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USS Midway Museum

USS Midway Museum Tours

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Skip the Line: USS Midway Museum Admission Ticket in San Diego

Badge of ExcellenceSan Diego, United States

From $31.00

Select Date and Travelers

Reserve Now & Pay Later
Secure your spot while staying flexible
Free cancellation
Up to 24 hours in advance.
San Diego Tours
All San Diego Tours
Audio Guides
Kid-Friendly
Likely To Sell Out
Unique Experiences
  • 2 to 5 hours (approx.)
  • Mobile ticket
  • Offered in: English

Overview

Take a trip through American naval history with admission to the USS Midway Museum in San Diego. This enormous ship, known as the longest-serving aircraft carrier of the 20th century, now offers a range of interactive exhibits, a self-guided audio tour and numerous restored aircraft across its 4-acre (1.6-hectare) flight deck and sections below. It’s an essential piece of San Diego’s, and America’s, military history.
  • Skip the Line: Proceed directly to the front gate for admission
  • Visit one of the largest aircraft carriers in the US Navy fleet
  • Enjoy over 60 exhibits including the flight deck, galley, engine room and more
  • Audio tour included in the admission price is available in English, Japanese, Spanish, French, German and Mandarin
  • A must for the entire family

What's Included

  • Audio Tour
  • All taxes, fees and handling charges
  • Embarcadero Adventure Offers including discounts for other nearby attractions
  • World famous Midway volunteers will bring the flight deck alive
  • Ability to skip the ticketing line - does not apply to lines within the attraction.
  • Gratuities
  • Hotel pickup and drop off
  • Parking: please note that during the summer, parking is limited and early arrival is encouraged.

Meeting And Pickup

Start time

Opening hours

  • 1/3/2023 - 4/16/2024

    Monday - Sunday : 12:00 AM - 11:30 PM

What To Expect

Climb aboard the USS Midway carrier in San Diego, a former naval vessel that now plays home to a fascinating range of exhibits on the American military. It’s a fascinating way to learn about military history along with an iconic piece of Americana.

Begin your USS Midway visit on downtown San Diego’s Embarcadero, boarding the ship any time during its regular hours of operation. This marvel of engineering once housed more than 4,500 crew members across its various decks, and served in the US Navy between 1945 and 1992, making it the longest-serving aircraft carrier of the 20th century. Over the years more than 225,000 sailors have walked its sturdy decks.

Once on board the ship, you have a range of options to explore. For more than a decade this famous carrier was the largest ship in the world (too large to fit through the Panama Canal, in fact), so there’s no shortage of things to do. Continue on a self-guided audio tour, told through the stories of the ship’s former officers and sailors.

Or visit some of the 65 highlighted locations throughout the vessel, covering its bridge to its engine room. There’s also 25 restored aircraft lining its deck and a range of interactive exhibits to suit visitors of all ages. You can also get a better sense for life at sea as you explore the ship’s restored living quarters, including the galleys, sleeping quarters and officer’s country.

Before you go, don’t forget to check out the flight simulator, and make sure to stop by the gift shop and café to cap off your visit.

USS Midway Museum

Admission Ticket Included

Additional Info

  • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
  • Complimentary, loaner wheelchairs are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
  • Elevator access from Navy Pier onto the ship, from the hangar deck down to the second deck and up to the flight deck
  • Approximately 60 percent of the museum’s exhibits are wheelchair accessible.
  • Narrated video tour of all museum exhibits is shown continuously in the hangar deck
  • Parking is available adjacent to Midway for an additional fee through Ace parking.
  • Wheelchair accessible
  • Stroller accessible
  • Service animals allowed
  • Near public transportation
  • HOURS ARE 10AM TO 5PM HOWEVER LAST ADMISSION IS 4PM.
  • Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

  • For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
  • If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
  • Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
  • Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.

about cancellations.

