As a Seattle resident and RBCM member, I keep coming back because the museum is spectacular. While…read moreI was very disappointed to see the Old Town exhibit (one of the most incredible I've ever seen) removed during the museum's "decolonization" process, I believe that part of the region's history could have been thoughtfully presented alongside First Nations stories and culture rather than taken away entirely (like it or not, they are intertwined, warts and all). I just don't get it. That said, the RBCM continues to hit curatorial home runs. Its exhibits are consistently imaginative, engaging, and beautifully designed--whoever leads their creative direction is a bloody genius.

My husband and I are from The States. We are in town visiting family. We visited the Royal BC…read moremuseum and were very impressed! Senior discounts. The displays told a story from the dinosaurs all the way to modern Victoria. Everything was so thought out and interesting. The museum also had a limited time Egyptian display that was fascinating with tombs, everyday utensils and personal items and other artifacts. A lot of information of what was believed to be the afterlife. Highly recommended!

I love orcas, and I love this museum. Great video, great information, and a good time…read more Chair lift available, bathrooms were clean, chairs for sitting all around, and the employees were friendly. Check the schedule before going.

It was quite a small museum. When you enter, you are in the gift shop. From there you purchase…read moreadmissions which I believe was $12 then head up the stairs to the museum. There were some interesting things to look at but I expected more. We spent about 20-30 minutes in the museum.

We had scoped out this as a place to stop with our 4 yr old. We walked over and her entry was free…read more She enjoyed all the buttons to push and the displays, the beginning part through "space" and all the castles and trains. We appreciated the stop. In general, I'm not sure if I would go out of my way to come back but with kids who like small things, trains, dioramas, it was worth doing! I think we were in and out in about an hour. I bet some kids could zoom through in less time (then maybe not worth the price?) and some kids might take 1.5-2 hours, so maybe try to gauge if you think its something you/your family would enjoy. Some displays had buttons that didn't work but for the most part if you looked or read the placard you could figure out what was going on.

Miniature World has some truly impressive displays, and there were several miniatures that were…read moreincredibly detailed and beautifully crafted. It was clear that a lot of time and talent went into many of the exhibits. That said, the experience felt a bit inconsistent. Some areas were much more engaging than others, and a few of the displays didn't have the same level of detail. At times, multiple audio narrations were playing at once, which made it difficult to focus and became a little overwhelming. We also noticed that several of the interactive buttons and TV displays weren't working during our visit. For $19, I don't regret stopping by, but it just wasn't quite what I was expecting. For me, it's more of a one-time attraction than somewhere I'd visit again. If you enjoy miniature art and displays, it may be worth checking out, but it ultimately wasn't the right fit for my interests.

This is a great place to visit. Lots of really neat displays with a gift shop downstairs.read more

This is a cool little museum in a cool little town. It's a little on the smaller side, but it's got…read moresome cool history about the original founders. Upon walking to the entrance, you're greeted by a large anchor, a big motor and an amazing view of the water. A perfect place to snap some photos or just sit and take in the scenery. Entrance is pretty cheap: $4 for adults and $3 for children, seniors and students. Not too bad for a short educational experience, but be warned: It's cash only! Inside you'll see original pieces of the town and duplicated setups of the area's most popular spots like the hotel, ships, bedrooms, and more. They have signs at each spot for you to read and understand what you're looking at. I'd recommend checking it out if you've walked around the rest of Port Gamble. It just gives you a little bit more insight and sort of pieces everything together for you. The lady at the counter was great about providing some additional information if you needed any elaborations and even told us that they do paranormal tours during Halloween. More of a reason to come back, even though she hasn't experienced any hauntings herself. After the tour, they have a gift shop upstairs as well as a cafe. Just gives you another opportunity to fuel up and take in some of the sights. We came during a rainy day and the views were still great. When the sun is shining, I'm sure they are even better! Parking is a cinch. Plenty of free parking all over the area.

A definite must activity in the island. This was our post lunch activity…read more What a beautiful property. We took the time to really check every nook and cranny of what once was a family home. Some of those rooms were super spacious. Our friend was nice enough to narrate the whole tour for our group by reading the leaflet provided at the entrance. Well done keeping the whole property looking pristine.

