California Condors are displayed in the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History’s Bird Hall, one of the many indoor exhibits reopening Oct. 15.
The Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History and Sea Center is reopening its indoor exhibits to the public after months of being closed due to the pandemic.
According to a news release, they will reopen at 10 a.m. Oct. 15, with attendance limited to 25% capacity to comply with local health orders. To control the number of guests and accommodate social distancing, the museum and sea center will be taking advanced reservations.
When they reopen, the museum and sea center will implement safety protocols such one-way flow of movement from the entrance to the exit, hand washing and hand sanitizing stations throughout the campuses, and increased cleaning of public areas.
Guests over the age of 3 are required to wear masks properly covering the nose and mouth.
Museum spaces opening up will include exhibits like the Mammal Hall, Bird Hall, Santa Barbara Gallery, Chumash Life and Maximus Gallery.
Some indoor museum areas will remain closed, however. These include the Curiosity Lab, Gem & Minerals exhibit and the Gladwin Planetarium, all of which will be closed until the middle of November.
While its indoor spaces were closed, the sea center updated its Jellies & Friends exhibit by adding a new giant pacific seahorse and coral reef habitats to the exhibit’s collection of animals found in the Santa Barbara Channel.
Luke Swetland, president and CEO of the museum and its sea center, expressed happiness that the facilities’ indoor areas will soon reopen and once again provide the public an opportunity to enjoy its favorite exhibits, as well as “new windows into the natural world” that have been recently added.
In a statement he remarked, “Our community’s longing and need for trusted nature-based science education and engagement has only grown stronger in the last few months, so please visit us as you can, and relish in the doorway we provide to the wonders of our natural world.”
The Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History and Sea Center will be open from Wednesday to Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. starting on Oct. 15. Reservations are required and can be made online at sbnature.org/tickets.
Tickets for the sea center are available onsite, not online.
The museum is at 2559 Puesta Del Sol. The sea center is on Stearns Wharf.
email: jgrega@newspress.com
