The museums in San Francisco give the very essence of its citizens and rich culture. If you are looking for something deeper and more meaningful, head to the museums in city. Explore the cultural, artistic, scientific, or historical side of San Francisco with these museums.
We have curated a variety of the best and free museums in city, besides the usual arts or historical ones. Explore and engage yourself with the wonders of science at the museum of science in San Francisco. Get fascinated by the exceptional stories of heroes at war museums or memorials. You can go wow with your kids at the Natural history museums or enjoy some time at children's museums in San Francisco.
Check out this list for an entertaining and enlightening trip to the museums in San Francisco.
Famous Museums in San Francisco
Let's explore the finest collection of museums in San Francisco:
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California Academy Of Sciences
(6138 Votes)
The California Academy of Sciences is science museum in San Francisco and one of the largest natural history museums in the world. Originally established in 1853, this oldest museum in California has an aquarium, a planetarium, and a rainforest. It is located in the heart of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park on a sprawling land of 400,000 square feet. It is also a scientific and education...Read more -
The Walt Disney Family Museum
(3090 Votes)
The museum is dedicated to the life and work of the legendary Walt Disney. It houses several interactive displays, early drawings, awards and artefacts belonging to the company and the man. There is also a miniature model of Disneyland. The theatre at the lower level screens several of the Disney Classics. Pieces related to the famous miniature Carolwood Pacific Railroad that Walt Disney built...Read more -
Cable Car Museum
(6305 Votes)
Cable car museum San Francisco located in Nob Hill, corner of Mason and Washington Street. San Francisco is home to the only cable car system in the world. While many tourists ride the cable cars, a visit to the San Francisco Cable Car Museum is an interesting way to truly understand the history and evolution of this city icon. Here one can see the massive engines and wheels as they ...Read more -
Asian Art Museum Of San Francisco
(1868 Votes)
The museum houses one of the most extensive collections of Asian art in the world. The collection has over 18,000 works of art and artefacts from 40 Asian countries, some of which are 6000 years old. The highlight is the oldest dated Buddha statue in Gallery 16. The museum also conducts hourly guided tours with well-informed docents who provide interesting commentary. Also sample the menu at t...Read more -
Exploratorium
(2780 Votes)
A unique experience in San Francisco, The Exploratorium is an interactive Science, Art and Human perception museum. The numerous museum exhibits are aimed to help understand the world around us in an exciting and challenging way. Do visit the Tactile Dome for an experience that takes you through complete darkness and lets you explore the exhibit entirely through your sense of touch. On Thursday...Read more -
San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park
(638 Votes)
The park features a maritime museum, a fleet of historic vessels and a visitor centre. One can explore the maritime history of the area or even board one of the numerous vessels and feel the wind in your hair as you look toward see from the forward mast. The historic fleet moored at Hyde Street includes Balclutha (1886), the C.A. Thayer (1895), the Eureka (1890), the Alma (1891), the Hercules (...Read more -
De Young Museum
(2281 Votes)
The de Young Museum is a fine arts museum that opened in Golden Gate Park in 1895. The new building that opened in 2005 is designed using perforated copper for the façade to mimic its surrounding park area. The museum showcases American art dating back to the 17th century to modern times. It also exhibits Art, Textiles, Ceramics and more from the Pacific and Africa. One can also find exh...Read more -
Ripley's Believe It Or Not
(1063 Votes)
This worldwide chain of museums is a must visit with over 400 interactive exhibits and 17 themed galleries. The Ripley’s Believe it or Not Odditorium is a world of weird and awe–inspiring artefacts. A fun outing for kids and adults looking to spend a few hours learning about the oddities in the world. Also worth visiting is the Ripley’s Mirror Maze and Ripley’s Impossibl...Read more -
Aquarium of the Bay is public aquarium in San francisco. It located at Embarcadero and Beach Street, at the edge of Pier 39. San francisco aquarium is home to over 50 Sharks and also has Skates, Bat Rays, Eels, secretive octopus, hypnotic jellyfish, sparkling anchovies, Flatfish, Rockfish, frolicking river otters, Kelpfish, Prickle Backs, Sturgeons and several more than 20,000 marine animals. ...Read more -
Randall Museum
(251 Votes)
The Randall Museum is a museum that focuses on art, crafts, science and natural history. It is an interesting place to visit with kids and has several interactive displays. They have the Toddler Tree House and scale Caboose for little ones. They also conduct an array of creative classes that are fun and educational for both adults and kids. The Randall also features a live animal exhibit displa...Read more -
California Palace Of The Legion Of Honor
(1119 Votes)
One of the Fine Art Musuems of San Francisco, the museum displays a collection of European and Egyption across 6000 years of history. Beautiful and regal, the building is an excellent him to numerous Impressionist and Post Impressionist artists including Rembrandt, Monet, and Pissaro among others. Of extra note is the Spreckels Symphonic Organ. Visitors can also visit the Holocaust Memorial nea...Read more -
Boudin At The Wharf
(796 Votes)
The franchise, famous for its sourdough French bread, was first established in 1849. The bread has something of an ionic status in California. Though this is not the first bakery of the franchise, it is probably the most popular, thanks to its location of Fisherman’s Wharf. That’s why it’s now the flagship location. As for the bread itself – yummy! Expensive though. Try ...Read more -
San Francisco Botanical Garden
(459 Votes)
It took a while to build this collection of 50,000 plants over 55 acres. The original plans were laid out in the 1880s, but planting didn’t begin until 1937. The collection is divided into Mediterranean, tropic, temperate, and specialty sections. Especially cool are the Moon viewing garden, the ancient plant garden, and the Andean Cloud Forest. This is not the most advertised of San Franc...Read more -
Yerba Buena Gardens
(492 Votes)
These two public parks were built to serve as the centrepiece of the Yerba Buena Redevelopment Area. To that effect, they’ve crammed it with attractions and things to do. Its highlights are: The Yerba Buena Center for the Arts: A contemporary arts centre where you may find exhibitions, performances, community programmes. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Waterfall: A scintillating 20 foot...Read more -
Wells Fargo History Museum
(138 Votes)
It’s appropriate that the second largest bank in the world by market value have its own museum centres in various towns. This San Francisco one has hosted interesting exhibits. For example, the 2015 special exhibit tells of the bank’s role in the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exhibition. Artefacts, maps, illustrations and images from the exhibition were showcased at the museum. ...Read more