MOXI, The Wolf Museum of Exploration + Innovation in Santa Barbara

MOXI, The Wolf Museum of Exploration + Innovation, is a one-of-a-kind museum for all ages designed to ignite learning through interactive experiences in science and creativity.  

The museum opened its doors to the public on February 25, 2017 at 125 State Street, Santa Barbara, adjacent to the Amtrak Station.

The museum's three floors are filled with 17,000 sq ft of hands-on exhibits that encourage open-ended discovery, analytical assessment, experimentation, play and just plain fun.

The interactive exhibits are organized around seven themes that all relate to science, technology, engineering, arts and math.

  • Tech Track: Includes an Innovation Workshop, a makerspace area where you can imagine, design and test your own creations using a wide variety of technologies and tools

  • Sound Track: In this largest exhibit area on the first floor is a Giant Guitar to learn about how your favorite guitar riffs begin, a Sound Machine, the Reactable (part DJ table, part musical instrument), Foley Studios sound studios and more.

  • Fantastic Forces Courtyard: This space is dedicated to gravity, magnetism, propulsion, centripetal force and more. Conduct test flights in our Wind Column Workshop, launch an Air Rocket and discover the power of magnetic fields on our Magnetic Islands.

  • Speed Track: Build your own race car and send it down the race track, play the game of Mindball, prototype designs for a marble roller coaster and more.

  • Light Track: Explore lights, colors, shadows and more. Take the ultimate selfie at Mosaic Faces. Create a bold display of colored lights at Light Patterns. Control the Color Mixing Machine that hangs above the entryway and learn more about color and light waves.

  • Interactive Media Track: Explore a wide range of digital interactive experiences designed in partnership with area artists, educators and scientists.

  • Sky Garden: The exhibit-filled rooftop includes Whitewater, a fully interactive water feature including a giant Archimedes screw. Create a wind-, sun- and human-powered symphony with the Weather Orchestra. Step inside the Lookout Tower to see the city through the lenses of five different observation scopes. And walk across the glass Sky Deck for a unique view of the courtyard below.

MOXI is open daily, except Christmas and Thanksgiving, from 10am to 5pm. Admission is $18 for ages 13+, $14 for ages 3 to 12 and free for 2 and under. The museum encourages the purchase of timed-entry tickets in advance at www.moxi.org or you can purchase tickets when you arrive.

Alameda Park in Santa Barbara

Ranking high up on the list of parks with cool play areas around town is Alameda Park, located at the corner of Garden Street and E. Micheltorena Street in Santa Barbara. Alameda Park has an 8,000 sq ft mostly wooden play structure that was built by local residents.

Your kids will fall in love with the nooks, crannies, steps, bridges and places to hide in this play structure. There are also swings and things to climb on. The park itself is 2 blocks long and one of the oldest parks in Santa Barbara. It is next door to the beautiful Alice Keck Park Memorial Garden. Plenty of grass, spectacular, large shade trees and much more make this a perfect picnic lunch stop when you're in town.

More information at www.santabarbaraca.gov/gov/depts/parksrec/parks/features/horticulture/alameda.asp.

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Chase Palm Park in Santa Barbara

Chase Palm Park in Santa Barbara is a huge park that sandwiches East Cabrillo Boulevard.  On the ocean side of Cabrillo the park consists of a palm-lined, narrow strip of park adjacent to East Beach with an oceanfront bike path and walkway from Stearns Wharf to East Beach.  This side of the park is host to Sunday/holiday arts and crafts shows.  The 14,600 square foot Skater's Point skate park is also located on this side of the park.

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Call 805.564.5418 for more information or visit www.santabarbaraca.gov/gov/depts/parksrec/parks/features/playgrounds/chase.asp.

On the other side of Cabrillo is a huge 10 acre parcel that features fountains, creeks, a lagoon, carousel, snack bar and a shipwreck playground modeled after an ocean schooner from the turn of the century.

The park is walking distance to Stearns Wharf, the beach, bike rentals, State Street, etc.

From 1999 to 2017, the park was home to a vintage 1916 40 foot in diamater carousel, The carousel was relocated to Fort Hood, Oregon to a museum.