The new De Young Museum in Golden Gate Park.

Getty Images/Lonely Planet Images

de Young Museum

Top choice in San Francisco


Follow sculptor Andy Goldsworthy's artificial fault line in the sidewalk into Herzog & de Meuron's sleek, copper-clad building that's slowly oxidizing green and blending into the verdant backdrop of Golden Gate Park.

Don't be fooled by the camouflaged exterior: shows here boldly broaden artistic horizons, from Oceanic ceremonial masks and trippy-hippie handmade fashion to James Turrell's domed Skyspace installation, built into a hill in the sculpture garden.

shutterstockRF_619733312.jpg
One of the few reminders of the de Young's original architectural style ©Lynn Y/Shutterstock

The history of the de Young museum

The de Young museum emerged out of the California Midwinter International Exposition of 1894 that cemented the then-new Golden Gate Park as more than San Francisco's back yard, but one the premier green spaces in the country. Today, the Sphinx statue outside is one of the few remnants of the Egyptian revival architecture that contained the museum's early, eclectic assortment of anthropological artifacts and artworks.

Redesigned after the 1906 earthquake by Louis Christian Mullgardt, the de Young reemerged in 1919 freshly renamed in honor of the co-founder of the San Francisco Chronicle who'd championed the museum in its early years, as well as the park in which it was situated.

shutterstockRF_415859791.jpg
de young, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, California, USA. ©Checubus/Shutterstock

What to see and what's on

The de Young's collections grew to include examples of US, African, Oceanic, South and Central American, and graphic art, as well as textiles and photography from around the world. Its European art collection was shifted to the Legion of Honor in the 1970s, creating more room for Indigenous art from a number of different global cultures. 

Today you can see both the de Young's permanent collection offer as well as special exhibitions that take a deep dive into its archives like the The Turkmen Storage Bag collection, as well as visiting shows like the sold out Calder-Picasso exhibit and Runway of Love, an exhibit of Black fashion designer Patrick Kelly's garments that explored expressions of race and queer identity.

US-ART-HIPPIE-NEWS-FEED
Evan Hirsch speaks during The Summer of Love Experience: Art, Fashion, and Rock & Roll at the deYoung © AFP via Getty Images

Admission and free days at the de Young

The museum is open from 9:30AM to 5:15PM Tuesday through Sunday, and costs $15 for adults, $12 for seniors over 65, $6 for students, and is free for anyone under 17. Receive a $2 discount with proof of purchase from any Bay Area public transportation system, including BART, Muni, Caltrain, and more.

Through December 2021, Essential and Frontline workers are eligible for free admission. On Saturdays, residents of the nine counties that makeup the Bay Area can get free admission. Anyone can get free admission on the first Tuesday of each month. Any visitor who is also a recipient of Medi-Cal or SNAP benefits qualifies for free general admission during normal business hours. 

Additional admission is sometimes charged for special shows like Frida Kahlo: Appearances Can Be Deceiving. Because the museum is issuing timed tickets due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it's best to book ahead. Ticket includes free same-day entry to the Legion of Honor.

The de Young museum can easily be accessed by car, public transportation, or Golden Gate Park's shuttles. The nearest parking garage is the Music Concourse garage, which may be accessed from the Fulton Street and 10th Avenue entrance and costs $33 for a full day. 

shutterstock_3554606.jpg
Shuttles that run within Golden Gate Park are one way to get to the de Young museum © Shutterstock / Rafael Ramirez Lee

Accessibility at the de Young

Visitors with disabilities can get free admission to the de Young and discounts on special exhibits. The museum is accessible for those who use mobility devices, and wheelchairs can be requested from coat check or admissions, along with stools to use in the galleries. Restrooms are ADA accessible as well as gender-neutral.

ASL interpretation is available for visitors who are deaf or hard of hearing, including for all public programs, lectures, and tours if requested two weeks in advance. Computer activated realtime transcription is similarly available for request.  Assistive listening devices are available, too. 

Tactile interpreters can be requested by blind and visually impaired visitors two weeks in advance. Audio tours are available at exhibition entrances and at the Information Desk, as are braille and tactile museum maps. 

One unique service the de Young provides is Artful Discoveries, a special opportunity to share art with individuals experiencing early-stage dementia that allows for multisensory exploration. 

Transportation

  • bus: 5, 7, 44
  • muni: N

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby San Francisco attractions

1. Japanese Tea Garden

0.11 MILES

First planted in 1894, these 5 acres of gorgeous flower gardens are especially delightful in the spring, when the cherry blossoms pop, and also the fall…

2. California Academy of Sciences

0.18 MILES

This classic research institute and museum has been teaching San Franciscans about natural history since 1853. Right in the middle of Golden Gate Park,…

3. Shakespeare Garden

0.19 MILES

Sonnets dot the flower beds in this romantic gated garden, home since 1928 to more than 200 flowering plants mentioned in Shakespeare's writings. With all…

4. San Francisco Botanical Garden

0.28 MILES

There’s always something blooming in these 55-acre gardens, which cover a world of vegetation from South African savanna to New Zealand cloud forest. The…

5. National AIDS Memorial Grove

0.46 MILES

This peaceful, 10-acre living memorial ringed by redwoods and graced with poetic paving-stone tributes was founded in 1991 to commemorate millions of…

6. Stow Lake

0.47 MILES

When the weather's behaving, pedal boats and rowboats are available daily at the magnificent 1946 boathouse on Stow Lake. Folks also tend to drop by for…

7. Conservatory of Flowers

0.51 MILES

Flower power is alive and well at San Francisco's Conservatory of Flowers. This gloriously restored 1878 Victorian greenhouse is home to freaky outer…

8. Dahlia Garden

0.55 MILES

Leave it to San Francisco to plant a dell that's totally punk rock, featuring spiky, in-your-face neon blooms cultivated by the city's many hardcore…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "usa/san-francisco/golden-gate-park-and-the-avenues/attractions/de-young-museum/a/poi-sig/1340028/1329646",
      "destination": "San-Francisco",
      "continent": "North-America",
      "country": "USA",
      "region": "California",
      "city": "San-Francisco",
      "position": "superzone"
    }