This place is surprisingly awesome! It's great for a quick educational stop. It has live turtoises, turtles, lizards, owls, falcons and snakes. With its gorgeous views, it's a great place for an event. We have had birthday parties for 4 year old during the day and 40 year old in the evening. Both were lovely.

The Discovery Center is really a hidden gem in North County San Diego! I love bringing my child here to explore, play and learn. What I really love about the center is their awesome kids birthday parties! They have packages for different age levels and it’s really such a great party. The kids and parents all love it! You get a party host to help you run the party and there is plenty of time to explore and play with friends. The setting overlooks the back side of the lagoon which is perfect! I cannot recommend having a party here enough. What I love most is the money you pay to book the party goes back into nature! A win win for your child and the environment! This is the second party I’ve done at the center for my son and it’s been perfect every time. The parties are well organized. The party planner Samantha was communicative, accommodating and super helpful and our party host Isabella was great with the children and helped keep our activities going smoothly! 10/10 awesome kids party spot!

We had such a great time on our first visit! My 5yo has ASD. There was lots of things that she and my 2yo could look at and interact with. There were lots of interesting facts about our area that my husband and I didn’t know and some really interesting little creatures to see. We saw others taking advantage of the chance to pet, hold, or feed some of the friendlier reptiles. The highlight for us was seeing the great-horned owl. My daughter’s face lit up as they held eye contact.

Our 7 year old really enjoyed touching a shark, and getting to touch and hold the different animals. The staff were lovely! So glad we stopped.

Great place to take little ones, they have a small chicken coup with turtles that your able to purchase a small snack bag and feed them. A small tide pool with shark to touch. Plenty of outdoor space to roam for little ones.

Today I took my one year old to finally visit here. I always wondered what this foundation was and I’m so happy we visited. He had a lot of fun and I can’t wait to bring him back. I highly suggest making the donation!

Super fun. Great for kids & curious nature people. We got to hold all kinds of reptiles, pet underwater creatures, dig for fossils, & go on a nature hike. Super friendly knowledgeable staff.

Great experience! My toddler had so much fun feeding the animals and learning about them. They also have a short "hiking" trail which was nice. Definitely recommend to anyone looking for a quick but fun distraction with the kiddos. P.s Dont forget to donate! We want them to continue giving our lil ones fun experiences but keep the animals safe in a great environment.

They have Raptor "hour" twice a week to educate us on the Peregrine falcon, owls, and Osprey that they have in cages. There's a trasparent beehive that allows viewing if the bees a they fill the racks with honey. Lots of local animals to view, great views of the lagoon and other programs to learn about the area,all free of charge.

Awesome to take the kids too. Touch different lizards and snakes. Staff very friendly!!! Especially the young lady with long black hair who let the kids touch the animals. She needs a raise for patience with kids and professionalism. Would return.

This is an amazing place to learn about local flora and fauna. They have so many animals that you can pet and learn about. Such an awesome group of people teaching kids about our exciting world. On my list to do often!

Love it here! Everyone is super friendly and lovely. It's such a calming place with great walking trails and beautiful animals. Educational and fun for all ages.

Do you like nature? Do you like history. Do you like hands on? Do you have children who love to explore and learn? Do you want to hold and touch some animals? Well, visit. This is a must to visit and if you're local to continue to visit. The staff is so friendly and informative. They keep the building maintained and the facilities clean. They care about the lagoon and all who call it home.

I wouldn’t wish these neighbors on anybody. They claim to serve local wildlife and use this as an excuse for their excessive greed. They rent out the visitor center every few nights for private events that pump extremely loud music into to the nearby neighborhoods and wildlife sanctuary. I’m sure the birds of prey, tortoises, and other animals that are actually housed at the visitor center love the club-level party music being blasted until very late in the evenings. This is not limited to weekends by the way. I would strongly encourage whoever runs this place to actually stick around for some of the events they are giving the green light for, so they can see how they are losing credibility with their community for the sake of “fundraising”. I have noticed that there are many other complaints regarding the noise, however they are ignored by the owner. They gladly reply to every positive review but haven’t replied to a complaint in over 4 years.

Boys had a blast! It's definitely a place we will frequent.

Love the place. It's a great place to have hands-on experience with animals. And they sell feeding for chickens and tortoise that our little ones love. They have an area in the back with tables so you could have a picnic at the end of your trip

Amazing place for kids- so many animals- turtles, owls & other birds, reptiles, shark, chickens, bunnies and guinea pigs, & a lot of history lessons! Very well maintained and the staff was extremely friendly. Obsessed!

My daughter attends a preschool here that she adores. They have a bunch of animals like turtles and birds native to the area and do nature walks, etc. Highly recomend this place for childrens education.

Gorgeous location and wonderful displays. We were there for an evening wedding and we loved the place. The animals are well loved and we adored learning about them.

They are closed on Sundays till noon and close at 4:00. I was way to early so we just checked it out walking around. There's no parking if they aren't open. We just did a quick walk about. Saw some kool critters and art.

I have 45 years experience designing outdoor projects, eco communities, homesteads, habitat restoration projects, certified environmental business. For anyone wishing to expose and help educate their kids on the environment and ecology this place is the bomb! Highly recommended.

It is a nice small nature center with some indoor and some outdoor animals. The touch tank was pretty cool. Spent less than an hour, but it was a nice activity from 9-10AM before Legoland opened.

Absolutely charming little place. Plenty of animals, mostly reptiles but also birds, mammals, sea creatures and (1) arachnid! Lots of the animals can be handled if you ask. Staff are knowledgeable, friendly and passionate. Some of the material is targeted at a younger audience, but it’s still a great visit for older kids or adults. Highly recommended.

Very cool educational place to take kids. Kids can pet some of the animals and there is a short walking path.

The staff provides a warm welcoming upbeat experience for every event or quick exchange at the front desk. So great to know that kids will learn to love nature because of the programs ahlf provides.

Awesome place. They've got a rescued peragrine falcon, a kestrel and a couple of owls that you can visit. They also have some reptiles inside. Great place for children who like to learn and can be gentle with animals. The volunteers are super great and very welcoming.

We just had my child's birthday party here. It was wonderful! The staff was attentive and involved, but gave us space to let the kids play. Our child and their friends had a great time!

Not much to the walking trail but the center has reptiles and such you can pet/hold. Was fun for the kids and felt safe since all doors were open.

Such a neat little place with all kinds of local animals: including live snakes, starfish, tortoises, even a stuffed coyote that my kids are obsessed with. I wish I would have known about this museum sooner.