Traveler Photos

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Traveler Tips

If youre a Top Gun fan or a military enthusiast - this is a must!
Really cool to explore the ship on your own at your own pace with knowledgeable friendly staff there to guide you
Reviews
5.0
1,424 reviews
Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews
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Reviews by Viator travelers.
Showing 1-10 of 1,424 reviews
Awesome trip
Luis_l, Mar 2023
Great time kids loved the airplanes and the gift shop was great just needs more selection of all the airplanes
Excellent tour of USS Midway
kpugh73374, Mar 2023
Exceptional self guided experience. Information on day to day activities on ship, videos and docents relating how things work and their personal experiences on board was all very fascinating. I highly recommend visiting the USS Midway.
Marvellous Midway
Philip_L, Mar 2023
Loved the docents throughout the ship…especially in the flight prep rooms. The collection of aircraft on the flight deck is impressive!
Wonderful -- one afternoon was not enough
Grant_A, Mar 2023
Great experience. Lots of displays and aircraft to see. Plenty of knowledgeable docents onboard to do presentations, give out information, and answer questions. We took advantage of the offer to come back again the next day to see what we missed.
amazing half day experience!
Shonda_Y, Mar 2023
My husband was like a kid in a candy store. He was amazed at every turn. Worth every penny! This ship is huge and full of information. I recommend doing the voice guided tour, it gives you a real life insight into what it was like with real people telling the stories.
I particularly enjoyed...
howard_m, Feb 2023
I particularly enjoyed the explanation of how catapult works by former Naval aviator. Very detailed and entertaining.
1 traveler found this review helpful
Thank you for service!
DavidC, Feb 2023
What a wonderful piece of preserved history. We loved all the retired military volunteers. They are willing to share stories.
Great experience
Joseph_S, Feb 2023
Great experience, but was easily 5 hours if you listen to all of the first hand accounts and visit all of the areas of the ship. Definitely worth the time
Super
Arthur_W, Jan 2023
Works great. On the USS midway deck, the retired naval pilot who landed on the ship was very interesting, very involved, and full of emotion. The interior is very large, and there are many parts to visit. It took about 3 hours.
1 traveler found this review helpful
Impressed
timothy_w, Jan 2023
Highly recommend this tour. The guides a vast wealth of information and recordings are well done. Plan the entire day for this tour because it can not be done in 2 hours. Also wear comfortable clothes and shoes. Several steps to climb.
Worth it
JEFFREY_T, Jan 2023
A must see while in San Diego. Very interesting for both me and my wife. We spent three hours onboard. Lots to see... you can spend an hour or three, depending on how immersed you want to get.
Historical treasure
Barb_M, Jan 2023
What a wonderful experience and a treasure to this country. Glad to spend at least four hours. There was plenty of parking. If going in the busy season, consider taking a taxi or the trolley.
Great
Theresa_R, Jan 2023
All the history around this ship is amazing. The TAPY-3 memorial beside the ship was one I alway wanted to visit.
Fun afternoon visitng the USS Midway
Michelle_A, Jan 2023
Very worth seeing for a few hours! If you have a friend or family member that was on a carrier, it gives a lot of perspective of what their time onboard was like. Super cool to see!
Great Experience
MANDAR_P, Jan 2023
It was a smooth check in process and worthwhile to see atleast once. The ship also maintained in good shape and kudos to the management team .
Excellent experience
Dominic_M, Jan 2023
Our day on the Midway was outstanding!! The staff was very helpful. It was also great to hear the stories from the veterans that served on the Midway!!
Once in a life time experience
Ashley_S, Dec 2022
We love meeting the volunteers and seeing this massive ship. The cafe also had great food and activities for the kids.
Great experience and very informative.
Esther_H, Dec 2022
Talking to a volunteer in the engine room about the machines and use of diesel and the steam they use. Just the whole display of planes and the experience of the size of the ship.
Eye opener
Ann_T, Dec 2022
Easy booking from Viator. Just need to scan the e ticket for entrance. We spent total of 4 hours viewing all the decks. The queue for island tour took us quite a bit of time as each group can only accommodate 20 pax. Overall it was a fascinating experience to learn more about the USS Midway CV-41.
Thank You 🙏
Jeff_D, Dec 2022
It was our first time to SD and Midway. The tour was excellent and the service members that spoke were very interesting. We believe it’s very important to have this piece of history preserved so people remember the sacrifice that people made and continue to make for us all.
...

Questions?

Product code: 5160USS

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