We actually saw the outside of this mansion/castle 2 summers ago on a city tour excursion from our…read morecruise ship. This summer, we were on a road trip and took the ferry across from Port Angeles to Victoria for a few hours. This was a perfect stop before lunch, and this time we did a self guided tour of the interior. Super friendly people work here. The ticket seller was very nice, the greeter inside the castle set us on our way, and even the souvenir shop lady was exceptionally nice. Maybe its just that they're Canadian? Or maybe they're just...nice. lol Be advised that there's a lot of stairs to tackle on this tour. This is a perfect place to see if you only have a few hours in Victoria. We took a cab from the ferry dock and back later. It was a short ride so not too expensive. Crowd wasn't tooo bad at the time we went in July.

NOT the San Juan Islands Sculpture Park. Due to some of the pictures and reviews, I thought the…read moresculpture garden was here. It is not. The San Juan Islands Sculpture Park is on the other side of the island at 9083 Roche Harbor Road San Juan Island, WA 98250. This museum was great, but not the one we were looking for.

I'm a part-time San Juan Islander and a regular visitor to SJIMA. Over the years, I have been…read moreincredibly impressed by the professional presentation of art at SJIMA. I go to a lot of museum exhibitions. I found SJIMA to present an exhibition that is better than any museum in Washington; better than SAM, better than Bainbridge, etc. I'm not sure what has changed; maybe staff is getting complacent, but the last two exhibitions have been incredibly disappointing. The current exhibition of Andy Eccleshall is flat, does not flow and the lighting is terrible. It really is a disservice to Eccleshall as his work is fantastic. The work in the glass room in front looks like a college student's exhibition. The volume of work in the small room is overwhelming and average at best. Again, something must have changed because the last two exhibitions are not up to what my expectations are for SJIMA. I will probably check out the next one but if it is at the level of the last two, I won't be wasting my time or money again.

Never did I expect that a place that would overstimulate me would be a place I enjoyed so much. Of…read morecourse, it does have to do with pop culture, and pop culture is always a top area of interest to me. The museum building itself is as interesting as the exhibits inside. The curvy building is even more interesting if you take the Monorail into the area. The trains slipping between the buildings just adds to the museum itself. The monorail being a part of pop culture as much as the exhibits inside. There is no wrong way to discovery this museum. Take it in any way that you desire. Make your way through the maze of stairs, floors and exhibits. Again, no wrong way to explore. Level 2 seems to be the best start in my book here. You can branch off in any direction and make your way to what pulls you in. I had no set plan when I came here and started with the Central Galleries. This consisted of three exhibits: Massive: The Power of Pop Culture, Styled by the Streets: Black Women in Hip-Hop Fashion, and Indie Game Revolution. Of the three, I was enthralled by the Indie Game exhibit. If you want to waste some time here diving into games and sitting in front of screen, you can loose track of time. From there, I went towards the South Galleries. Exhibits here: Infinite Worlds of Science Fiction, Fantasy: Worlds of Myth and Magic, and Scared to Death: The Thrill of Horror Film. Each one of these exhibits can absorb a good chunk of time. Science Fiction delving into the worlds of space, robots, and mutations. Fantasy covering the realms of dragons, witches, and wizards. But for me, the horror section. Going down into the minds of vampires, serial killers, and zombies. The pieces they have in this section puts it over the top, and just in time for spooky season. Be sure to take in the scream booth, utilize the stairs here to make your way back to the main section where you will see the faces of the people that used this booth. I then went up to Level 3: Never Turn Back: Echoes of African American Music, Rebels + Icons: The Photography of Janette Beckman, and Sound Lab. Rebels + Icons is a multi level exhibit, the coolest part about this is the staircase to the exhibit. Making you feel like you are being teleported. Then you get to see all the amazing photographs by Janette Beckman. Perfectly paired selections, definitely take in the upper floor that deals with voting and it gives you a bird's eye view of the exhibit below. Sound lab is a time killer as well. Teaching you how to play the instruments to some familiar tunes, even on turntables. Never Turn Back, takes you from the start of African American music all the way to today. Touching on gospel to rap. Level 1: more like the cash out section. Containing Culture Kitchen, Sound + Vision Theater, and Vinyl Listening Bar. This is also where you head towards the exits. Be sure to check out the Museum Store, grab your souvenirs and head out. Plus here, you can reenter by keeping your ticket for the day. So if you needed to break away from here to do something else, you can always come back to finish up before they close for the day.

