Best Museums & Educational Spots for Kids
Explore the best best museums & educational spots for kids options for kids and families in Encinitas
San Diego Botanic Garden
Sprawling locale with unique vegetation. Large botanical garden with vistas & four miles of trails featuring flowering trees, palms & bamboo.
San Dieguito Heritage Museum at the Heritage Ranch
Community history, artifacts & exhibits. 1-acre property & museum of the history of San Dieguito in photos, stories & hands-on displays.
Batiquitos Lagoon Foundation
Coastal wetland & nature reserve. Protected wetland habitat with on-site parking & wildlife-viewing opportunities.
LEGOLAND California
Vibrant Lego-themed hotel with a pool. Vivid Lego-themed quarters in a lively hotel offering dining, an outdoor pool & free breakfast.
SEA LIFE Aquarium
Oceanic exhibits & play areas. Family-friendly exhibits featuring more than 5,000 sea creatures, plus a play area & group packages.
Fun Town
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Museum of Making Music
Galleries of instruments & live events. A museum about making music with galleries of instruments, special exhibitions & live events.
Agua Hedionda Lagoon Foundation (Discovery Center)
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Craftsmanship Museum
Museum featuring metal & wood models. Miniature models of engines, buildings & vehicles made of metal & wood are displayed at this museum.
Palomar College Planetarium
Modern Astrotec dome with Friday shows. Modern campus planetarium features a 50-foot Astrotec dome with public shows every Friday evening.
California Surf Museum
Historic boards, iconic surfers & more. Surf museum chronicles the history of the sport with exhibits of surfboards, famous surfers & more.
Oceanside Museum of Art
National & global artwork in a mod space. This contemporary building presents a rotating collection of modern art pieces & cultural events.
Los Penasquitos Adobe
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Alta Vista Botanical Gardens
Botanical park integrating art & gardens. Botanical gardens dotted with works of art offering native plants, a lotus pond & ongoing classes.
Birch Aquarium
Up-close marine life & hands-on exhibits. Interactive tide pools & exhibitions for all things under the sea in an oceanside building.
Antique Gas & Steam Engine Museum
Historical exhibits of rural life. Farming history via exhibits & demonstrations of old steam tractors, plus blacksmithing & weaving.
Muramid Art Studio of Joanne Tawfilis
Huge global collection of murals. Thousands of murals painted on canvas from around the world, plus events & rotating exhibits.
Heritage Park & Museum
Historic buildings & a gazebo. Park featuring many early 1900s buildings from downtown Oceanside & a gazebo for events.
California Center for the Arts, Escondido
Visit this great place for kids and families!
San Diego Children's Discovery Museum
Playful, hands-on exhibits for kids. Lively indoor & outdoor museum providing interactive educational exhibits for children.
EcoVivarium
Reptile, amphibian & arthropod museum. Nonprofit museum dedicated to reptiles, amphibians & arthropods with hands-on encounters.
Junípero Serra Museum
Spanish Mission-style building on a hill. A Spanish Revival-style structure built to showcase the collection of the San Diego History Center.
Old Town San Diego State Historic Park
Open-air living-history museum. Open-air museum about local life in the 1800s, with adobe buildings & interpretive performances.
Marston House
Tours of a historic Craftsman cottage. This 1905 house exemplifies the Arts & Crafts movement, plus features period furniture & pottery.
Balboa Park
Multi-attraction park covers 1,200 acres. Sprawling outdoor destination is home to the city's renowned zoo, museums, gardens & more.
The San Diego Museum of Art
Renowned collections & an outdoor eatery. Venerable art museum with acclaimed works, plus a courtyard bar/bistro with sculpture garden views.
Museum of Us
Anthropology displays in historic digs. Museum in an ornate 1915 building featuring eclectic anthropology exhibits & a panoramic tower.
Timken Museum of Art
Intimate, curated 5-room gallery. This 5-room museum is a host to European paintings, bronze sculptures & 17th-century tapestries.
San Diego Natural History Museum
Big, comprehensive science museum. Large natural history museum with rotating displays on animals, dinosaurs & earth science.
Mingei International Museum
Exhibits on folk art, craft & design. Museum located in a historic building showcases folk art, craft & design from all over the globe.
San Diego Model Railroad Museum
Scale models of California railroads. Kid-friendly museum featuring many working scale models of California rail lines & landscapes.
Japanese Friendship Garden & Museum
Bonsai trees, koi ponds & garden tours. Balboa Park's Japanese gardens have koi ponds, bonsai trees, garden tours & more.
Fleet Science Center
Hands-on exhibits & an IMAX theater. Educational center with hands-on exhibits, a planetarium, an IMAX theater & interactive displays.
Maritime Museum of San Diego
Destination for restored antique ships. Waterfront venue showcasing many types of restored vintage ships & historical exhibits.
San Diego Air & Space Museum
Aviation history exhibits & a gift shop. Popular place with historical aircraft/spacecraft & interactive exhibits, plus a gift shop & grill.
San Diego Firehouse Museum
Vintage engines, alarms & gear. Antique fire engines, alarms, hats & hydrant molds are displayed in the city's oldest firehouse.
USS Midway Museum
Historic aircraft carrier with exhibits. Life-at-sea exhibits, restored planes & flight simulators aboard this legendary aircraft carrier.
San Diego Air & Space Museum Gillespie Field Annex
Models & restored aircraft on display. This museum dedicated to aviation & space technology boasts a number of models & restored aircraft.
The New Children’s Museum
Hands-on artwork & creative play spaces. From creative classes to climbable sculptures, contemporary art for kids, in a bright, modern space.
Chicano Park Museum and Cultural Center
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Explore More Activities
Discover more events and activities happening in Encinitas.