The ultimate guide to the best museums in San Diego, California
San Diego's epicenter for arts and culture is Balboa Park. This 1,200-acre urban oasis is home to 18 museums (and dozens of gardens, attractions, and fun venues). Visit the traditional institutions here—or swing over to the recently added Comic-Con Museum.
In case you didn't know, Balboa Park shares a zip code with downtown San Diego, and the city's urban core has its own set of eclectic offerings, like the nautical USS Midway Museum and the Maritime Museum. With so many museums in the city, museophiles can pare down their options with this helpful list of must-see museums in San Diego.
(Related: The essential guide to visiting San Diego.)
Comic-Con International is an annual mega-convention of 130,000 sci-fi, superhero, and cosplay fanatics who flock to downtown San Diego in late July. The convention has a 55-year legacy, but the Comic-Con Museum opened in Balboa Park in 2021. Year-round, visitors can wander through exhibits like 'Becoming Betty Boop,' showcasing a century of the history and evolution of iconic cartoon characters. Journey through time and space during Comic-Con at the 'Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder: Where Science Meets Fiction' exhibit, which combines real-life science with the science fiction universe of British hero, Doctor Who. Be sure to visit the Monster Vault.
To better reflect inclusivity, the San Diego Museum of Man changed its name to Museum of Us in 2020. Visitors will spot the museum's 198-foot-tall, domed California Tower well before entering Balboa Park. Guests can tour the tower, whose elements are reminiscent of a Spanish-Colonial church. It was also featured prominently in Orson Welles' classic movie Citizen Kane. The museum focuses on cultural resources from more than 200 indigenous communities from all over the world.
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The Fleet Science Center offers mental stimulation for all ages. There's a good chance your visit will coincide with a school field trip of students excitedly exploring more than 100 hands-on, interactive exhibits. The Fleet is also home to the immersive Eugene Heikoff and Marilyn James Heikoff Giant Dome Theater. In Balboa Park,you can catch an IMAX movie on a 76-foot wraparound movie screen. Explore space with a 360-degree view in 'The Sky Tonight' show.
Trace the roots of breaking gravitational bonds in displays of historical aviation and space flight technology. The San Diego Air & Space Museum has a rare collection of models and some mint condition aircrafts. Go back in time to the Montgolfier brothers' 1783 hot-air balloon. Imagine the bravery of the 1920s barnstormer plane pilots, or inspect the military aircraft of the Vietnam War and World War II. The museum's space-age tech displays are continually evolving.
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The unique, peace-minded House of Pacific Relations is a consortium of 33 International Cottages representing different world cultures. From Germany and France to Israel and Palestine, the cottages are arranged in the middle of Balboa Park like a village. On weekends, the cottages are open to visitors, who can learn about specific cultures, histories, and traditions. Plan ahead and look for special afternoon programs focusing on food, music, dance, costumes, and arts and crafts.
San Diego is a seaside city with 70 miles of coastline along the Pacific Ocean. Just blocks from each other, the USS Midway Museum and the Maritime Museum are floating museums moored downtown along the Embarcadero walkway. The USS Midway is a decommissioned aircraft carrier, with a flight deck filled with 26 restored carrier aircraft, from jet fighters to helicopters. The Maritime Museum is a collection of antique vessels, starring the 150-year-old, three-masted sailing ship Star of India. Other attractions include the steam ferry Berkeley, the USS Dolphin submarine, and the HMS Surprise—a replica of the Royal Navy frigate from the movie Master & Commander.
(Related: Don't leave San Diego without trying these 9 experiences.)
It's all about the kids at The New Children's Museum. Imagination meets creativity with activity-oriented art installations, with names like 'Wobbleland' and 'Disco Rainbow Cave.' Virtual art experiences also aim to be fun, like 'Sketch Aquarium' and 'Wonder Sound.' Children are allowed to get hands on at the Clay Studio and a Paint Studio that features a large-scale sculpture named 'The Loving Dragon.'
Downtown's WNDR Museum is a high-tech, adult version of an interactive children's venue. WNDR is, of course, the word 'wonder' without vowels. You'll want to engage with the wonder of innovative displays that include: A multi-sensory Light Floor that glows wherever you leave a footprint. And a Quantum Mirror room, where 150 mirrors create an infinity reflection billed as an ode to our obsession with screens and the need for attention on social media.
(Related: An neighborhood guide to San Diego.)
A public facility in La Jolla, Birch Aquarium at Scripps is also the public outreach center for Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego. With a focus on marine life, the aquarium houses more than 380 species. Visitors flock to the Blue Beach shark and ray habitat, as well as the Tide-Pool Plaza, with close-up views of hermit crabs, lobsters, starfish, and more. The colorful Hall of Fishes is just finishing a renovation, set to reopen as Living Seas on May 22, 2025.
The flagship La Jolla location of the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego has newly expanded galleries, exhibitions, and a sculpture garden. With idyllic, real-life coastal views of the Pacific Ocean, the MCASD recently expanded its collections of land and seascapes. Outside on the museum grounds, the Edwards Sculpture Garden is enlivened by numerous installations, including the 'Displaced Person' garden planter and a 'Crossroads' sculpture–a combination of city-specific directional arrows and signs with witty maxims, such as 'Words Without Thoughts Never to Heaven Go.'
(Related: How families, culture hounds, and adventurers can spend the perfect day in San Diego.)
Ron Donoho is a San Diego-based freelancer whose San Diego Sun website focuses on downtown news.
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