San Francisco Bay Area family weekend planner
Best museums in San Francisco Bay Area
Family-friendly museums in San Francisco San Francisco Bay Area: hands-on science, art, history, and children's museums, plus their upcoming free days and family programs. Browse 30 family-friendly spots and 40 upcoming events on FamHop.
Plan a day with FamHop Weekend guide
Upcoming museums
- Duarte Garage & Lincoln Highway Museum Open House · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Duarte Garage & Lincoln Highway Museum, Livermore · Free
- Free Admission for Dads on Father's Day · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Charles M. Schulz Museum, Santa Rosa · Free for dads; regular admission otherwise
- Open Cockpit Day (Father's Day) · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Oakland Aviation Museum, Oakland · Adults $18, kids 5-12 $10, under 4 free
- Animal, Vegetable, nor Mineral: Works by Miljohn Ruperto · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Cantor Arts Center - Freidenrich Family Gallery, Stanford
- Archive Room: Ester Hernandez |Selections from Special Collections at Stanford Libraries · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Cantor Arts Center - Patricia S. Rebele Gallery, Stanford
- Archive Room: Ruth Asawa | Selections from Special Collections at Stanford Libraries · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Cantor Arts Center - Rowland K. Rebele Gallery, Stanford
- Jeremy Frey: Woven · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Cantor Arts Center - Lynn Krywick Gibbons Gallery and Ruth Levison Halperin Gallery, Stanford
- Moments in the History of East Asian Printing · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Lathrop Library - East Asia Library, Lathrop Library, 2nd Floor, Stanford
- 1,000 Ways to Hold: A New Work By Erika Chong Shuch · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Anderson Collection - Wisch Family Gallery, Stanford · Free
- MAKE! with SCRAP: Drawing with Instructions · Sunday, June 21, 2026
SFMOMA, San Francisco
- Ginsberg at 100: Selections from the Allen Ginsberg Papers at Stanford · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Green Library, Bing Wing - Peterson Gallery and Munger Rotunda, Stanford
- Highlights Tour | Anderson Collection · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Anderson Collection, Stanford · Free
- Public Tour | Cantor Highlights: 1 PM · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Cantor Arts Center, Stanford · Free
- Gallery Conversations | Jeremy Frey: Woven · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Cantor Arts Center, Stanford · Free
- Public Tour | Outdoor Sculpture Walk, Museum · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Cantor Arts Center, Stanford · Free
- Highlights Tour | Anderson Collection · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Anderson Collection, Stanford · Free
- Quantitative Solar Spectroscopy: The Fate of Our Sun | Session 1 · Sunday, June 21, 2026
Chabot Space & Science Center, Oakland
- Summer Escape at Bowes Library · Monday, June 22, 2026
McMurtry Building - Bowes Library, 2nd fl. For visitors, please call the circulation desk for buildi, Palo Alto
- Animal, Vegetable, nor Mineral: Works by Miljohn Ruperto · Monday, June 22, 2026
Cantor Arts Center - Freidenrich Family Gallery, Stanford
- Aquarium of the Bay — animal encounters · Monday, June 22, 2026
Aquarium of the Bay, San Francisco · $$$
- Branner Library Monthly Book & Map Exhibit - The Indian Ocean · Monday, June 22, 2026
Mitchell Earth Sciences - Branner Earth Sciences Library & Map Collections, Stanford
- Ginsberg at 100: Selections from the Allen Ginsberg Papers at Stanford · Monday, June 22, 2026
Green Library, Bing Wing - Peterson Gallery and Munger Rotunda, Stanford
- Jeremy Frey: Woven · Monday, June 22, 2026
Cantor Arts Center - Lynn Krywick Gibbons Gallery and Ruth Levison Halperin Gallery, Stanford
- Moments in the History of East Asian Printing · Monday, June 22, 2026
Lathrop Library - East Asia Library, Lathrop Library, 2nd Floor, Stanford
- Penguin Feeding Talk · Monday, June 22, 2026
California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco · $$$
- 1,000 Ways to Hold: A New Work By Erika Chong Shuch · Monday, June 22, 2026
Anderson Collection - Wisch Family Gallery, Stanford · Free
- Quantitative Solar Spectroscopy: The Fate of Our Sun · Monday, June 22, 2026
Chabot Space & Science Center, Oakland · $
- Quantitative Solar Spectroscopy: The Fate of Our Sun | Session 1 · Monday, June 22, 2026
Chabot Space & Science Center, Oakland · $
- Coral Reef Dive Show · Monday, June 22, 2026
California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco · $$$
- Summer Escape at Bowes Library · Tuesday, June 23, 2026
McMurtry Building - Bowes Library, 2nd fl. For visitors, please call the circulation desk for buildi, Palo Alto
- Aquarium of the Bay — animal encounters · Tuesday, June 23, 2026
Aquarium of the Bay, San Francisco · $$$
- Bay Area Discovery Museum · Tuesday, June 23, 2026
Bay Area Discovery Museum, Sausalito · $$
- Ginsberg at 100: Selections from the Allen Ginsberg Papers at Stanford · Tuesday, June 23, 2026
Green Library, Bing Wing - Peterson Gallery and Munger Rotunda, Stanford
- Moments in the History of East Asian Printing · Tuesday, June 23, 2026
Lathrop Library - East Asia Library, Lathrop Library, 2nd Floor, Stanford
- Penguin Feeding Talk · Tuesday, June 23, 2026
California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco · $$$
- Coral Reef Dive Show · Tuesday, June 23, 2026
California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco · $$$
- Family exhibits + tinkering · Tuesday, June 23, 2026
Exploratorium, San Francisco · $$$
- Summer Escape at Bowes Library · Wednesday, June 24, 2026
McMurtry Building - Bowes Library, 2nd fl. For visitors, please call the circulation desk for buildi, Palo Alto
- Aquarium of the Bay — animal encounters · Wednesday, June 24, 2026
Aquarium of the Bay, San Francisco · $$$
- Archive Room: Ester Hernandez |Selections from Special Collections at Stanford Libraries · Wednesday, June 24, 2026
Cantor Arts Center - Patricia S. Rebele Gallery, Stanford
Top-rated museums
- The Phoenix Collection Tea Museum · Lagunitas
- Military Intelligence Service Historic Learning Center · San Francisco
- Aftel Archive of Curious Scents · Berkeley
- Bolinas Museum · Bolinas
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- Misalignment Museum · San Francisco
- San Francisco Fire Department Pioneer Museum · San Francisco
- Truhlsen-Marmor Museum of the Eye · San Francisco
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- Legion of Honor · San Francisco
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- USS Hornet (CV 12) · Alameda
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- Anderson Collection at Stanford University · Stanford
- Japanese American Museum of San Jose · San Jose
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- Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center · Santa Rosa
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- WWII Pacific War Memorial Hall · San Francisco
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- Cable Car Powerhouse and Barn · San Francisco
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- Randall Museum · San Francisco
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- Exploratorium · San Francisco
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- Musée Mécanique · San Francisco
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- San Francisco Maritime Visitor Center · San Francisco
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- Bay Model Visitor Center · Sausalito
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- Oakland Museum of California · Oakland
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- Golden State Model Railroad Museum · Richmond
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- Rosie the Riveter Visitor Center · Richmond
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- Mills College Art Museum · Oakland
- Vallejo Naval and Historical Museum · Vallejo
- Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum · Fremont
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- Computer History Museum · Mountain View
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- Antioch Historical Museum · Antioch
- Portuguese Historical Museum · San Jose
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- Bernal-Gulnac-Joice Ranch · San Jose
- Asian Art Museum of San Francisco · San Francisco
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