What: this museum was much more enjoyable than I thought it would be. When we entered we went to…read morethe right and they started a short film which I recommend. We then went out to the flight deck where lots of planes are available for you to climb into. But the best was the lower levels of the ship. They have mannequins dressed in various roles and decor so you really can imagine how it was. They also give you an audio device and there are places here and there to click and listen to a short blip about what you are looking at. Really brought it to life. This was my favorite. Price: we bought tickets through the AAA website and saved a few bucks per person if you area a member.

I am kicking myself I waited so long to take advantage of this amazing experience!…read more My family and I finally got to spend a glorious day upon the Midway here in San Diego. We arrived before they opened to ensure parking (although the parking will be changing in the near future) and got in line. I could go on and on and ON about all the amazing things we saw, experienced and learned, but I will spare you the details and get straight to the point. You can seriously spend an entire day on this ship and not see it all so I strongly suggest you plan your day before arriving. We entered and spent our day going up. DO start your tour by seeing the short film about the Midway (west side of the ship as you enter). It sets the stage for the entire day. *The 3-D interactive experiences are extra, but worth it! *You can eat lunch aboard the ship with tables outdoors over the water. *Wear great walking shoes, you will get your steps in! *There are a lot of stairs and walking, so make sure you're in shape to take it all in And most of all TALK TO THE VOLUNTEERS!!! There are men and women with hats on all over the ship. They served in the military and many actually served UPON the Midway! Their experience, first hand knowledge is invaluable. The cost is worth what you get. Plan an entire day and take as much in as you can!

The Japanese Friendship Garden was a stunning place to get married. We got married on the koi pond…read moredeck this past Saturday. The location felt very private and serene with the way Marina sections off garden paths. Plenty of beautiful photo opportunities throughout the garden. Marina, as venue manager, was professional, communicative, and very warm and friendly. She made us feel comfortable and confident that we would have a beautiful wedding, and we did.

What: beautiful Japanese garden with large koi ponds. It's a beautiful path to walk and we were…read morethere for about 2 hours. I recommend getting there when they open as there is less crowds and it's cooler. They also have a gift store inside and several vendors set up selling foods and drink. Price: $16 for adults, $14 for students. Parking: we parked in the closest lot and paid $5.

A Funday Sunday Adventure! It takes a lot to get me downtown on a weekend if it's not for a great…read moremeal or a baseball game. Usually super busy, crowded and some areas very smelly, I'd rather kiss a pig than be there. The WNDR museum caught my eye. Saw some ads and had nothing planned. Checked tickets and availability was wide open for that day. Easy entering the lobby as well as starting our tour whenever we preferred. There were exhibits upstairs and down. Many were pretty cool with mirrors and lights which made for some WOW moments. Other guests generally moved at about the same pace as us. Some stayed in certain areas for extended time, which, at times caused some backlog of movement. Restrooms located adjacent to the snack bar which is just beyond the entrance/ lobby. Easily a great visit for the young and young at heart! I believe the WNDR museum is scheduled to close at the end of August '25.

Really cool museum, small but plenty of exhibits! My kiddo was fascinated! Must buy tickets online,…read morestreet parking or park in the parking structure near by. They have a little cafe, small little store to purchase souvenirs, clean bathrooms. Would definitely recommend!

We stumbled upon the San Diego Natural History Museum after noticing their rooftop dining, and it…read moreturned out to be a fantastic spur-of-the-moment decision. Across four full stories, the museum is packed with impressive exhibits featuring prehistoric bones, wildlife displays, and regional art. We caught an informative film on San Diego's natural environment in the theater and thoroughly enjoyed the hands-on interactive stations--matching bugs and identifying animal scat was surprisingly fun! The true highlight, however, was the rooftop Sunday brunch. The food was excellent, the views were wonderful, and the cashier serving us was exceptionally warm and welcoming. I highly recommend a visit, and definitely make sure to take advantage of the rooftop brunch!

We visited during The Nat at Night when the tickets were half price, then there is access to the…read morerooftop; and the 5 floors of the museum. This experience is during the summer, and starts at 5pm on Fridays/ We arrived just before 5pm, entered and then headed to the rooftop. There were food and beverages offered and the views were amazing. Getting there right at 5 and going to the rooftop first was the best decision becuase the area is limited occupacy and once it's full there is a line waiting for some people to leave before you can then access the rooftop. There were so many people in attendance, it was great to see. It was a warm evening and the rooftop got pretty warm, then once we went into the museum it took a while to cool down. Not sure how that could be remedied, but the AC seemed to be a little inefficient for the number of people. Even if you aren't interested in going to the rooftop, the discounted price for 5pm to 11pm was a great option to explore the museum. I do recommend it! Lots to see and I was most interested in the Washed Ashore exhibit; art created with trash that has washed up on the beaches.

The SD museums of art is at the balboa park amongst other museums and beautiful outdoor flowers,…read moresceneries, etc. there were many tourists out that day including school field trips, groups, etc. I used the gocity pass to check in at the front desk and then I was able to enjoy the museum. It is two stories big offering stairs and elevators. They have security on each art room/ theme area. I was able to observe many paintings that were diverse and unique. Some are antiques kept there for everyone to admire. They have clean restrooms available as well. Bring comfortable shoes because there is pretty to walk around. Staff were very nice and checking went smoothly as well. The sticker you are given can be used all day long to come back to the same Museum. Most museums open at 10AM but plenty of people arrive earlier. I took public transportation to get up there and that was easy.

