As a San Diego resident I take advantage of the Free Tuesdays at Balboa Park, where you can enter a museum for free. This week I went to the Natural History Museum where I got to see the permanent exhibit of animals from several periods, from dinosaurs all the way to modern whales. They also have art work in the form of painting and sculptures that are just amazing.

Right now they have a special exhibit called "All that Glitters" which is an amazing collection on crystals, gems, jewelry and has a lot of information about the San Diego mines, which I previously had no idea existed. Amazing museum for kids and adults.

The only drawback is the regular price can be high, especially if you are paying for several kids. So if you live in San Diego, do take advantage of the once a month Free Tuesday.

There is not much to see here for the little kids, it is best for school aged children. For the money, seventeen dollars for adults, it is really not worth it. Wile you could spend several hours looking at and reading and exploring the whole museum as an adult, for a child it is tough to spend much more than a few hours at most.

My kids are only four so it might be a better destination when they get a little older and can read some of the information for themselves.

I have heard great things about their summer camps. Some of our friends, also aged four, attended the dinosaur camp and LOVED it.

The San Diego Natural History Museum is one of the best museums in Balboa Park. My only issue with the museum is that it is a little bit on the pricey side. The admission fee is $17 for adults (13 and over) and $11 for children (3-12). Kids two and under are free. They are running an online special right now where if you buy on the website, adult tickets are $10 and kids tickets are $8. There is a special deal for San Diego residents where admission to the museum is free on the first Tuesday of every month. The exhibits at the museum are first rate. There is a permanent exhibit of local fossils, several skeletons of dinosaurs, and a huge prehistoric shark hanging from the ceiling. Then there are a series of rotating exhibits that are always very interesting. Currently they have one on Gems and Minerals, and one on the story of water use in California. I definitely recommend this place for a visit, especially if you can get a good deal on the tickets.

Took my 3 year old to celebrate the San Diego Natural History Museum Family Day in February 2011. All of the normal exhibits, plus special events for the kids including live interactive presentations. All you need to do is take out a eight foot boa snake and you've got most kids attention. The reptile wrangler was able to engage with children as young as three and as old as 83. My only criticism of the museum is that it needs a few more interactive displays and a little less in the way of photo/art galleries.

I took my son a lot there. He loved their dinosaur exhibit and also the educational program they have on the weekend "Magic School Bus". It is very educational and we love it.