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    Pacific Pinball Museum

    4.7 (678 reviews)
    Open 11:00 am - 9:00 pm

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    Sierra B.

    Such sweet amazing staff who kindly explained the lay out of the museum and answered all my guests questions. I was so excited for the Dolly Parton pinball machine to be up and running since when I came in the summer it was broken. Always a good time for adults or kids!

    One of the games. All free, only a couple out of order.
    Sagruilla P.

    This was a fun way to spend the afternoon with the family (psst, try Groupon for deals). I was mostly going along with my kids and husband, but I ended up having a great time playing games from the 40s to modern times, and reading the history about each game. It truly is a museum, preserving the games and educating people. I especially liked the jukeboxes in each room, playing selections from different eras. We watched the one in the "oldies" room for a while, as it used 7" records. Have a slightly more analog experience and enjoy!

    1 of 3 jukeboxes
    May W.

    I had no idea this place existed. The $22 fee to get in is a bit steep, but all the games are free and you have in/out privileges. There are multiple rooms and tons of pinball machines and 3 jukeboxes. We came around opening at 11am on Sunday and had a blast! Favorites include the Crypt Keeper, Monster Mash, and baseball pinball. We left for lunch nearby and came back to play a few more games. It was pretty crowded by 3pm.

    Bryan C.

    The Pacific Pinball Museum is one of our family's favorite spots on the Alameda island. Be prepared to stay much longer than you expected! This place has so many pinball machines it's mesmerizing and playing with them is so addicting!

    Daphne B.

    I could spend hours in here (and have). Price of admission is a little steep $20+ but it is for the full day so you could play, grab lunch or dinner, and then come back to place some more. The last time I was here was with my dad for his birthday before covid. Back then they just had the two rooms. Now they have a. additional whole 80s/90s room complete with a 90s jukebox filled with my complete high school soundtrack. The guy who ran the place that night was super helpful and explained some of the older pinball games that were more sort of gambling machines. I loved reading about the history of the machine before playing it. Great, unique place to take out of town guests and makes for a fun night on the town.

    George F.

    My buddy Harvey and I dedicated a Tuesday afternoon a took a trip to Alameda to the Pacific Pinball Museum. It's a Museum by name but actually a large pinball arcade. Yes, all of the machines are chronologically placed in 4 rooms with the oldest vintage in the front. I could not believe that I found a 1950's vintage bingo machine that was actually banned and outlawed in the USA because of its gambling use. $22 gives you access to all machines all day. Well both of us played for hours until our necked and back hurt the next day. Super fun. There is a city parking lot behind the museum but it's 2 hr meters so you need to keep feeding the meters.

    Hesper W.

    This was such a fun, interactive museum! They have multiple rooms with different pinball machines to try out!

    Kari E.

    You get a wristband for the day and can come and go which we really appreciated. We came here on a date night and had a blast! The machines are organized by era and it was so interesting playing some of the early pinball machines and some of the super random ones over the years. Highly recommend. :)

    Jamee S.

    What a fun place to hang out. Hubby's idea to take our teenagers. I didn't think we would stay long but after 5 hours, I had to be dragged out by the kids. It's a museum, with lots of historical artifacts and funky art on the walls, but you also can basically play all different kinds of pinball machines all day for one price. Totally worth it. (With Yelp Check-In, it's 2 for $22 on Tuesdays). There are historical pinball machines on display -- the earliest from 1932. But you can play with super old ones all the way up to current ones. You can spend the whole day starting from the oldest one to the latest one. I love that you can play endlessly. My favorites were AC/DC, Seawitch, Star Wars, and Iron-Man. But there were tons to enjoy. I also love the jukeboxes. I think there were 3 -- and you can just select songs to play for free! The music varies from different eras: 50's country, classic rock n' roll, 70's ballads, 80's, and 90's. So fun! I was basically dancing while playing pinball. I love that they wipe down the buttons and flipper switches every hour. You can smell the germ-killing disinfectant! They also have hand sanitizer around the rooms. There are step stools for the littles so they can play too! Staff is friendly and professional. They're all-around cool people. Definitely an awesome place to come with friends or family and enjoy some time off from screens.

