CuriOdyssey

If you are in the Bay Area add this to your list, you will not be disappointed. Our toddler loved this place.
The otters kept his attention for 30 minutes. We were there while they were fed and the staff was full of information. We explored the outdoor animals and exhibits for at least an hour. Wish it was sunny outside for the shadows portion, but it was nice and cloudy on our visit.
Inside the wind tunnels were captivating. The toddler played for another half hour just throwing things in the tunnel. Lots of interaction with other exhibits and experiments for him. Plus there is a table for tubes and pipes that he enjoyed.
I appreciated the fact it was all hands on and age appropriate. It’s affordable for a family to attend.

Loved the experience. I was very impressed with the customer service of the zoo which turned a blah into a wow experience. When my family and I arrived most animals went into hiding, so after a 10-​min stroll across the park we only spotted 2 otters and 2 eagles and some ravens.
After raising my experience with the zoo’s customer service the staff became re-​energizer. They brought out a dragoon lizard for kids to see, and distributed enough treats for bobcats, foxes and raccoons to come out of hiding and show their magnificent selves.
Great job guys, 5 big stars for the staff’s effort!!!

Great place for kids aged 4 – 10. Be sure to time your visits for feedings. I really enjoyed the feedings for the otters and the raptors.
This place is like the Exploratorium in SF with small animals and a better view. Plus it seems that they have a better parking situation.

CuriOdyssey is truly a hidden gem! My fiancé and I found this place to be an awesome wedding venue, and we worked with some of the best people around. Ali and her team were very down-​to-​earth, fun, sweet, and incredibly accommodating to our needs. They were very responsive to any questions we had, whether it be over email, phone, or in-​person.
Echoing the other reviews, this is a children’s science museum located at Coyote Point in San Mateo. It’s incredibly convenient to get to, as it’s right off the 101 exit. The area surrounding it is just gorgeous, as it’s right by the marina and the bay.
The museum has a great, unique space called the Redwood Hall. It’s a 4-​level tiered hall and is entirely made of refurbished redwoods. It appealed to my fiancé and me because we’re avid hikers and we love nature. Aside from renting the hall for the wedding ceremony and reception, the wedding event also includes use of the entire museum after hours! That includes some really cool science stations to bring your inner kid and curiosity out of you. The outdoor area has got to be my favorite! The sea otters, bob cats, eagles, owls, foxes, and more are housed out there in a beautiful garden scenery.
Our experience with CuriOdyssey was outstanding! If you’re looking for a one-​of-​a-​kind wedding event, I’d give a high recommendation for CuriOdyssey. It’s also really fun to come visit with family, friends, kids, or dates. :)

I recently attended a birthday party at CuriOdyssey. My family enjoyed the visit and my 2 year old did not want to leave. It is perfect for little kids as it isn’t too big and doesn’t require too much walking but there is still enough to explore. I got here at 11am on a Sunday and the parking lot was full so need to come early or after lunch. No food onsite so bring snacks. If you plan ahead, they do animal feedings and an animal theater show daily.

If you want to stimulate your toddlers minds without the hassle of the big city and wallet friendly then this is the place for you. Tickets were pretty inexpensive compared to the other zoos. They have a lot of discounts so I suggest you check out their website and maybe you can get a couple more bucks off your admission.
Granted it is a compact zoo and we walked through the whole thing in 30 minutes, I think it is lots of fun especially for young kids. Lots of hands on science exhibits. The have Bobcats, Owls, Otters and tons more animals to explore. I really enjoyed the cave like animal exhibit it was fun and built with children in mind. There are things to step on so the children can see the animals better. They do have constant tours and if you come at the right time you can watch them feed the animals. They have a small gift shop and have a nice picnic area so you can bring you own food and enjoy. That’s a plus! Also note they are closed on Mondays.

We have had a family membership to CuriOdyssey for the last three years (since our son was old enough to enjoy the facility) and we LOVE it! We love being able to drop in whenever we want something to do for fun other than go to the park. We go about once or twice a month. As our son grows the exhibits become interesting to him in new and different ways — he has not become tired of visiting. Currently he mostly loves the Gears & Gadgets exhibit in the Tinkering exhibition (hope those are the right names), where kids work as a team to use different gears and gadgets to move a few balls through a machine. He also loves all the animals (snakes and river otters mostly) and the sand & water table. We can easily spend 2 hours there whenever we go. We just visited yesterday to see the new Reflections and Perceptions exhibits, which are really interesting! We’re excited for all the new exhibits and expansions that will be happening in the coming years. We’re big fans of this place and feel really lucky to have something like this in our area.

