TravelCent

USS Midway in San Diego

In Southern California, there’s a number of floating museums, such as the Queen Mary in Long Beach or the Star of India in San Diego. Also in San Diego, there’s one of the most remarkable ships you’ll ever set foot on –the USS Midway , a veritable floating city with 50 years of world history. This aircraft carrier is the longest-serving vessel of U.S. Navy in the 20th Century, and admission to it allows you and your family to take a self-guided audio tour, viewing over 60 exhibits and 25 restored aircraft.

The exhibits include the engine room, the ship’s brig, a post office, machine shops, pilots’ ready rooms, an immense galley and the crew’s sleeping quarters. Throughout the ship, you’ll meet museum lecturers, people who can provide personal stories of life aboard ship, as well as many other statistics and anecdotes.

Most likely, the harbor will be a brief taxi drive or even walk from your San Diego hotel , allowing you to maximize your time aboard ship. Most guests spend as much as three to four hours exploring the carrier. In addition to all the artifacts and planes, there are activities aimed at the family, including different types of flight simulators, short films and music videos, even aircraft and cockpits.

Flight simulators include Strike Fighter 360, where two people can board a state-of-the-art machine that rolls, somersaults, spins and loops; Mach Combat, which contains double-seat simulators for pilot and co-pilot as well as single seat simulators, allowing you to fly for ten minutes of pre-flight and thirty minutes of flight in which you’ll be put through basic aircraft maneuvers and dogfights; and Flight Avionics, which is a group motion simulator that accommodates 12 guests at a time and features a launch from the deck and air-to-air combat in a F-18 Hornet.

It’s possible to see this amazing museum on the water everyday from ten in the morning to five in the afternoon, except for Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. Last admission on the ship is at four p.m., and the cost of general admission is $18 dollars. For those over 62 or students, the cost is $15 dollars. Retired military may board for ten dollars; young people from six to 17 may also board for ten dollars. Children five and younger may come aboard for free, as well as active-duty military personnel (and reservists).

If you’re looking for something to do this July 4, you’ll find that the museum will welcome guests aboard after hours for an “Apple Pie 4th of July!” Tickets for these festivities go on sale as of June 10th and are $15 for adults (whether they’re military, retired military and seniors or not), and ten dollars for children (those 17 years old and under).

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