It had been a minute since I was here last. There were some new exhibits I thoroughly enjoyed:…read more Cafes and Cabarets: the spectacular Art of Toulouse-Lautrec known for his beguiling portraits of Paris nightlife and immortalizing the cabaret culture of Belle Époque Paris. Chanell Stone: Undulation of a Rupture during a journey through the Mississippi Delta. Black and white photographs invite reflection on the Mississippi River as both a natural force and a historical passageway. The museum created an atmosphere of this exhibit with a deeply emotional connection and experience. Graciela Iturbide, arguably Latin America's best-known living photographer from Mexico. This exhibition surveys her most iconic photographs, primarily captured in Mexico, but also worldwide. Also, Dutch Paintings on loan from Boston Museum of Fine Arts. I came during the Great Exchange and it was free if you have membership with a participating museum. It's also free for San Diego residents on the third Tuesday of the month. Two things that surprised me: The first being half of upstairs was closed to prepare for new exhibits. Secondly, several Gallery Attendants behaved very strangely and were definitely not friendly or welcoming. There were two different exhibits where I was viewing the museum app on my phone and witnessed the attendants walking around in circles quickly. It was distracting and odd. I got the impression they didn't want me to linger but I ignored them and they finally stopped. I asked a question to another attendant and he seemed annoyed like I was disturbing him. The friendly women security guards were absolutely wonderful! Lastly, free parking was available for several hours as long as you previously registered with the city. Check out the map online for the different locations.

For the price you pay ($27 for adults and $20 with student discounts), there are not too many…read morethings to see here- only 13. It is very unique in the exhibits there are though and for that, I recommend a visit. Some of my favorites were the Experiment 2.C which gives you the same illusion you get when are on an airplane, looking outside the window. The color is very fascinating and the exhibit overall is very thought provoking. It ended up being the favorite for two of the people I was with. Other ones I really liked was the We Are All Made of Light where lights reflect off you and you see your shadow on the screen. There were other exhibits that were really emotional such as Confessions and Where Thoughts Go which I found interesting but at the same time weird as they both were so different compared to other exhibits that I wasn't sure what this place is trying to attract or messages it sends. Each exhibit had enough workers that were willing to give you background about the art and I really appreciated that. As for the parking, we ended up parking in a private lot adjacent to this place which cost $20.

Second year (2019) I've been to Wonderspaces and I had a blast with my best friend but I enjoyed…read morelast year's more. Adult admission this year was $27, which I think increased from last year. If you have a school ID, I strongly recommend to use it! It becomes $20/person +$1 fee when ordered online. It was extremely packed in this area on a Saturday, so plan accordingly. We paid $10 for parking at the lot that's about a less than 5 min walk away. This might be the Millennial in me talking... but there weren't as many photos ops, in my opinion, compared to the other years. There were a few exhibits that I would have liked to see and we signed up for the wait list on the tablets, but it said there were over 100 people waiting, we never got a text back, and then ended up leaving. It seemed like there were a lot of people just waiting around the common areas and I'm assuming it's for those exhibits. On the plus side, it was indeed fun. They serve red and white wine (right under $9), which we ordered and made the trip a blast ;) The exhibits that we did see, especially with the lights and colored yarn, were awesome. I just didn't favor the one in the dark room where you hear a bunch of cars crashing over and over...it got me paranoid... but hey it's art. The confession wall was interesting and sometimes even funny. Overall, it was a fun experience and have no regrets in going! Every employee was super friendly and willing to answer any questions

A beautiful conservatory that houses over 2,000 plants. It's humid and feels like you have just…read morestepped into a mini jungle. It's very photogenic and the best part is that it's free to everyone. Weekday mornings are the best time to visit because this place is popular and gets very crowded. I always leave wanting to purchase more plants for my home.

What do you mean no lilies in the lily pond?…read more Zero. Also, pay parking is awful. I can forgive the no lilies, but the parking situation - abhorrent.

My sister and I visited on a Saturday 8/8 at 1 pm and I was pleasantly surprised by how well the…read morecrowd was managed. It was definitely busy, but it never felt overly crowded, which made it easy to take my time and actually read about and enjoy all the different critters. We purchased our tickets online and used a promo code that saved us a few bucks. Our total ended up being $62.90 for two people, which I thought was pretty reasonable for the experience and the support it goes toward. There were lots of interactive activities for kids, but I honestly had just as much fun learning about everything myself! The animals appeared very well cared for, and I loved the touch pools. The animals would occasionally take breaks from interacting, which I appreciated because it felt like they were being given plenty of space and rest. The staff were also great! We learned so much from the workers throughout the aquarium. Rosy the rosy boa was especially fun to learn about, and I loved seeing the loggerhead sea turtle with a 3D-printed back brace and the octopus recovering from a leg injury. Seeing the care that goes into these animals made the experience even more meaningful. Parking was easy and free, which is always a huge plus. There's also a cute gift shop with some really nice, quality items. It is definitely on the pricier side, but there were plenty of things I liked. Overall, I absolutely loved getting to see these animals up close and learning about them. Such a fun and educational afternoon, and I would definitely come back in the future!

This is a tiny aquarium that you can easily clear in about an hour. I would recommend purchasing…read moreyour tickets online and checking to see if they have any discount promo codes available. Otherwise, you'll be paying around $40 per person, unless you have an EBT card, which brings admission down to only $3 per person. There are about two sections of aquatic animals to explore. There is a penguin section, a small shark section, and a variety of other marine creatures. There is also an outdoor section with a nice view of the ocean in San Diego, which makes for some great photo opportunities. I've been to many aquariums, and I felt slightly underwhelmed by this one, mostly because of the price. Other than that, it's still a pretty nice spot to check out at least once. Parking: Plenty of parking, and it's free!