**Reviewing as a wedding venue**
My wife’s friends were married here with both the ceremony and reception held in the back wooden auditorium space. The space is quite bizarre with four wooden «deck» levels connected by ramps all within one large space. The climate control for this area must not have worked since all of the guests were sweating profusely during the ceremony, which was held at the top deck level, level 4 if you will, where all the heat rises.
Cocktail hour was the highlight with servers running around in the actual outdoor zoo area where you could see the otters, foxes, golden eagles, racoons, et al. Great space and a unique experience. Kids attending the wedding were overjoyed with plenty of activities to keep them busy. Cocktail hour food was very good, though I am certain that the caterer for the wedding is completely unaffiliated with CuriOdyssey.
The reception was set up with tables on «levels» 1 and 2, with level 3 having the dancing area and bar. The space is a bit awkward as table to table interaction and speeches are to an audience that is separated and cannot see each other.
Overall, it is a very unique place to have a wedding with the highlights being the animals and the downsides being the awkward spacing and the heating issues.

CuriOdyssey is located inside Coyote Point. It’s about half a mile on the left after passing the guard shack. Parking is $ 6 parking; cash only.
This zoo isn’t as large as I thought it would be. All the animals here are rescued and can not be released into the wild. We spent around two hours here and found that it was more than enough time.
Notes:
–Check out the otter feeding which are Tuesday to Sundays at noon. This was fun to watch as the otters are very active.
–Check out the bobcat feeding which are Tuesday to Sundays at 1pm.
–Pack snacks are bring lunch since there is no food available for purchase.

$ 6/​parking (cash only!!)
$ 9/​adults (if you are SF zoo member, you get ½ off)
$ 6/​kids 2 – 12.
Note to self — plenty of kids during the summer and may not be good for kids 2 or younger because they get stampede by the older kids.
Reminds me of Palo Alto Junior Musuem.
* no food to buy there
* plenty if shade and places to sit for parents
*step stools are nice for kids
*closed on Mondays

Great place to bring the kid and let them explore their hearts content. Though for the adult, its screaming kid overload and stroller mayhem which can make a ‘draining day’.
Granted i took my 2.5 yr old niece here she seemed a little lost at first as there were so many kids and things to see… in particular, she gravitated to the exhibits that involved water or playing with foam pieces and placing into a blowing cylinder that shoots out at the top. Yes, she is way too young to understand, wave currents, mass, refraction, sound waves, looking at the animals (she seemed to notice the toys in the reptile and mammal displays (red ball, yellow balls, swing… etc) more than anything but what really intrigued her was the swimming otters.
During the otter feeding time, one of the docents was explaining otters and my niece has a short attention span that she kept getting up (vs sitting with the rest), looking at people, yawning, getting up etc) so we decided it was best we walk to the next exhibit. Some of the animal displays were minimal as i expected a little more… like the aviary exhibit with ravens… hmm…i just saw a bunch of ravens in the parking lot attacking the trash for free… hmmm…
Overall, a great place to take the kiddies… went on a weekday and its was busy around 11am. Most the day camps, mommies and schools visit.
* COST: is $ 9, $ 7 for seniors… i found out they have discounts on Living Social/groupon…check before you come! Was it worth $ 9? eh… but i consider it a donation for the good work this place does.
* PARKING: is $ 6…Cash ONLY, i saw many cars making U-​turns as they must not have had cash and told an ATM was close by. Sign noting «automated pay stations to come»
* PLAYGROUND: Be sure to visit the Magic Mountain Playground after 2 hours at CuriOdyssea… this is not as close to the place as i thought… its on your way driving out of parking past the golf course!
* NOISE LEVEL: Anticipate a lot of screaming kids having fun (average age was 5 – 7)
* ATTIRE: Have your kid wear short sleeves to play those water exhibits
* EATS: Bring a little lunch for a picnic… my poor niece was walking towards a woman giving her kid slices of apples… she wanted one too!!! LOL
Overall, a fun experience for my high energy niece… she snoozed all the way home!

