Highest-rated specialty museums in California by visitors

Written by:
September 3, 2025
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Highest-rated specialty museums in California by visitors

In 1683, Elias Ashmole, an Oxford graduate and true polymath, founded the Ashmolean, the modern world's first public museum. Stocked with his private collection of artifacts, curios, and special scientific equipment, the goal of the museum was to create a center for practical research and the advancement of knowledge. This, Ashmole felt, was a goal "very necessary to humaine life, health [and] the conveniences thereof."

According to figures from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, there are more than 35,000 museums in the United States today. Their collections encompass everything from modern art, like at the MoMA in New York City, to mustard, like at the National Mustard Museum in Middleton, Wisconsin, and everything in between.

Museums are anchors of our communities. The American Alliance of Museums reports that museums support more than 725,000 jobs and contribute upwards of $50 billion to the U.S. economy each year. Three-quarters of Americans agree that museums are an important part of our civil society and have an important role in promoting knowledge and civic engagement.

Beyond their educational and economic significance, museums are just plain fun. Whether you have a developed interest in natural history or just want to learn a little bit more about funerary history (the National Museum of Funeral History in Houston), there's sure to be a museum that strikes your interest. There's simply nothing else quite like spending an afternoon learning about famous figures, arts and crafts, military history, or what else you fancy.

Here, Stacker compiled a list of the highest-rated specialty museums in California on Tripadvisor as of Aug. 13, 2025. Keep reading to see what unique museums are in your home state. Then, make sure to plan a visit. With many museums facing funding cuts due to the current administration's efforts to dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services, who's to say how much longer these treasure troves will be available to us?

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#30. Miniature Engineering Craftsmanship Museum (MECM)

- Rating: 4.8/5 (219 reviews)
- City: Carlsbad
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#29. Oakland Museum of California

- Rating: 4.7/5 (761 reviews)
- City: Oakland
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#28. Buck Owens' Crystal Palace

- Rating: 4.3/5 (568 reviews)
- City: Bakersfield
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#27. Hollywood Bowl Museum

- Rating: 4.4/5 (1,397 reviews)
- City: Los Angeles
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#26. USS Hornet Museum

- Rating: 4.6/5 (568 reviews)
- City: Alameda
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#25. Medieval Torture Museum

- Rating: 4.9/5 (156 reviews)
- City: Los Angeles
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#24. Reagan Ranch Center

- Rating: 4.6/5 (268 reviews)
- City: Santa Barbara
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#23. Mission San Luis Rey

- Rating: 4.6/5 (642 reviews)
- City: Oceanside
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#22. The Marine Mammal Center

- Rating: 4.5/5 (343 reviews)
- City: Sausalito Marin County
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#21. GRAMMY Museum

- Rating: 4.3/5 (906 reviews)
- City: Los Angeles
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#20. The Nethercutt Collection

- Rating: 4.8/5 (855 reviews)
- City: Los Angeles
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#19. The Gamble House

- Rating: 4.7/5 (604 reviews)
- City: Pasadena
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#18. The Tech Interactive

- Rating: 4.2/5 (970 reviews)
- City: San Jose
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#17. The Hollywood Museum

- Rating: 4.2/5 (811 reviews)
- City: Los Angeles
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#16. San Diego Air & Space Museum

- Rating: 4.3/5 (893 reviews)
- City: San Diego
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#15. Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum

- Rating: 4.4/5 (938 reviews)
- City: San Jose
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#14. Charles M. Schulz Museum

- Rating: 4.6/5 (1,195 reviews)
- City: Santa Rosa Sonoma County
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#13. Musee Mecanique

- Rating: 4.5/5 (2,991 reviews)
- City: San Francisco
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#12. Trees of Mystery

- Rating: 4.3/5 (1,290 reviews)
- City: Klamath
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#11. Madame Tussauds Hollywood

- Rating: 4.3/5 (3,390 reviews)
- City: Los Angeles
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#10. Cable Car Museum

- Rating: 4.5/5 (3,791 reviews)
- City: San Francisco
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#9. Palm Springs Air Museum

- Rating: 4.7/5 (2,106 reviews)
- City: Palm Springs Greater Palm Springs
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#8. Mission San Juan Capistrano

- Rating: 4.7/5 (1,627 reviews)
- City: San Juan Capistrano
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#7. Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum

- Rating: 4.8/5 (3,193 reviews)
- City: Simi Valley
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#6. The Getty Villa

- Rating: 4.7/5 (2,592 reviews)
- City: Malibu
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#5. California State Railroad Museum

- Rating: 4.8/5 (2,833 reviews)
- City: Sacramento
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#4. Walt Disney Family Museum

- Rating: 4.6/5 (2,860 reviews)
- City: San Francisco
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#3. Petersen Automotive Museum

- Rating: 4.6/5 (2,541 reviews)
- City: Los Angeles
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#2. The Getty Center

- Rating: 4.8/5 (14,842 reviews)
- City: Los Angeles
- Read more on Tripadvisor

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#1. USS Midway Museum

- Rating: 4.8/5 (25,872 reviews)
- City: San Diego
- Read more on Tripadvisor

This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou, writing by Madison Troyer, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 51 states.

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