    Aryo S.

    I lived in Alameda for a short time over 5 years ago and had first learned about the museum then but never made it in until some months ago. They offer more than 100 pinball machines dating all the way from the 1940's to the present day. You'll definitely learn at least a little bit about the history and you'll see some historical and rare machines. There are several areas/rooms filled with machines and each has a card with information about the year, title, and some history/information about it. Throughout the various rooms and hallways are very cool hand painted murals, vintage jukeboxes and some exhibits. No quarters or other forms of payment for each machine is required as an admission rate includes an all day unlimited pay and depending on the age prices will vary. Besides any street parking around there's also a little parking lot around the corner on Santa Clara street.

    Nathan R.

    $22 for unlimited play for the whole day along with leaving and coming back before the store closes. The staff were friendly and helpful for explaining the rules. The store has 5 rooms full of different types, genres and styles or machines each with a description card to learn more about the machine. They have machines ranging from wooden retro ones dating back the late 1800s to modern ones with a bunch of lights and sound. A great place to go to for pinball fanatics or simply a solid date night activity!

    One of the all time bests.

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    So vast and so much fun. A real Bay Area destination. They also offer senior ticket prices which I much appreciate.

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    Ask the Community - Pacific Pinball Museum

    What bus line from BART can I take to go directly here?

    From Oakland, take the 51A bus to Webster and Santa Clara. From SF, take BART to 12th Street and then take the 51A bus, or you can take the O bus from SF, which picks up in the Embarcadero area of downtown.

    Do you sell pinball machines?

    The museum sells collection duplicate turnkey and project pinballs here: https://pinside.com/pinball/community/pinsiders/pacificpinball/market

    View All 3 Questions

    Review Highlights - Pacific Pinball Museum

    The myriad of games on free play are mind boggling - all for the price of the entrance fee of $15 for adults.

    Mentioned in 61 reviews

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    Children's Fairyland - Willie the Whale spouts water from his blowhole and invites visitors to climb into his belly.

    Children's Fairyland

    4.0(647 reviews)
    2.6 mi
    Not-for-profit
    Kid friendly

    My son and immediate family had such a fun time this visit at fairyland. I haven't been since I was…read morelittle so it was definitely full circle bringing my child. This place has been around since my parents were little and they've been there too! Pretty neat. I used my wic card and valid photo Id for 5$ tickets, I couldn't tell you exactly how many is the cap but there were 5 adults and the kids were free I believe. We went as soon as it opened and the park was not overly packed at all it was really nice. I plan on getting out with my kiddo whenever I get the chance as I saw many mothers just hanging out with lunch for their kiddo for the day and I just loved that idea. Everything was open for the most part except two attractions which didn't stop us from enjoying the visit all around. From what I've learned if you visit the park twice your third visit you get a year pass! I'd say that's pretty convenient being a low income single mother. Hope I helped convince you to go !

    My daughter Head Start School sent us here for Week of The Young Child to have family day which it…read morewas my first time ever going in my life. I think fairyland is an awesome place to bring your children to let them run around & play. I did feel a bit overwhelmed because it was literally every head start in Oakland so it was tons of kids, but I would I bring my daughter & son back again. Also I really enjoyed their Cafe too! Although I do feel like 10.95 is alot for 4 slices of pizza but I understand. It was still delicious.

    Photos
    Children's Fairyland - Happy Dragon welcomes kids to climb all over his back as he lounges inside the gates.

    Happy Dragon welcomes kids to climb all over his back as he lounges inside the gates.

    Children's Fairyland - With close to 60 storybook sets, friendly animals, and 10 acres of gardens, our park is designed to delight visitors of all ages!

    With close to 60 storybook sets, friendly animals, and 10 acres of gardens, our park is designed to delight visitors of all ages!

