A Guide To Balboa Park’s Museums

Balboa Park is a gem of San Diego. This expansive park features everything from cafes and gardens to museums and an archery range. This is our guide to the museums in Balboa Park.

A Guide to Balboa Park’s Museums

Consider Buying a Park Pass

For travelers planning to spend several days in San Diego, purchasing the Parkwide Pass for the many museums at Balboa Park offers good value. This pass costs $67 for adults and offers one admission to each participating museum at the park within seven days. Purchasing this pass allows you to check out all the great museums without feeling hurried during your visits. A cheaper alternative is purchasing the Limited Pass. This option allows you to visit up to four museums in one day. The Limited Pass costs $56 for adults and also offers good value.

Balboa Park features 18 museums on its 1,200-acre property. The park passes at Balboa offers admission to the following museums: Centro Cultural de la Raza, Japanese Friendship Garden, Mingei International Museum, Museum of Photographic Arts, Fleet Science Center, San Diego Air and Space Museum, San Diego Art Institute, San Diego Automotive Museum, San Diego History Center, San Diego Model-Railroad Museum, the San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego Museum of Us, theNAT (San Diego Natural History Museum), Timken Museum of Art, Veterans Museum and Memorial Center, and the Worldbeat Center.

Some of our Favorites

For a world tour of folk art, crafts, and objects from around the globe, we recommend the Mingei International Museum. This unique museum showcases more than 25,000 objects from 141 countries around the world. From abstract sculptures to carved figurines, the Mingei has it all.

A trip to Balboa Park would not be complete without a visit to the Japanese Friendship Garden. The Garden reflects the bond that San Diego shares with its sister city, Yokohama, Japan. Its simplicity and beauty make it one of the greatest marvels of the park. In the Japanese Friendship Garden, you’ll find a bonsai exhibit, cherry blossom trees, and the world’s largest and oldest bronze Kannon statue in the country.

The San Diego Museum of Art is another must-visit attraction in Balboa Park. This world-class museum features art from all around the world and is the region’s oldest and most-visited art museum. Showcasing Spanish and Italian master artists as well as South Asian paintings and American paintings and sculptures, the San Diego Museum of Art has it all.

How to Plan for a Day at Balboa Park

Whether you’re buying one of the park passes or not, Balboa Park is one of our top things to do in San Diego. With cafes, museums, and attractions abound, Balboa Park has the perfect mix of indoor and outdoor activities. The sprawling nature of the park offers plenty of places to hang out and soak up the sun. We recommend bringing the essentials for a picnic and planning to spend a full day in Balboa Park. That means water, a blanket, a speaker, snacks, and something to read if you are visiting Balboa Park alone.

Although admission to the Comic-Con Museum is not eligible with the Parks passes, we highly recommend checking out this gem. We recommend buying a ticket early in the day and spending a few hours wandering the many floors of this magnificent museum. Whether you’re a comic book fan or not, you’re bound to come away appreciating the tremendous artwork of classic American comics after a day at the museum.

Pro tip: if you’re a fan of archery, consider checking out the Rube Powell Balboa Park Archery Range. This expansive patch of greenery features a series of targets that are open for use year-round. Tournaments are also held twice a month. Each target ranges from 5 to 80 yards. It costs $2 to use the range, and you must bring your own supplies.

As with all archery ranges, you must walk in the proper direction! It is just like a golf course in this way. The entrance to the range can be found on the south side of the Cabrillo Bridge, near the southwest corner of the Alcazar Garden Parking Lot.

Are you looking to see more of Balboa Park? Watch this video!

The best way to experience Balboa Park is to buy a park pass and spend a few days exploring its many museums and attractions. Once you’ve cruised through the park, head over to our ITH Adventure Hostel in Little Italy. We’re within walking distance of Balboa Park, or just a short car ride away.

Make sure to join our Traveler’s Club as a way to save on your future bookings at ITH. It’s free and easy to sign up!