And for my *100^th REVIEW*… CuriOdyssey!
I recently visited CuriOdyssey after having not been here for many, many years — back when it was still known as the Coyote Point Museum for Environmental Education. I actually work down the street from the museum, but haven’t got the chance to visit until now.
My friends and I came during 4^th of July weekend and I was able to get free admission with a museum badge and my friend also got free entry with their military ID (check site for other discounts). Tickets for adults are $ 9 — still very affordable. Parking is $ 6 per car, or free for members. Not steep at all considering you have the whole park to explore!
I don’t remember what the ‘old’ museum was like anymore so this seemed like a brand new experience for me. The inside of the museum/​zoo consists of different hands-​on science exhibits. Everything at CuriOdyssey is definitely accessible for children as the exhibits are low to the ground and easy to use. It was fun to explore as an adult but hurts my back to stoop so low for some of them. :P The interior felt a bit old and cramped… unless it’s because I’m an adult now and the space didn’t grow with me. The inside also held a tarantula, a bee hive and some other insects for viewing.
The outside was dedicated to a few more science exhibits and also all the animals! It was really fun to explore the mini-​zoo, even if most of the animals were sleeping or hiding for the day. The enclosures themselves were really cool, so I enjoyed that. After walking through the outdoors part, we went inside to visit the animals through the windows… where we could see where they were all hiding! The raccoons were the most fun to watch — my friends and I were told the two male raccoons were new and the female ones (bigger and fluffier) were getting used to interacting with them. Are there still coyotes? If so, I must have missed them… because I remember there were coyotes as well as other animals I didn’t see this time around.
Don’t expect to spend an entire day here unless you’re with some kids. I think we got in and out within two hours. We spent most of our time looking at animals! :D Cute little museum/​zoo in the Peninsula — definitely still worth a visit! It’s situated in Coyote Point Park/​Rec. Area and so there’s a lot more to do if you don’t want to leave the area just quite yet.

My daughter loves coming here and our favorites are the badger and the otters! It is so fun watching the animals being fed and then going inside and playing with all the sciencey experiments!

As a mom, I am usually in search of places that can A) Entertain my toddler for at least a few hours 2) Be of some learning value 3) Be of interest to myself as well (although this is not totally required, but helps increase the enjoyment!)
CuriOdyssey accomplishes all of that. This place is set up so that it’s like a mini-​zoo + mini-​Exploratorium at the same time.
Pros:
— The fare is reasonable ($ 9/​adult, $ 7/​students & seniors, $ 6 kiddos 2 and up, 2 and under crowd is FREE)
— Lots to see and do, especially for the 8 and under crowd. If you’re looking for day-​long entertainment, this can take up a good portion of the day (for us 2 – 3 hours, although could easily have been 4 if I let my toddler decide).
— All the animals in CuriOdyssey are rescue animals that can’t be released in the wild, which means that the staff are doing some good for these animals! There are a few cute otters, foxes, bobcats, raccoons, ground owls, insects, snakes, frogs and birds.
— You can actually walk amongst the birds in one of the enclosures. Some get a little closer than they should since they are trying to be trained to be more wild than domesticated, so keep that in mind if you have a wiley kiddo.
— Feeding times can be really interactive and entertaining for older kiddos (sometimes not so much for the 2 and younger crowd). Keep in mind that you need to come EARLIER in the day rather than LATER. Don’t come after 1PM if you want to catch those feedings.
— Some sensory activities that will keep your kid busy (and kinda messy) inclusive of water tables filled with sand and/​or magnets, bongo drums (outdoors).
— Interactive science exhibits such as air funnels, marble drops, dry ice machines. They even have a bee-​hive there. Pretty neat stuff!
— Nice covered picnic area (don’t forget to bring lunch!)
— After you’re done with your stay, if your toddler has enough steam in their engines (mine definitely didn’t) there’s a playground further down the parking lot with tons of picnic tables you can spend more time in.
Cons:
–Parking is $ 6 CASH unless you are a member. Don’t be like me and run around without cash. Don’t do it! Also, parking fills up rather quickly in the AM. Come in the afternoon and there’s more parking. However, you’ll miss out on the feedings and activities they do throughout the earlier portions of the day.
— It’s on the small side. The price of admission definitely considers this, I think. But do not expect to be here all day long if you have older kids or you are simply coming on your own.
Overall, I would say it’s worth your day there, especially if you have a kiddo!

