Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose

Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose is one of the premier children's museums in Northern California — a 52,000-square-foot purple building in downtown San Jose that has been a beloved institution for Bay Area families for over 30 years.

The museum is named after Woz Way, the street named for Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, which gives it an appropriate Silicon Valley pedigree. The facility earns its 4. 6-star rating across nearly 4,000 reviews by going bigger and broader than most children's museums: a life-sized fire truck exhibit where kids can climb in the cab and operate the equipment, a bubble room where children can stand inside giant soap bubbles they create themselves, a creative workshop with actual tools and materials for construction, and an outdoor Water Wonders garden where kids control water flow through channels, pumps, and turbines.

The 52,000-square-foot scale matters in practice: multiple groups of kids in different age ranges can spread through the building without all converging on the same exhibit. Toddlers can explore the dedicated infant and toddler areas while elementary-age siblings engage with more complex exhibits — a significant practical advantage for families with kids in multiple age groups.

Weekday hours are limited (closing at 1PM Tuesday through Friday), so plan to arrive at opening at 9:30AM for the full session. Weekends offer full 9:30AM-4:30PM hours. The museum is closed Mondays.

For families staying in San Jose or visiting the South Bay, this is a must-visit. For families making a day trip from San Francisco, the 50-minute drive on 101 or 280 is justified — this is genuinely excellent children's museum programming.