If your New Year’s goals include creating new adventures, or more meaningful family time, Museum Month is a fabulous start.  You have 28 days to explore the region’s gardens, museums, historic sites and cultural centers for half the regular admission.

During February, Macy’s store locations, the sponsor of Museum Month, will distribute a Museum Month brochure and pass, free of charge.  This pass admits up to four people for half-price admission to 39 cultural destinations.

These highlights provide a glimpse into diverse experiences offered through Museum Month:

Whaley House Museum - Old Town
whaleyhouse.org
Welcome to California State Historic Landmark Number 65. Or, as the Travel Channel’s America’s Most Haunted show proclaims: this is the number one haunted house in the United States.

Established as a museum in 1960, the Whaley home originally served as the site for the county courthouse, a school, and a billiard hall in the mid-1800s, among other community functions.  Imagine all the souls who lived (and died) on the property of the Whaley House grounds.  Visitors have reported sensing an occasional presence in the courtroom or parlor, even the sounds of heavy footsteps, or distant scents from the kitchen.  Self-guided tours of the interior and gardens offer both skeptics and believers a grand introduction to San Diego’s interior and architectural styles in the small town era mid- to late-1800s.

USS Midway Museum - San Diego Harbor
midway.org
Step aboard the longest-serving Navy aircraft carrier of the 20th century.  Commissioned in 1945, this “city at sea” now serves as a museum honoring the 225,000 Midway sailors who served our country.  Self-guided audio tours are included and help interpret more than 60 exhibits and features of this ship.  The kitchen, for example, served 10 tons of food a day.  See 25 restored aircraft, climb into cockpits, and ride on flight simulators.  Along the way, WWII veterans, pilots, and museum docents are enthusiastic to share their knowledge of this aircraft carrier’s history and what life was like aboard the carrier when it navigated the high seas for the United States of America.

There’s Something About Seahorses - Birch Aquarium at Scripps, La Jolla
aquarium.ucsd.edu
For centuries, the seahorse has been revered as an emblematic animal representing the mystery of nature.  Today, the quirky appearances of these unique fish and their seadragon relatives — with rotating eyes, elongated snouts, and limbs that mimic seaweed — continue to astound.

There’s just something about seahorses.  Birch Aquarium at Scripps’s newest exhibit showcases more than a dozen species of seahorses and seadragon and ­pipefish kin.  Peek into the nursery to see miniature seahorses that have just arrived — delivered by the male.  Visitors will learn about seahorse habitats and lifestyles, conservation efforts, and journey with Scripps Institution of Oceanography researchers who are studying the evolutionary path of seadragons.

Plastic Fantastic: Allison Renshaw - Oceanside Museum of Art, Oceanside
oma-online.org
Through mixed-media compositions, visitors exploring this new exhibit can link the contrasts among McMansions, plastic surgery, and the excesses of consumer lifestyles in Southern California set in a stunning seaside climate.  San Diego artist Allison Renshaw weaves the tensions between plasticity and culture in brilliant colors and intricate doodle-like patterns.  Rotating exhibits at Oceanside Museum of Art showcase the fine arts of the Southern California region, from landscape paintings to studio furniture, neon, glass, and more.

The Science of... Aliens - San Diego Air and Space Museum, Balboa Park
sandiegoairandspace.org
The search for extraterrestrial life is a natural human quest.  Are we alone?  San Diego Air and Space Museum presents a journey through the science of exploring alien life and the deep reaches of our creativity.  The exhibit provides a look at alien fascination in themed areas, including an interactive “alien communication” area, and science fiction films and props that have stoked our wildest imaginations.  Discover the latest research into extremophiles, from probing the abyssal seas on our own planet — to the cosmos — in search of life.

For information about Museum Month destinations and Macy’s locations, visit sandiegomuseum-council.org.  Some special exhibitions or films may not be included with the Museum Month pass.  Remember that mid-week is a great time to explore with fewer crowds.  Also, with the savings from the Museum Month pass, be tempted to peek into museum shops for commemorative gifts of your visit.

Follow Lydia Sea to Plastic Fantastic on her blog.