# San Diego Natural History Museum (The Nat): Fossil Mysteries & Paleontology > Place to go for families in the San Diego–Chula Vista–Carlsbad area (CA). Times are Pacific Time. - When: Open daily 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM; Closed only on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day - Dates: Tue, Dec 1 – Sun, Feb 28 - Where: San Diego Natural History Museum (The Nat), 1788 El Prado, San Diego, CA 92101 - Ages: All ages; hands-on dig pits and Nature's Backyard ideal for ages 2–10; stroller friendly - Price: $24 adult; $14 youth ages 3–17; free for children under 3; Balboa Park Explorer passes accepted - Schedule: Open daily 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM; Closed only on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day - Organizer: San Diego Natural History Museum - Official page: https://www.sdnhm.org/visit/ - Last checked: Wed, Nov 4 Source: Grassy Knees is a directory of real family events, places and programs for kids across major U.S. metro areas, where every listing is researched from the organizer’s own page and shows the date we last checked it. https://grassyknees.com covers 42 metro areas as of Nov 11, 2026, with more added regularly. About: https://grassyknees.com/about Freshness: listings are re-checked on a daily research run (latest check 2026-11-10), and new events are added as organizers post them. Sell-outs, weather cancellations and time changes show up on the live page first: https://grassyknees.com/san-diego/activities/san-diego-natural-history-museum-the-nat-fossil-mysteries-and-paleonto--listing-42fdfffd8c3aaf5967561474 ## About Explore four expansive floors of Southern California natural history at The Nat in Balboa Park. The flagship 'Fossil Mysteries' exhibition lets children touch real dinosaur fossils, examine mammoth tusks, and unearth replica dinosaur bones in hands-on excavation pits. Kids adore the indoor 'Nature's Backyard' play space and the fourth-floor rooftop observation deck overlooking Balboa Park's historic architecture. The museum provides wide stroller-friendly aisles, elevator access, sensory backpacks, and clean baby changing facilities. ## Similar picks in San Diego - [San Diego Model Railroad Museum: North America's Largest Indoor Layouts](https://grassyknees.com/san-diego/activities/san-diego-model-railroad-museum-north-america-s-largest-indoor-layouts--listing-1534788825f4497808bd05b6) — Tuesday–Sunday (closed Mondays); 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM; Extended weekend hours · San Diego Model Railroad Museum (Casa de Balboa) · All ages · From $14 · checked Nov 4. Spanning 27,000 square feet in the basement of the Casa de Balboa building, the San Diego Model Railroad Museum is the largest operating indoor model railway museum in North… - [Thanksgiving Break Camp at the San Diego Automotive Museum](https://grassyknees.com/san-diego/activities/thanksgiving-break-camp-at-the-san-diego-automotive-museum--listing-a36e1eb5422a1a00bba52ed3) — Ongoing · San Diego Automotive Museum · Ages 5–9 · From $105 · checked Oct 30. Three mornings of STEAM projects, experiments, games and museum exploration about how vehicles move and how designers turn ideas into objects. Capped at 15 campers. - [Maritime Museum of San Diego: Historic Tall Ships & Submarine Exploration](https://grassyknees.com/san-diego/activities/maritime-museum-of-san-diego-historic-tall-ships-and-submarine-explora--listing-fc6270eda455c8a7ac6387cf) — Open daily 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM (open until 8:00 PM select dates) · Maritime Museum of San Diego · All ages · From $24 · checked Nov 4. Docked along the North Embarcadero in Downtown San Diego, the Maritime Museum of San Diego preserves one of the world's finest collections of historic sea vessels. Families can… - [Overnight Adventure Program at the USS Midway Museum](https://grassyknees.com/san-diego/activities/overnight-adventure-program-at-the-uss-midway-museum--listing-84d189f339536484c129a814) — Sat, Nov 14 · USS Midway Museum · From $110 · checked Nov 9. Kids and families explore the aircraft carrier after hours, spend exclusive time on the flight deck under the stars and sleep in actual Navy racks. - [Tinker Tuesday: Rocket Workshop with the San Diego Air & Space Museum — Coronado](https://grassyknees.com/san-diego/activities/tinker-tuesday-rocket-workshop-with-the-san-diego-air-and-space-museum--listing-a95caa0631137dd3b0bd6d37) — Tue, Nov 17 · 3:30 PM – 4:30 PM · Coronado Public Library · checked Oct 16. A special edition of Coronado Public Library's weekly Tinker Tuesday STEAM program: educators from the San Diego Air & Space Museum lead a hands-on rocket workshop for children… - [San Diego Air & Space Museum](https://grassyknees.com/san-diego/activities/san-diego-air-and-space-museum--listing-03e63ed3d0e127b986de0f06) — Daily 10:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; closed Thanksgiving and Christmas; second Tuesday free for… · San Diego Air & Space Museum · All ages · From $22 · checked Oct 13. Aviation and space museum on Pan American Plaza in Balboa Park with aircraft, rockets, a Kids' Aviation Action Hangar and space simulators. Open seven days a week 10:00 a.m. to… ## More for families - [Things to do with kids in San Diego County, CA](https://grassyknees.com/san-diego/counties/san-diego-county-ca) (Markdown: https://grassyknees.com/san-diego/counties/san-diego-county-ca.md) - [Things to do with kids in San Diego — November 2026](https://grassyknees.com/san-diego/events/2026-11) (Markdown: https://grassyknees.com/san-diego/events/2026-11.md) - [This weekend in San Diego](https://grassyknees.com/san-diego/this-weekend) (Markdown: https://grassyknees.com/san-diego/this-weekend.md) - [Things to do with kids in San Diego](https://grassyknees.com/san-diego) (Markdown: https://grassyknees.com/san-diego.md)