Steinhart Aquarium, San Francisco

As a San Francisco native, I have visited the Aquarium, Planetarium & DeYoung Museum countless times in my 57 years! I was thrilled to introduce my grandson to this wonderfully dynamic place this past Sunday. Imagine our disappointment when we were unable to: attend any showing in the Planetarium due to "sell outs"; OR participate in upfront viewing of the rainforest because of excessively long lines; and in finding the cafe closed when we all needed a bit of a treat in the afternoon. My grandson also felt that he saw "a LOT" of environmental, and "green promoting" exhibits that he has learned about in school "all ready". They were quite extensive, and although beautifully presented, seemed to take up the areas that were formerly filled with dinousaur skeletons and animal dioramas. The highlight of our visit, was the South African exhibit with the penguins...And that combined with the interactive tide pool experience, made my grandson forget for a time that we did not manage a Planetarium visit. So, for our combined $100 admission for our party of 4, we certainly would "rethink" another visit and would clearly never plan a weekend visit. On a scale of one to ten, we would give it a strong four +, ...but not much more. It also made me a bit sad to see a remnant of the black, San Francisco "skyline" that adorned the old Planetarium sky, which was sort of haphazardly displayed behind the checkout stand in the souvenier store. Not unlike a discarded Christmas tree after the holidays...Before yesterday, I had considered purchasing a "membership" to the Aquarium for my grandson & his parents for his upcoming August birthday. (I've done that with Zoo memberships in the past.) But will rethink that idea based on our experience. So, go once,go EARLY and enjoy the stunning architecture and the fresh, new ambiance of the facilities. But purchase tickets in advance, and remember, that you may incur long lines to the rainforest and Planetarium sites.