Highly recommended!…read more I had such a great time at the Museum of Pop Culture in Seattle! There is so much to see, and I loved walking through all the different exhibits filled with incredible memorabilia, artwork, costumes, and pieces of pop culture history... they had horror, fantasy, music, and movies... Star Wars, Wicked, Harry Potter, Zombies, Jason, Kurt Cobain guitar, music studio to try out instruments, video games... there are just too many cool things to mention! One of the highlights for me was the Michael Jackson exhibit. It was really cool getting to see memorabilia connected to such an iconic artist, along with all the other music, film, and pop culture displays throughout the museum. The ambiance of the museum is amazing, too. Even the building itself feels creative and unique, and every area has its own atmosphere that makes you want to keep exploring. There are so many interesting details and pieces of art that you could easily spend hours here. The workers were also incredibly friendly, welcoming, and helpful, which made the experience even better. Definitely a must-see when visiting Seattle, especially if you love music, movies, art, and pop culture. There's something interesting around every corner. I would absolutely visit again!

There is a lot of great local history packed I to these little log cabins. The docent was helpful…read moreand knowledgeable. As you travel 101 on the Olympic Peninsula, stop here from some history then go next door and visit the Joyce General Store.

If you're in Joyce, this former 1914 log train depot is worth a stop. Chock full of local lore…read moreabout Joyce and nearby towns, with a very knowledge and friendly museum staff person. Photographs, newspaper articles, fossils, memorabilia and equipment are included in the collection. Free-very small donation suggested.

My son-in-law and I made our first visit to the museum on a September Saturday morning while our…read morewives were shopping at the farmer's market in town. The museum was farther out of town than expected, about a ten-minute drive south. We arrived around 10 am and found only three other cars in the parking lot. Our first impression was the museum's modern exterior. Inside was just as impressive. In the lobby, we each paid our $12 admission fee before heading in to see the three dozen or more general aviation aircraft on display. Most aircraft were parked on the floor, while another ten or so hung from the high ceiling. The parked aircraft each had a cookie sheet under the engine to catch oil drips. This makes sense, as they do fly all the aircraft on display that they legally can. After seeing the aircraft and checking out some interesting old photographs, we stopped at their bookstore of old used aviation books. I couldn't resist buying one about the 747. We were through the museum and back on the road in about an hour. We enjoyed the visit and will visit again, perhaps timed to a special event taking place there.

The path not taken…read more.. Once upon a time, long before I had a driver's license, a pilot in Fairbanks, Alaska offered to help me get my pilot's license. What to say? Sighhhhhhh...the summer was short, my family was heading home, and it never happened. But.... Had I lived in Port Townsend, WA as a child, it could have. Indeed, it would have. I'd be flying the friendly skies of PT now, even as we speak. But, of course, I might not have time to do this review... www.ptaeromuseum.com I visited the Port Townsend Aero Museum three days days ago. T'was a bright spring day and I was loathe to go inside knowing that the three day forecast was for snow, snow, snow. Chipper Yelper that I am, I went inside the museum anyhoo, leaving the balmy outdoor weather to a small (teenaged) work crew landscaping the front of the building. If the kids were hard at work making the place beautiful for visitors, who was I not to reward their efforts? A small admission fee got me inside the new building. Airplane models hung from the rafters, beautifully restored planes had "landed" strategically about the floors. Placards described each plane and its role in history. Several planes (as noted on the placards) were currently in use as training craft for the young pilots who learn to fly at the museum. My entrance fee (donations from other visitors) is what keeps the fly lessons and the museum going. So I lingered for an hour or so, looking at airplane models, antique cars and some wonderful old flight helmets and gauges. I walked the catwalk around the inside of the tall building, looked at aviation paintings, watched other visitors as they entered the spacious hangar. DIdn't even notice that I was inside on a balmy day. I do have a suggestion or two for future museum exhibits: I'd have liked to have seen a motor, perhaps with its schematic nearby. I would have enjoyed brief "instructions" on the aerodyamics of flight. A checklist of preparations for lift-off and landing would have been fun to look at. (I am told that these are readily available through airplane manufacturers...so a generic list shouldn't be hard for the museum to find. ) There once was a wonderful old hand-lettered sign visible as you exited Jefferson International Airport, which is where the museum is located. It said "Don't forget to close your flight book." Perhaps an actual flight book would make interesting reading. Certainly the visitors' comment book does reflect the numbers of geographically distant folks who tour the museum but no space is included in it for visitors comments. This would be nice. But heck. Who am I to tinker with the success of this endeavor? This is a cool museum. Kids involved in its programs really *do* get the flight bug and occasionally do solo before they get their Washington State driver's license. And as for me? Well, I had a good time. Hopped into my ancient Saturn which was parked in the parking lot. Waved at the kids working on the landscaping. Scanned my gas gauge, speedometer and clock...and said to myself as I exited into the sunny Port Townsend afternoon... What if?? The road not taken. Or rather the runway not taken. Yet.