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United States
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California
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San Francisco
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Tours & Activities
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Skip the Line: Exploratorium General Admission
2 h
Skip The Line
Instant confirmation
About this activity
Visit: Exploratorium, Green St Pier 15, The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94111
Kids and adults both will love the Exploratorium in San Francisco! Recently reopened in a new state-of-the-art 9-acre campus, this favorite family attraction boasts a convenient location along the Embarcadero waterfront, between Fisherman’s Wharf and the Ferry Building. Enjoy the vibrant bayside energy of Pier 15, and then head inside the museum with your all-day general admission ticket. Complimentary museum maps are available in English, Spanish, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, French, German, Portuguese, Korean, and Japanese.
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ITINERARY
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Exploratorium Galleries
Central Gallery: Seeing and Listening
Experiment with light and vision, sound and hearing, and motion and spatial perception. Our eyes and ears respond to light and sound waves, but these are just the first steps in perceiving the world. Playing with light and sound is the best way to learn how they work, and investigating real phenomena can also give you a deeper understanding of the scientific process.
West Gallery: Human Phenomena
Experiment with thoughts, feelings and social behavior to see how humans think, feel and interact. Here, you and others are the exhibit, so play with social interactions, observe others and contribute your reflections.
South Gallery: Tinkering
Think with your hands! Making things and developing ideas by hand helps us construct understanding. So slow down, settle in and make something personally meaningful, from playful contraptions to surprising connections between mechanical systems and natural phenomena.
East Gallery: Living Systems
Sometimes life is hard to observe, because it’s too tiny or fast or is hidden underground or in the ocean. Here, investigate the living world to discover what you’ve been missing! Use scientific tools to investigate living things of different sizes, the ecosystems they inhabit and the processes they share.
North Gallery: Outdoor Exhibits
Open your senses to this place by the Bay! Investigate forces shaping the city of San Francisco, San Francisco Bay and the greater San Francisco Bay Area. Watch shifting winds and tides, reveal hidden life, walk across the Fog Bridge, observe human behavior, and find new ways to notice the places we inhabit.
Bay Observatory Gallery: Landscape Observation
See how natural and human forces interact to create the dynamic landscape surrounding us. Learn to uncover the stories embedded in a place by directly observing the geography, history and ecology of the San Francisco Bay region. The Observatory Gallery also offers incredible views of the Bay and the Bay Bridge!
Temporary Special Exhibitions
During the summer and winter holidays, the Exploratorium showcases dynamic temporary exhibitions—ensuring visitors always have something new and exciting to experience in addition to our more than 650 hands-on exhibits, programs and annual events. These temporary exhibitions have featured colossal art installations, social experiments and more.
Duration: 3 hours
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Kids and adults both will love the Exploratorium in San Francisco! Recently reopened in a new state-of-the-art 9-acre campus, this favorite family attraction boasts a convenient location along the Embarcadero waterfront, between Fisherman’s Wharf and the Ferry Building. Enjoy the vibrant bayside energy of Pier 15, and then head inside the museum with your all-day general admission ticket. Complimentary museum maps are available in English, Spanish, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, French, German, Portuguese, Korean, and Japanese.
--------------------
ITINERARY
--------------------
Exploratorium Galleries
Central Gallery: Seeing and Listening
Experiment with light and vision, sound and hearing, and motion and spatial perception. Our eyes and ears respond to light and sound waves, but these are just the first steps in perceiving the world. Playing with light and sound is the best way to learn how they work, and investigating real phenomena can also give you a deeper understanding of the scientific process.
West Gallery: Human Phenomena
Experiment with thoughts, feelings and social behavior to see how humans think, feel and interact. Here, you and others are the exhibit, so play with social interactions, observe others and contribute your reflections.
South Gallery: Tinkering
Think with your hands! Making things and developing ideas by hand helps us construct understanding. So slow down, settle in and make something personally meaningful, from playful contraptions to surprising connections between mechanical systems and natural phenomena.
East Gallery: Living Systems
Sometimes life is hard to observe, because it’s too tiny or fast or is hidden underground or in the ocean. Here, investigate the living world to discover what you’ve been missing! Use scientific tools to investigate living things of different sizes, the ecosystems they inhabit and the processes they share.
North Gallery: Outdoor Exhibits
Open your senses to this place by the Bay! Investigate forces shaping the city of San Francisco, San Francisco Bay and the greater San Francisco Bay Area. Watch shifting winds and tides, reveal hidden life, walk across the Fog Bridge, observe human behavior, and find new ways to notice the places we inhabit.
Bay Observatory Gallery: Landscape Observation
See how natural and human forces interact to create the dynamic landscape surrounding us. Learn to uncover the stories embedded in a place by directly observing the geography, history and ecology of the San Francisco Bay region. The Observatory Gallery also offers incredible views of the Bay and the Bay Bridge!
Temporary Special Exhibitions
During the summer and winter holidays, the Exploratorium showcases dynamic temporary exhibitions—ensuring visitors always have something new and exciting to experience in addition to our more than 650 hands-on exhibits, programs and annual events. These temporary exhibitions have featured colossal art installations, social experiments and more.
Duration: 3 hours
Included
- Entry/Admission - Exploratorium
- Guaranteed to skip the lines
Not included
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Food and drinks
- Tactile Dome experience
- Viator ticket purchases cannot be applied to an annual membership at the museum.
Additional
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Free admission for children ages 3 and under
- All exhibition spaces, stores, dining areas, and all public restrooms are wheelchair and stroller accessible.
- A limited number of wheelchairs and strollers are available for loan, free of charge. They are located at the Info Desk on a first-come first-serve basis.
- Guide dogs and other certified assistance animals are welcome
- Tactile maps for blind and visually impaired visitors are available upon request.
- Coin-operated lockers are located just past Ticketing and the Info desk
- Complimentary museum maps are available in English, Spanish, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, French, German, Portuguese, Korean, and Japanese.
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 15 travelers
Features
Cultural
90%
Tourism
60%
Original
50%
Reviews
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The Exploratorium was amazing. So much to see and do. Kids were active the entire time. Get there early as it will take all day to see and do everything.
This is a fun place to explore. Make sure you check out the view from the second floor balcony. If you get a chance to do the tactile dome, DO IT! If you prefer not to hang out with running screaming kids then pick the nighttime event.
This place is great for small children and the cafe had a lot of healthy choices that my daughter enjoyed. One word of warning if you buy your tickets on viator you CANNOT use it to upgrade to an annual membership. Wish I had known this before I purchased!
This museum is incredible. The exhibits are interactive, engaging, informational and fun for all ages. It is clean, spacious and easy to spend hours there.mthis is a must for adults and children. I would visit again as too many things to experience in one visit.