Junípero Serra Museum — Attraction in San Diego

The Junipero Serra Museum created the most beautiful backdrop for our romantic summer wedding under the stars.

When looking for a venue, we had some pretty specific criteria: -Outdoor Reception (the San Diego weather deserves to be taken advantage of) -Beautiful view -Dancing until 11pm -Within the city of San Diego (less than 20 mins from USD) -The right size for 100 guests (not too big, not too small)

You'd be surprised by how few venues fit this criteria. With our church wedding taking place at USD, we were firm on our criteria, but all it took was a few steps across the terrace at the Serra Museum to know it was the one.

First of all, the museum itself is stunning. They recently re-stucco'd the exterior of the building giving it a pristine white color. The arches across the terrace perfectly framed components of our event like our bar, DJ and lounge set up. Then, turn the other way and you've got a beautiful sunset view that stretches for miles. The sun set perfectly as our guests were seated for dinner and during dancing, we were treated to a spectacular firework show from Sea World.

Additional considerations when planning a wedding: If you wanted, you could hold your ceremony in the museum itself. The museum was available for use during our reception. They have plenty of parking. They have a preferred vendor list and you must use one of the approved caterers. The list was plentiful and we went with the Abbey Catering, who did a phenomenal job. The venue is a historic building and not ADA compliant. There are a lot of stairs, but the height on the hill makes for the perfect views.

We have to give a shoutout to the venue's coordinator, Sue, who is fabulous! She was so responsive and made herself available on numerous occasions for us to tour the space and walk through with our various vendors. We loved working with her and were so grateful for all of her help throughout the entire planning process.

You can walk the terrace at anytime so we love that for years to come, we'll be able to come back to revisit the special place that will forever hold a spot...

This biggest reason for my rating is this literally called "The Junipero Serra Museum" and there is (at least when we visited in March 2024) almost zero information about Fr. Junipero Serra. That seems like an oversight. The building itself is nice architecture though it's not from the mission era, it's an early 20th century homage to the mission style. However once in the building it was very sparse, with little to no exhibits or artifacts on display. There are stairs you can climb up the tower and some wall placards with text information about the history of the bay nearby, and a nice view of the bay. As far as mission artifacts, I can't remember any in the museum. Truly bizarre given the name of the museum. There was one video screen with commentary about the mission era, however this was completely one-sided with only the native perspective and only the modern native perspective at that. No perspective from the natives at that time through first-hand accounts, no perspectives from the missionary Franciscans, no perspectives of the Spanish. Only one perspective, the modern native interpretation of this era, which is that it was universally oppressive. Any unbiased reading of the history would show that this is not true. But since we now live in an era where no other perspective is allowed, only the narrative of oppression must be told and it must be known that the Catholic Church is evil and oppressive. Again, bizarre for a museum named The Junipero Serra Museum. There's a reason Fr. Junipero Serra is a saint in the Catholic Church and a reason why he was beloved by many natives he ministered to, and if you are going to tell the story of this era, even if from a secular perspective, it has to be unbiased, fact-based, telling stories from ALL perspectives.

For any faithful Catholics reading this review, I would certainly skip this museum. I donated $20 at the entrance before I went in but I wish I had...

Quick facts: Size: Very small Price: Free (donations) Est time in museum: 15 - 20 minutes Recommended for: Locals interested in San Diego's early history Best Feature: None really.

Small mission/museum. Much smaller than I thought it would be. It is on top of a hill so you get some decent views of the surrounding area, although there are large trees that obscure the views. The 'museum' is primarily one main area, about the same size as a small chapel and a smaller room as you go up the mission tower. There is a small trail area next to the museum if you wanted to take a walk. Overall a peaceful location.

When I visited there in the summer there wasn't anything on display in the main areas other than a few Indian artifacts in a glass display. The other 'displays' were mainly text and some old pictures explaining the local indian culture in early San Diego. So it seems as though they do not have exhibits on display all year round in the main area. The mission itself didn't appear to be in the best condition as well.

Would I recommend a visit? Probably not especially if you have to drive more than a few miles just to see it, but it is right next to Old Town, so if you have time at the end of your day, you can stop by for a quick look, but you wouldn't be missing much...