    Children's Fairyland - Bring your Magic Keys (or pick one up for $3 in the gift shop) to unlock the Talking Storybook Boxes!

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    Bring your Magic Keys (or pick one up for $3 in the gift shop) to unlock the Talking Storybook Boxes!

    Chabot Space & Science Center - Floor map

    Chabot Space & Science Center

    4.0(484 reviews)
    6.1 miOakland Hills

    My little family came here for a first visit on the Saturday of the long Memorial Day weekend, and…read moreit was a delightful and eye-opening experience. TBH, my expectation were kind of high because just the month before, we had visited a planetarium in Arizona that just blew my mind and was so cool (will write a review on that one soon) so I think my review of this Space & Science Center might be a little more serious, ha! To be fair, this is not a planetarium, although there is one here, which is used to show short featured films about different space exploration and nature-based stories which we did watch 3 of and they were really good. However, as a Space & Science Center, the focus is on space exploration by NASA and the science behind it. Specifically, the NASA Ames Research Visitor Center is located here. This place is ok for little kids, but probably better for those about 7-8 or older as they'll actually remember and get something out of this Science Center. When you enter, there's a little gift shop to the right, then you will purchase your tickets (which can be applied towards membership should you decide to buy an annual one) and enter into the exhibit hall on the first floor. From there, the planetarium/theatre is to your right and there's shows to watch every hour on the hour, some of them are a half-hour long, and some are only about 15 minutes or so. Different topics/titles and they do not repeat, so it is best to get to this Space & Science Center by mid-morning and plan to stay the whole day. Next there's a NASA visitor center with exhibits of actual space suits, lots of pictures of historic and current/recent space endeavors and journeys, as well as posters explaining how NASA developed the technology to take us to the moon and different parts of the universe. There are also interesting autobiographical posters written by astronauts and other space scientists on their roles in space exploration. There are a few hands-on activities such as using Kinetic sand, and other low-level simple engineering type of fun experiences for younger kids. Finally, there's also a cafeteria on the first floor towards the back of the building. Prices are a little high, but expectedly so for a museum/science center type of venue. On the second floor, there's several classrooms, and then there are some exhibits from retired space vehicles such as a real module you can climb in and play with that still has all the (non-functioning, obviously) controls. My kids had a great time with that. There were even a dog-space-vehicle/container thing, and lots of smaller spacecrafts and many space suits and miniature replicas of space shuttles on display. Finally, on the top floor, there's the observatory with several huge rooms that contained one telescope each for viewing real stars and planets, although they were all hard to see during daytime and realistically, they're all so far, you can only see like a speck of light when viewing Venus, for example, or the star Betelgeuse. But since it's outdoors, you find yourself surrounding by the redwoods out in nature, and it is just so peaceful and beautiful. I imagine when it gets even warmer later on in the summer, at night, that the night sky would be spectacular here. Overall, we really enjoyed coming to Chabot Space & Science Center. It has something for everyone and my kids, my husband, and I all enjoyed it. It's a cool place to feel the vastness of our universe and the greatness of our Creator, and to appreciate that humans have made some pretty cool strides in exploring and discovering our galaxy and yet we've only just scratch the surface. We'll plan to come back, but may try to visit other similar space centers first.

