The Museum of Making Music in Carlsbad, California, is a superb addition to any San Diego trip itinerary. This participating music historical past museum is just 35 miles (56 km) north of San Diego and is a superb cease throughout a California street journey.
The Museum of Making Music (MoMM) takes a hands-on strategy to studying with interactive displays that spotlight American music merchandise trade historical past and showcase the evolution of musical devices.
MoMM lets youngsters and adults strive their hand at banging the drums, enjoying piano, and strumming guitars. There are loads of unique devices from all genres, together with ukuleles, phonographs, accordions, a rolmonica, and extra, that’ll seize the eye of all music lovers within the household.
With devices from 1890 to as we speak, this very enjoyable museum is a wealth of musical inspiration. Give your self about two hours to discover the newly renovated displays, play with devices, and browse the reward store.
Highlights: Musical Instruments and More
Here are a few of the highlights of the museum:
- Four newly renovated galleries: Explore how varied devices get made, how they get distributed to musicians, history-making devices, and the way music can catalyze social change in 4 freshly renovated galleries.
- Exclusive interviews: The MoMM has movies with never-seen-before interviews that includes world-renowned composers, musicians, and instrument artisans.
- Interactive displays: Enjoy a hands-on expertise as you contact and play devices or watch participating movies about an instrument’s historical past on contact screens.
- Makes studying a blast: The MoMM makes studying about music historical past a enjoyable expertise with an immersive panoramic video gallery, thought-provoking shows, and actual devices from all through the ages.
- Fantastic reward store: The reward store on the MoMM is a must-visit, with a pleasant choice of music-themed souvenirs, books, and extra.
- Engaging employees: The MoMM has educated and interesting employees which might be able to reply even probably the most obscure music questions.
- Extremely family-friendly: This museum is for all ages with kid-friendly displays that’ll have interaction all audiences. Plus, youngsters ages three and beneath get free admission with a dad or mum.
Things to Know Before Visiting the Museum of Making Music
Before visiting the MoMM, take a look at important particulars like hours, ticket costs, close by meals, reward store, and parking.
Tickets & Hours
The Museum of Making Music is open day-after-day besides on Mondays. Visitors can discover the MoMM between 10 a.m. to five p.m. from Tuesday to Sunday. Remember, the MoMM is closed on holidays like New Year’s Day, US Independence Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day.
General admission is $15 for ages three to 59. Students, seniors, and lively navy personnel get a $5 low cost on admission. Meanwhile, youngsters three and beneath and MoMM and NAMM members get in freed from cost.
Two Discounted ticket Options
Buy a reduced single-day ticket or bundle admission with over 50 different San Diego points of interest.
Go San Diego Pass
The All-Inclusive sightseeing passes contains MoMM and over 50 different San Diego points of interest.
Use promo code LJM10SDO for 10% off.
aRes Travel
Save on single-day admission for seniors, adults, and kids over age 3.
Cafe & Restaurants
If you get hungry throughout your go to to the MoMM, you’ll need to go offsite for meals. Luckily, there are many locations to seize meal close to the museum. Head to Ruby’s Diner, the Karl Strauss Brewing Company, or Blaze Pizza for a fast chew.
Gift Shops
The reward store on the Museum of Making Music is price scheduling time for in your journey itinerary. Give your self and your youngsters time to discover the music-themed issues on the market. From nick-nacks to playable devices, the MoMM reward store is a superb place to choose up items and souvenirs for music lovers.
Parking
The MoMM has free parking out there to all museum guests, whether or not you’re coming in a automobile, RV, bus, or electrical car.
Park your car freed from cost within the spacious parking zone behind the museum entrance. Inquire with the pleasant employees on the entrance desk about utilizing charging stations throughout your go to to the museum.
Private Tours
Schedule a personal tour or group tour two weeks prematurely to get much more personalised consideration and detailed explanations in regards to the shows and interactive displays.
We recognize their flexibility with group sizes that vary from 10 to 75. Smaller teams can guide personal excursions only for the household, although they gained’t get the group low cost.

Top 5 Unique Facts About the Museum of Making Music
Discover extra in regards to the Museum of Making Music with these attention-grabbing info about this family-friendly San Diego attraction.
1. It’s a Not-for-Profit Organization
The MoMM was based in 1998 and formally opened in March 2000. MoMM is a division of the NAMM Foundation and will get its funding from them in addition to donations and gross sales.
MoMM redistributes earnings by way of neighborhood packages, scholarships, grants, and updates to the museum.
2. Enjoy Special Events
After taking within the distinctive ocean views by the MoMM, keep awhile for the particular occasions hosted repeatedly by the museum.
Enjoy musical performances, charming roundtable conversations, and galvanizing experiences by buying tickets for upcoming occasions.
3. Secretly Learn About Science, Technology, & Math
When you play with and study music making, you’re really studying about science, know-how, and math.
This hands-on expertise teaches youngsters and adults about vibrations and sound waves, technological advances in audio system, and the mathematical precision concerned in making devices.
All the whereas, you’ll be having enjoyable and overlook that you simply’re in a museum.
4. Close To Other Great Attractions
The Museum of Making Music is inside a brief drive of another superior points of interest which might be seemingly already in your journey itinerary. Some of the close by points of interest embrace the next:
5. It’s a Place of Innovation
One of the core missions of the MoMM is to make music alternatives in order that musicians can hone their expertise and be taught from others, to additional the event of musical historical past.
With vigorous roundtable discussions, academic packages, and shows of progressive musical know-how, this music museum is extra than simply sharing historical past, it’s additionally enriching future generations of musicians.
Why We Love The Museum of Making Music
There are many causes to go to the Museum of Making Music on a San Diego trip. This small however well-distributed museum is simple to navigate, even with youngsters. Everything is family-friendly, and the employees is nice with talking to youngsters.
If you assume your youngsters would possibly wish to play a musical instrument, and also you’re undecided which one piques their curiosity, you need to undoubtedly convey them right here to present a couple of widespread devices (and perhaps some that aren’t so widespread) a strive.
The MoMM helps the local people with musical packages just like the New Horizons Band or the North Coast Strings. These alternatives train and expose musicians to a variety of devices they may by no means have had the chance to strive enjoying earlier than.
With an ever-changing menu of occasions, there’s by no means a foul time to go to. Check the schedule for concert events, lectures, and different particular exhibitions earlier than you go.