A wonderful place to live. We are quite close to scenic Riverview Park. The park had great trails…read moreand free Jazz concerts in the summer. The Observatory itself is an amazing historical landmark and I highly recommend the free tours (which require advance registration). We have excellent neighbors here who look out for each other. The annual House Tour highlights some of the great architecture in the community. There are some beautiful older homes in the neighborhood. We have quick access to the parkway and only 5 minutes from Downtown.

We were looking for a fun experience for my husband's big sis, and boy did we find it at Bayernhof!…read moreI couldn't recommend this museum more highly. Lisa, our tour guide, was just perfect - entertaining, enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and fun. Our 2-hour experience was a joy - it passed so quickly! You call ahead to arrange a tour, and Lisa returned my call maybe a day or 2 later. We arranged it for a Tuesday morning at 10am (the other option was something like 2pm). The 19,000 square foot Bavarian-inspired home is atop a large hill outside Sharpsburg overlooking the Allegheny - and with a lovely view of downtown. You come thru the gate and park near the door. Inside, Lisa talks a bit about the foyer - chock full of collectibles - and takes you to the main room with that fabulous view, a comfy room with a bar just off the kitchen. You settle in to wait for everyone to arrive. The lecture there takes about 30mins, & you learn about the wealthy, quirky eccentric, Charlie "Chuck" Brown, who built this quirky home in 1982. He was a total prankster who had very little sense about how to build a really stable home. After his death, the board would save the home for all to enjoy. The real treat is hearing from some of the 165 music machines spread thruout the house - some Chuck collected, some purchased by the board set up by Chuck's lawyer, Dave, who - with Chuck's faithful secretary - took on the Herculean task after Chuck's death of fulfilling his dream of turning the home into a museum. The mysteries of the home reveal themselves as you go - and Lisa relishes in showing them off - from the hidden doors, wet bars (in almost every room! Chuck loved to entertain though he was socially awkward!), observatory, below ground cellar, cave, and pool room with a waterfall. It's great. Lisa shares tons of stories, knowledge, anecdotes, and more. Our favorite of the fabulous musical machines: the cylinder player on the landing that has a tiny dancing black bird figure inside; the singing birds with real feathers (!!) in the bird cage upstairs; the uber-art deco Decap machine downstairs with the purple velvet pool table; and the fringe lamp victrola in the upstairs guest room. As you're walking thru the house, you can't believe all there is to see and learn. We were fascinated! Just go! You won't regret it.

AMAZING! HIGHLY RECOMMEND. My friend is a music lover and I thought this would be interesting…read more He enjoyed it and I loved it even though I don't appreciate music the way he does. The museum reminded my kids of a real-life Clue game - it is definitely worth visiting! I highly recommend.

The Heinz History Center in Pittsburgh is quite possibly the best museum of its kind. Off the top…read moreof my head, I can't think of another major city among the many I have been to across the country that does a better job of encompassing its city's history so well in a museum. I'm glad I finally took the time out to visit, as I had not visited on my many prior visits to Pittsburgh. The museum does have a few exhibits dedicated to Heinz ketchup, but there's so much more from natural history to sports history to the periods of time where Pittsburgh was a national leader in steel and glass-making. I especially liked the "Pittsburgh: A Tradition of Innovation" area and the small space they have dedicated to Mister Rogers Neighborhood. The Pittsburgh sports exhibits are really comprehensive, covering non-traditional sports in addition to their major teams (Penguins, Steelers, & Pirates). Even if you don't care for sports, there's a decent variety of exhibits that are sure to catch your interest. The facility itself is wonderfully modern and well organized, such that it's easy to get from exhibit to exhibit without getting lost. There is a decent gift shop and cafe on the first floor. I'd highly recommend a visit to the Senator John Heinz History Center if you're interested in learning about the history of the city of Pittsburgh, or are a first time visitor.

More of a 3.8…read more This place came up over, and over, and over again on lists of places to go to when visiting Pitt. And, I get why. The place has a bunch of random (could choose a better word here) history pieces. Where the place could do better is expand on some of these pieces. Example, as a huge fan of Mr. Rogers and saying you have a part of the set, ok, yeah, you do, and it was awesome to see, but it was such a small fixture, there could have been more. At 20/person to enter, it's worth the trip since it's relatively affordable compared to some 40-50/pp spots. Can easily do 1.5 hours here.

Attended a 1 hr Behind the Scenes of Dinosaur Bones tour advertised to members. $50 per person 10…read morepeople per group. Limited number of tickets. Well worth money spent. Our tour was led by the head pf the department. The breadth of her knowledge of the museum, her predecessors, and collection was impressive. Did you know that England has a copy of our T Rex in their Natural History museum? Dippy's extra bones need a new resting place. Currently they have been resting on this shelf since 1800's. The wood is injuring the bottom of the fossil. (I think dinosaur lovers would donate the $30k to get Dippy's bones a new resting place.) Researchers come to study the collection. Fork lifts are used to transfer the bones from one surface to the next. A local college student found an undiscovered amphibian while searching for fern fossils on FedEx property by Pittsburgh International Airport. It was named after FedEx and the student: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/100315-new-fossil-amphibian-fedex Great experience! Would definitely attend again. I wonder what is Behind the Scenes of the art museum ...