    My wife loves to find educational opportunities for our family outings. We came on a Saturday, and…read moreit was a pretty cool experience. At the entrance, there's a little gift shop to the right, before the ticket counter (pretty steep) and then the exhibit hall is on the first floor. Since this is a Space & Science Center so it's not technically a planetarium, but there is one here where they show short featured films about nature and space exploration. We watched 3 of them, and they were all pretty well done. So this said planetarium/theatre is on the first floor too, and the shows are every hour on the hour, some of them are a half-hour long, and some are only about 15 minutes or so. Different topics/titles and they do not repeat, so it is best to get to this Space & Science Center by mid-morning and plan to stay the whole day. The focus of this Space & Science Center is about space exploration by NASA and the science behind it. In fact, the NASA Ames Research Visitor Center is housed here. My kids are both older now and they definitely got some learning out of this NASA center, which if they were younger, would be too hard for them to understand. There's exhibits of space suits, pictures of historic and current space endeavors, and displays explaining how NASA developed the technology to take us to the moon and other parts of the universe. There are also interesting autobiographical posters written by astronauts and other space scientists on their roles in space exploration. Further back on the first floor, there are a few hands-on activities such as using kinetic sand, and other simple engineering experiences made into fun for younger kids. There's also a cafeteria on this floor towards the back of the building. Prices are a little high, but expectedly so for a museum/science center type of venue. The second floor houses several classrooms, and then there are some exhibits from retired space vehicles such as a real module you can climb in and play with that still has all the (non-functioning, obviously) controls. My kids had a great time with that. There were even a dog-space-vehicle/container thing, and lots of smaller spacecrafts and many space suits and miniature replicas of space shuttles on display. On the top floor, it's basically an open area/observatory with several huge rooms that houses one telescope in each for viewing stars and planets. They were hard to see in daytime and are so far, you can only see like a speck of light when viewing a planet. I "saw" Venus, but it was just a dot, or for example, I "saw" Betelgeuse the star, haha. This beautiful space is surrounding by the redwoods, so it was a nice area and so peaceful. Later on in the summer, when it gets warmer, I think the night sky would be spectacular here and real nice out even when it gets totally dark. We enjoyed our visit to Chabot Space & Science Center. It has interesting things that should provide something for everyone and we all enjoyed it. I felt the vastness of our universe and the greatness of our Creator, appreciated that us humans have made some significant strides learning about and exploring our galaxy, but there's still so much more we don't know and much more we have to go. My attempt at a deep thought, haha.

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    Chabot Space & Science Center
    Chabot Space & Science Center - We rented one of the telescopes for the party

    We rented one of the telescopes for the party

    Chabot Space & Science Center

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    Oakland Museum of California

    Oakland Museum of California

    4.5(637 reviews)
    1.8 miLake Merritt
    Healthy dining
    Kid friendly

    I have been coming here for years. Specifically for their special exhibitions. They are always so…read moreinteresting and well planned out on display. The museum has three floors and their outdoor garden overlooking lake merrit. They have a little bit of everything, if you're curious about real history and wanting to learn more this is the place. Their annual membership is so worth. As they have several special events. Next to the museum they have plenty of parking. I take Bart as the stop is one block away. Chinatown is walkable for great restaurants. The Oakland library is close by too! There's a restaurant inside the museum while the food sounds great it's okay. I would recommend walking /driving to Chinatown or downtown Oakland for amazing food.

    I can't believe that I used to live down the street from the Oakland Museum, and have not been here…read moreuntil now!! I really slept on this museum, 5 stars all the way!! We came on a Saturday afternoon, easy parking in the garage. There is a lot to see here, it focuses on California and the Bay Area!! There are 3 floors here, each floor with a vast array of art, history, and science. You're never too old to learn something new, a lot of things here caught my attention for real. There is also a garden and lawn area along with a restaurant here, so it's really easy to spend most of the day here. I'm always interested in history, so that was my favorite part here, but everything here was great. And I probably need a few more visits to actually take in everything that this museum has to offer!!

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    Oakland Museum of California - Interior

    Interior

    Oakland Museum of California
    Oakland Museum of California - Ruth Asawa in the entrance to OMCA

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    Ruth Asawa in the entrance to OMCA