Visited during one of their community days so it’s free! (UP. $ 9/​adult $ 6/​child) It’s relatively small so for adult visitors, it will take no more than 1.5hr to walk through the entire exhibit slowly.
Got to see owls, Bobcats, otters, Eagles, heron, snakes, badger and a couple more. Do find the exhibits a little on the small size for the Bobcats and Eagles. Like that they explained how these animals and birds ended up at CuriOdyssey, such as having been imprinted by humans and they are unable to live in the wild.
I like the walk-​through aviary the most. They have blue heron, magpies, other birds and turtles. To a certain extend, it allows you to see these creatures in an environment that mimics their natural habitat.
Overall, a nice place to visit in the peninsula. Best paired with Japanese dining at San Mateo.
I give it three stars with a plus one for the free community days.

We hosted my son’s 6^th birthday party this past Saturday and rented that beautiful Redwood Hall on the 2^nd floor. The venue was beautiful and spacious with a picturesque view of the bay. The kids were amply entertained with the animal and science exhibits. Best of all, the price for rental was very reasonable: $ 350 for 50 guests which includes the room, parking and admission for all guests. We brought our own food and drinks, arrived ½ hour before to set up our party space. Some warnings:
–Book it at least 3 months in advance. We held the space in January for our party in April, the soonest available appointment. My husband’s theory is that lots of people had babies in the spring months because there was nothing to do during those hot summer months (count 9 months backwards) but get naked and make babies.
–DON’T run in the Redwood Hall. It will upset the animals (and staff) below.
–If you can swing the 1:30 slot, do so. The parking tends to fill up around the morning and slows down again after lunch. Then it gets crowded towards 2:30, presumably for the parents who want to squeeze the last possible drop of the day by showing up a couple hours before closing.
–Try to see the venue so you can plan out your space by booking an appointment. You will not be able to check out the space while a party is going on. Don’t be that person crashing another kid’s birthday party just so you can see where the gift table goes.
Great venue, awesome price, lots of fun.

We became members here when we stayed in South San Francisco this summer. It is a bit out of the way for us but we could not resist because our daughter loved it so much. When you first enter, if you go into the building, they have many different exploratorium type exhibits. All hands on science stuff for the kids. Very tactile, built for exploring and letting the imagination go. When you walk outside, they have several more exhibits. This is usually the area that our daughter spends most of her time
They also have several areas with animals, they are mostly rescue animals that could not be released into the wild. They have everything from snakes, frogs, owls, birds, birds of prey, raccoons, fox and bobcats. We were there for the bobcat feeding this time and it was pretty neat, zoo keepers staying around for a bit to answer questions. It is like a zoo but more intimate.
You can’t beat it because a picnic area and playground are nearby too. Heck, you can even watch planes land at SFO. So much fun for everyone, all ages, we will definitely continue to come

I love how this place has science-​y, physics-​y stuff that kids can get their hands on — things like a fog machine, air vents that shoot foam pieces into the air, magnets that direct water around, etc. But it’s also a (small) zoo, so after your kid has finished running around the hands-​on area, they can check out the bobcats, birds, otters, and more.
If you live on the peninsula, it’s a nice alternative to going all the way up to the SF zoo or the Exploratorium. Definitely not a replacement for either one, but it’s way closer and cheaper.
There are also benches outside that serve as a nice picnic area for looking over the small harbor. Also a great spot for watching the SFO airplanes fly in (very) low as they come in for a landing.

I had my wedding here for about 120 guests in March of 2014.
This is an absolutely stunning place to host a wedding reception, especially for those of you who want to have it on the Peninsula and not have to go to the city, but still have an elegant location. I really love this place because the Redwood Hall is so unique and full of character — it is nothing like a boring hotel ballroom.
We had our cocktail hour outside with the animals, which was great for guests — what better conversation starter than checking out some furry animals while you drink?
The staff here were easy to work with, responsive, and really worked hard to make our wedding day special.

Purchased a Groupon here and it was a great deal. $ 12 for 3 admissions. (I’m not sure I would come back here paying full price.)
This place is definitely not the zoo, but you can spend at least a couple hours here.
The seal otters were the main attraction for my kids!