and information about Mt. Lemmon being an internment camp site. There is a ramp on the eastern entrance that is wheelchair and stroller accessible. However, the upstairs interaction exhibit for kids is not wheelchair/stroller accessible, at least we did not see an elevator. The bathroom did not have a changing table unfortunately for families with kids needing diaper changes... It's a quaint history museum and great opportunity for people to learn more about AZ history.

Highly recommended. This gem of a museum transports one to another time and place. Very…read morewell-curated museum with an exceptional collection. Who knew that Studebaker was a wagon maker first?! The ole' West has such an incredibly rich history.

Grateful to Yelp for inviting us Yelpers to come for the Momentos series at TMA, a celebration of…read moreArizona's Biennial Artists. What a stunning collection of local artists and their art. In addition to the beautiful artwork we could peruse, there was snacks and mangonadas, a DJ, and drinks. One of the museum staff also walked us through an activity to discuss and share our reactions to the art. I loved that she made it feel approachable, even for folks like me who are not art experts. My husband is a big art lover and ended up buying a membership before we left. Can't wait to come back to explore the rest of the collection! Highly recommend stopping by for the Momentos series this summer.

The building is absolutely beautiful. Go to see what is on offer. The collections are not my…read morefavorite, but of course everyone's tastes differ. There are absolute gems in terms of the ancient pottery collection, the Peruvian exhibit, and the Puerto Rican artist featured on the first floor. However, I found a lot of the contemporary art... so-so. It's just not compelling enough to fill the space. I was excited for the special AZ exhibit, but only about half of what was shown was interesting. I'll definitely go back. Exhibits rotate and collectiona expand. I look forward to returning.

We did a short walking tour and visited the pop up martini bar of the new upgraded Presidio tonight…read more- it has some beautiful upgrades with new benches, murals, and walking path areas! There's also a great view of the tallest mural in Arizona here!

We love museums and this one is great. It tells a story of Old Tucson. A really good visitor Center.read more

We had seen a documentary a year or so ago about an art theft of a de Kooning painting from this…read moremuseum ("The Thief Collector"). It was interesting so we thought that since we'd be in Tucson anyway, we'd stop by and check out the museum and the semi-recently restored artwork (the thieves died of old age and it was recovered via their estate sale, basically). The museum is located in the middle of the University of Arizona campus. There may be street parking even closer, but we parked in a multi-story public parking deck about 3 blocks away. The deck is behind a 7-11 on the corner. Fees for parking were quite reasonable (we paid less than $3 for almost an hour). Entry to the museum is free. The lady at the reception desk gave us an overview gave directions to the de Kooning when we asked (I'm guessing they get that question a lot). They weren't defensive about it. :) There were 4 main areas / displays when we visited: - the main modern galleries - the main early / medieval galleries (which were being renovated) - an exhibit of local high school art competition winners - a special exhibit of sort of grotesque charcoal nudes of late-middle aged artists We got to see the de Kooning, which is what we came for (though none of us are fans of his art, per se). It was the only work protected with a plexiglass housing (so if you come for theft, steal something else this time...). My favorite here was actually a work by Georgia O'Keefe. There was also a Calder mobile and some works by a Spanish modern artist that my daughter recognized from a class. I'm not a huge fan of medieval art, so it wasn't a huge blow to discover this area was closed. We browsed the high school stuff. Some of it was interesting. We hit the final area before leaving. They even cautioned you about 'representation of the human body', or some such, when you check in. Rather than be snarky, I'll just state that this really wasn't something I was interested in, and leave it at that. Given that this is a university-based art museum, and not some major city's premier art venue, I thought it was decent. I was glad we stopped by.

Tons of pieces behind curtains and not on display…read more What we did see was not for us at all. One Dali piece was on display and the Georgia O'Keeffe pieces I wanted to see so badly were not on display. Maybe we came at the wrong time. Meh. Waste of time.

To set expectation, Yume Japanese Gardens are on a small parcel of land and are designed to be like…read morethose you might find in a Kyoto courtyard. Bring a book, meditate, take your time. The spaces have benches and invite you to find a peaceful moment in the desert. We did. The gallery has a video (English subtitles) that has great information about creating these types of gardens, and the gift shop offers a variety of Japanese items to purchase.

Visited this place over winter break, and I was shocked to see all the lower views. If you've been…read moreto Japan, then you might understand the place a little more. Basically, it's made up of a lot of small micro exhibits similar to like you might see in Japan in a place like where spaces are limited. The whole place is probably 3/4 of an acre but they did a wonderful job maximizing the usage of the space. You really need to take your time and sit down and just enjoy if you power through you're gonna finish it in 10 minutes and you'll miss the whole point of your visit. I think the story is really cool about the lady who created the location to show Japanese culture based on her personal experiences of living in Japan. This is something she pulled together on her own and open to the public and not for profit fashion. It might be a little pricey to enter (15 USD), but you also have to understand your money serves as a donation to keep the place running. It's clear that she's doing this on her own. And I think it's wonderful that she's so inspired to be a bridge between cultures that often are overlooked in Tucson.