    USS Hornet Museum - Old fan in the computer room

    USS Hornet Museum

    4.5(429 reviews)
    1.5 mi

    USS Hornet (CV-12) is the 4th Essex class aircraft carrier built in 1943 and served in the Pacific…read moretheater fighting some of the biggest battles of WWII. Later, after her modernization overhauls, she would serve as recovery ship for the Apollo 11 & 12 moon missions. Now in her retirement, she serves as an aviation and space museum in Alameda, CA. Of the 24 Essex carriers that were built, only 4 remain as museum ships today. We were lucky to visit on a great day with fantastic weather! You have to drive to this remote location on the island of Alameda, a former naval base, where there is ample parking. Being so far away from downtown SF keeps the crowds away, but is not that great for the museum because it doesn't get enough visitors to sustain them financially, so they rely a lot on volunteers and donations. I heard that there are plans to move the ship over near Fisherman's Wharf, which will increase the flow of visitors. I hope that they will bring her in for a nice facelift before that because the old girl is looking a little ragged these days. Let's see how you look when you're 82 years old! From the pier you have to climb a set of stairs and walk over a sloped gangway high over the the water into the hangar. Her hangar deck and flight deck are pretty spacious with not a lot of aircraft exhibits because they are hard to come by these days and Hornet could use a nice sponsor to help. Even so, the exhibits they do have are significant. The historical aircraft span from the WWII ones she carried into combat like the FM-2 Wildcat fighter and the TBM Avenger torpedo bomber, to the jet age of the Vietnam War with the FJ-2 Fury, the F8U Crusader and F11F Tiger jet fighters and recent ones such as the F-14 Tomcat (of Top Gun fame), S-3 Viking sub hunter and the current F/A-18 Hornet. Below decks, you get to do the self-guided tour of the spaces occupied by the crew, from their sleeping racks to the mess decks to see how they lived day-to-day at sea for months. There are also additional docent led guided tours (at extra cost) that will take you up to the bridge in the island superstructure and also into the bowels of the ship's engine rooms. For me as a military history buff, this is what I like to do on vacations and I drag my poor wife along for the ride.

    This is our 5th year attending the overnight on the USS Hornet with the Scouts. Every year we still…read morelearn or see something new. Each year Natalie is amazing getting us booked and answering every question we have. All the docents are so friendly and knowledgeable. Ross is one of our favorites every year, and Steve did a great job as our unit leader this year. The food was good and the portions were generious. The tours were great. Can't wait to see what we learn next year. If you haven't been I highly recommend just visiting, but the overnights are the best.

    Photos
    USS Hornet Museum - F18 Hornet

    F18 Hornet

    USS Hornet Museum
    USS Hornet Museum

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    Junior Center of Art & Science - Junior Center Lobby

    Junior Center of Art & Science

    3.8(12 reviews)
    2.5 mi

    My son attends the carpentry class here. Now going on 6 years, all the staff are really kind and…read morehelpful. Sometimes dealing with kids it can make you impatient but not here. You can tell they all enjoy being here.

    I came across an article regarding the Junior Center of Arts and Science, and knew I wanted to take…read moremy toddler for a visit. I actually had no idea that it sat on the beautiful Lake Merritt, with accessible parking ($2 for 2 hours) near Fairyland. The building itself is small, yet offers enough for a fun-filled morning. One can peruse the exhibits for free. We found the most interesting to be the animals (lizards, snakes, and even cockroaches.) A 47 year old tortoise roams around, and doesn't seem to mind being petted. There are also some coloring sheets for a quick art break. For $2 per child, you can play in the play area. It appears to have once been well maintained, and is painted very lovely, with amazing views of the lake. Today, the toys are a bit sad and worn down, some even broken and a tad dangerous. Yet, for $2, there is little to complain about. My favorite part of the surrounding area includes an awesome bird sanctuary - complete with pigeons, seagulls, cranes, pelicans, ducks, and many other winged friends. There is also a nature center museum and playground close by. We enjoyed it!

