Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History

Very inexpensive $5 for adults, kids are free and adult students are $3. It was very cool we had a great time. It’s small but very informative. They had a lot of local animal taxidermy , fossils, bones , they had live animals , bee colony & sea life . But the best part was the gift shop … check out this amazing book we scored there … see photos ..

lovely museum by the water with a surprisingly comprehensive set of exhibits about the natural history of santa cruz. perfect for visitors of all ages , with interactive exhibits too!

Great museum with lots of fun activities and variety of wildlife exhibits. Our 3rd grader loved learning here. Please visit the trees around the Park out front and walk along the path it’s calm and peaceful💜

We loved it! Wasn’t planned on stopping by Love how they include Spanish translation ❤️ Very cute museum

A tiny 100-year historic natural history museum. It is a MUST visit if you have kids, won't take more than an hour since it is so TINY inside. Lots of taxidermied birds and animals of the region and some interactive fossil digs and digital microscope. Kids are FREE and adults pay $5. Stuff in the gift shop are so well curated that it is hard to walk away without buying some stuff. And the kids can play on the life-size whale and baby whale outside under the trees while the parents can relax on the seats. Very idyllic. Bonus: right in front of the museum is SeaBright Beach, which is perfect and MUCH better for families compared to the chaotic beach in front of the boardwalk.

Cute, intimate experience & the iconic whale that kids love to climb has been there for decades! This location has plenty of parking and easy for grandparents to navigate because there are inky a few steps from the parking lot! This is the perfect intimate place to bring young naturalist to learn about plants, animals of Santa Cruz. There’s a young children’s craft table and curator to assist and guide the children with projects. The seaweed kelp artist exhibit was interesting and I bought a box of gift cards as a memento of our visit here! If you have time for a picnic take the kids across the street to Seabright Beach & enjoy the afternoon.

Great little museum! Fascinating exhibits that show both modern and ancient local animals. The fossils on display are great examples of what can be found at the cliffs at New Brighton Beach.

Our family was visiting Capitola Beach on a Wednesday in June, and we had planned a visit to the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History as one of our activities for the kids. We were looking forward to exploring the exhibits and learning about the natural history of the area. Unfortunately, upon arriving at the museum, we discovered it was closed for an exhibit installation. This was incredibly disappointing, especially as we had driven specifically to the museum as part of our day's itinerary. To add to our frustration, even the outdoor areas, including their notable whale installation, were completely fenced off and inaccessible. There was truly nothing for us to see or interact with upon arrival. The most frustrating aspect of this experience was the complete lack of advance notice regarding the closure. We had checked the museum's official website prior to our visit, and there was no mention whatsoever of an upcoming closure for installation or any other reason. This oversight in communication led to a wasted trip and two very disappointed children. While I cannot comment on the quality of the museum's exhibits or the experience within its walls, I can strongly advise future visitors to double-check their plans directly with the museum, perhaps by calling ahead, even if their website indicates regular operating hours. It's crucial for institutions like the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History to keep their online presence accurate and up-to-date, especially when closures impact visitor plans. We understand that exhibit installations are necessary for museums to offer fresh and engaging content, but proper public notification is essential. We hope that in the future, the museum will improve its communication protocols to prevent other families from having a similar experience. We were genuinely looking forward to our visit and left feeling quite let down by the lack of information and the total inaccessibility of the grounds.