This section of Pittsburgh has a lot to offer. You would have to take an Uber or Lyft from…read moredowntown. This is a World class combined art and history museum. Your admission ticket includes both the art and natural history museums. Admission is half price after 3pm, but the museum closes at 5:00. A few minutes away from the museum you have the Heinz Chapel, Nationality Rooms, and the outfield wall of Forbes Field.

This museum has something for everybody. Whether you are a youngster wanting to control your train…read morearound a track or an older "youngster" reliving the experience of the trains you used to have or any age in between, this is a must see museum when you are in Western Pennsylvania. The upstairs HO scale display is a thing of beauty and of the history of the rails in Western PA as close to the real trains and buildings existing in the 1950s. Well worth the price of admission and the caretakers/hobbyists are there to provide information or answer questions about the display or about the history of the museum.

I have been to model train exhibits before and have always enjoyed them. Usually these exhibits…read moreare modest in size because of the time, money, hands and other resources required to build and maintain them. Additionally, in my experience they are usually meant to portray hypothetical settings rather than resemble actual places. So, I was quite surprised at both the scope of this particular project as well as the fact that this is a miniaturized cross section of the city of Pittsburgh from 1953 that stretches from downtown toward Ohio Pyle and beyond. Its many historical details are pleasingly accurate as anyone can attest to through research on the internet. For me, I had the privilege of having my Dad and Uncle there (both of whom were living in Pittsburgh in that year and were excited at getting to walk through their childhood city). Walking through the room and experiencing it through their eyes made it perhaps even more enjoyable. I would strongly recommend this to anyone who has an interest in this very specific category of art. It is definitely worth the entrance fee. Also, a huge shout-out to those who worked on creating this masterpiece. Please keep it up!

This place was awesome. It's not a massive space for a museum, but there is so much interesting…read morestuff inside the space. Even if you know very little about Clemente or not a big baseball fan, this museum really walks you through who he was, what his values were, and the impact he made. The employees inside are extremely helpful and knowledgeable too. We did the self-guided open house, and liked it. Also, a MASSIVE shoutout to Mr. Rieder, who ended up talking to me for about 40 minutes as I wandered into a spot I wasn't supposed to. Go here, it's well worth it.

What a beautiful space and such a uniquely Pittsburgh museum!…read moreThe museum is housed in an old firehall that has gorgeous details and spaces. Tours are by appointment or by specific times, so make sure to book an appointment and don't just try to show up and walk in. If you prefer exploring at your own pace, look for when they are hosting open house events. They also often host private events. There is a free parking lot right next door. Plenty of interesting memorabilia both related to Clemente and the history of baseball in general. It is nicely arranged and the spaces are well lit and easy to navigate. They also have a wine cellar and wine tasting! That was a pleasant surprise. There are certain days where they offer 21+ tours where a glass of wine is included with your admission. If you are looking for a unique Pittsburgh museum, this is a fun place to check out. You will find things to enjoy even if you aren't a huge baseball fan.

Small and humble but fun photographic gallery in Pittsburgh's up-and-coming arty neighborhood of…read moreGarfield. An absolute hidden gem if you are looking for something less well-known than Pittsburgh's famous "big" galleries and museums. Regular exhibits of black-and-white photographs are displayed on the wall with accompanying text explaining the thought process and motivations of each artist. The photographic art displayed here is often socially conscious and utilized to make points about gender, class, and culture. While those points are made with varying degrees of success, the photographs themselves are always quite intriguing. In addition to the gallery, there is also a reading room. Several of the photography books are for sale, but it can also be used as a library space. If you want to learn about classic photographers and their art, there are more than enough books to give yourself a thorough education as an autodidact. I have only one caveat about this place that should be taken into account. I want to point out that if you are going here with younger family members, discretion and close supervision should be STRONGLY advised. There are certain visuals you may want to steer away from. The content occasionally goes well beyond PG-13 territory and occasionally into R-rated or NC-17 photography. The gallery portion for example is not unfriendly to nude photographs, and the reading room contains NSFW and explicit titles such as Nan Goldin's Ballad of Sexual Dependency (among others in a similar vein). With that caveat aside, however, Silver Eye Center Photography is one of Pittsburgh's hidden treasures and is very worth your time.

Great gallery, wonderful classes. I enjoy their exhibits and gallery openings. Very good staff with…read morepassion and expertise for photography.

The Beaver Area Heritage Museum is located near the bridge from Beaver to Rochester just south of…read moreBeaver's main drag. It is worth a visit. The museum is opened limited hours however you can stop by anytime to take a close up peek at an 1802 Log House on the property. It is really neat and you and you can peek inside the log house too and see what it looks like and imagine what it would have been like to live in it. Free parking lot in between the museum main building and the log house. There is also a working historic drinking water fountain out front of the museum.