    Photos
    Junior Center of Art & Science - Party people in the African American History Room

    Party people in the African American History Room

    Junior Center of Art & Science - Party with us at the Junior Center of Art and Science! Have your birthday party, painting party, and more at the Junior Center. Parties for

    Party with us at the Junior Center of Art and Science! Have your birthday party, painting party, and more at the Junior Center. Parties for

    Junior Center of Art & Science - Party people

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    Party people

    Alameda Historical Museum

    Alameda Historical Museum

    4.9(17 reviews)
    1.9 mi

    A great Museum in Downtown Alameda!!!…read more I've been here a few times, as it's free to enter, but it does close early!! They also accept donations!! From the outside, it doesn't seem very big, but once you go inside, it's larger than you think. The different rooms here are interesting, some are like classic home dining rooms, others feature businesses, Neptune Beach, the Fire Department, just an assortment of old artifacts from the past. There's a very impressive train right when you enter. Also, the people working here are very nice, very knowledgeable and inviting!! Everything is neat and organized, and to really see everything, it probably takes more than just one visit!!! The Island of Alameda has a lot of very interesting history, and this museum definitely showcases all of it!!!

    This is a precious gem of a museum with delightful vignettes on Alameda history and an intriguing…read morepresentation of general historical pieces including Victorian fashion items. I particularly appreciated the inviting welcome and information provided. My personal favorite was the extensive display about Neptune Beach. Did you know that it was once the largest amusement part on the West Coast or that Johnny Weissmuller (AKA the original Tarzan and Olympic swimmer) won a swimming competition there? Note: its open hours are on the weekends only. And I also enjoyed how instead of charging for admission, they offer a clever and unique second hand store for purchases to support operation. I happily found and bought the classic "Operation" game for my granddaughter. I hope you get a chance to check out this treasure soon!

    Photos
    Alameda Historical Museum
    Alameda Historical Museum
    Alameda Historical Museum

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    Pardee Home Museum - Cucumber Sandwiches and other savories

    Pardee Home Museum

    4.8(74 reviews)
    2.2 miDowntown Oakland
    $$

    The Pardee Home Museum has been on my radar for a while as one of the few places in the East Bay to…read moreget afternoon tea. I ended up finally booking the garden for a large party this month and was impressed by the experience from start to finish. It's hard to believe that it's entirely volunteer-led! Everyone I met was clearly knowledgeable and passionate about the house, its history, and its preservation. Making a reservation was easy and the coordinators were kind and courteous during the whole process. The day-of place settings were beautiful and the food was some of the best I've had for tea in addition to being generous and variable in servings. There were even some kid-friendly items (including some non-caffeinated beverages) as I had a few young guests in attendance. The tour we had following our tea service was detailed and informative without being boring. The house itself is incredibly preserved and in immaculate condition. It was great learning about the history of the Pardee family and their influence in the Bay Area, California, and beyond. There were some interactive parts too including getting to touch some antique items and listen to some hand-cranked music players. I will undoubtedly be back sometime and highly encourage anyone who likes good food and vibes or learning about local history to book a visit themselves. If you have people from out-of-town visiting, the Pardee Home is an excellent first choice for doing something low-key and private but still touristy.

    The Pardee Home Museum (Italianate architecture) was built by the Pardee family. Three generations…read morelived lived there from 1868 to 1981. The last survivor put the home in a trust that is run by a Board of Trustees. It's self-supporting and run by volunteers. The father (made money in the mines, was an eye doctor and a California State Senator) and his son was Governor of California who made the poppy flower CA's state flower; reformed prisons; and established the EBMUD. All furnishings and collections are original and left intact. The tour is about 1.5 hours. Tour was educational and interesting - it covers the entire residence of 3 floors. The tour guide was nice and knowledgeable. She kept the tour intense so you wanted to know more. She gave insights and tibits of the family. All questions were answered. The afternoon tea is delightful. The food is prepared from scratch with lots of love from the volunteers. They were friendly, personable and thoughtful. Since it was the day before Easter, they put some Easter bunny theme to the tea. Just lovely people who made a delcious three course of food assortment. I definitely recommend the tour to learn about Oakland history and to visit one of the last standing historical mansions. Tea was authentic - no crust on the bread :)

    Photos
    Pardee Home Museum - Tons of teapots!

    Tons of teapots!

    Pardee Home Museum - Apricot tarts

    Apricot tarts

    Pardee Home Museum - Such a wide variety of collectibles

    See all

    Such a wide variety of collectibles

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