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Hilton is sponsoring San Diego Museum Month this February - it's offering special packages at all 29 of its hotels throughout the city
Hilton is sponsoring San Diego Museum Month this February - it's offering special packages at all 29 of its hotels throughout the city
David SlotnickJan 28, 2019, 20:32 IST
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February is Museum Month in San Diego, when locals and visitors can get half-off admission to more than 40 museums across the city.
To participate, all you need to do is pick up a free Museum Month pass.
Hilton, a sponsor of the event, has special Museum Month packages at all 29 of its hotels throughout San Diego, and will have the passes available for guests.
Read on to learn more about Museum Month, and how to get the most for your stay at Hilton Hotels - both in San Diego, and elsewhere.
San Diego may be best known for the surf and the ships, but there's more to do in the SoCal city than you might have realized.
From a flourishing craft brewery scene, a burgeoning culinary culture, homegrown arts, and a world-famous zoo, there's something for every kind of traveler. One thing to make sure to remember: San Diego's dozens of museums.
Next month is the ideal time for a trip to the city. Every February for the past three decades, San Diego has hosted a citywide museum month. More than 40 locations are taking part in this year's Museum Month, offering half-off admission to anyone who has a free museum month passbook.
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The passbook is available to locals and visitors, and can be picked up from more than 80 locations around the city. For locals, the best bet is the closest public library. Visitors can stop by a library branch too, but this year, Hilton Hotels is partnering with the San Diego Museum Council to offer the pass to guests.
To get the pass, either book Hilton's Museum Month package at any of the company's 29 hotels in the city, or ask at the front desk during your stay.
There's a wide variety of museums, ranging from family-friendly to more fun for grown-ups. Take a look below at some of the participating museums, and for tips on how to get the most value from your Hilton stay. Also, be sure to check out the San Diego Museum Council or Hilton's Museum Month page for full details.
One great stop — especially with kids — is the San Diego Natural History Museum.
With a focus on the natural history and environment surrounding greater San Diego region, the museum has fun exhibits and fascinating specimens.
There's active research going on, and museum visitors can watch volunteers work with newly uncovered fossils.
The San Diego Model Railroad Museum is a quirky but fun stop, while the Museum of Photographic Arts and the San Diego History Center are fascinating.
The San Diego Museum of Art hosts an impressive permanent collection, as well as temporary exhibitions. Through February 24, a jarring, moving exhibition of Northern Irish sculptor Tim Shaw's work is on display.
For a relaxing break in an urban oasis, be sure to check out the Japanese Friendship Garden.
At night, take a tour of the Whaley House Museum and learn all about the historic site while keeping your eyes peeled for ghosts.
Be sure to visit the USS Midway Museum on board a decommissioned aircraft carrier, too.
You can take a guided or self-guided tour, and see original fixtures in the ship.
You can also get a close-up look at the planes and helicopters on the deck, and even climb inside some of them.
While it isn't included in the Museum Month discounts, you might want to look into a trolley tour as a way to see a lot of the city, and to get your bearings on your first day there.
And if time permits, be sure to check out some of the city's incredible beaches.
There are plenty of other museums included in the Museum Month discounts, including the famous Birch Aquarium at Scripps, the Maratime Museum, the Automotive Museum, and more. Make sure to check out the full list, and to pick up your Museum Month pass when you stay at a Hilton.
Getting the most from your Hilton stay
If you stay at Hilton hotels even somewhat-often, you may want to open a Hilton credit card.
The Aspire comes with the most benefits, but also has the highest annual fee, so it's best for those who are fairly loyal to Hilton. However, if you plan to apply for the card and stay for a weekend in San Diego, and maybe another weekend within the year, the card's annual fee will pay for itself.
Welcome offer: 75,000 Hilton Honors points when you spend $1,000 in the first three months.
The baseline Hilton Honors credit card is a stellar option for those who occasionally stay in Hiltons and have use for the welcome offer or benefits, but aren't true brand loyalists or road warriors.
It offers complimentary Hilton Honors Silver elite status, which includes benefits like late check-out, free water bottles during stays, a free 5th night on reward nights, and more points earned during stays. When you spend $20,000 on the card in a calendar year, you'll get upgraded to Gold status, which includes the same perks as silver, plus free breakfast and room upgrades.
Silver status will apply to your Museum Month stay (and any other stay), so you'll get your benefits right away.
The card earns 7x points per dollar spent on Hilton purchases, 5x points per dollar spent at restaurants, gas stations, and supermarkets within the US, and 3x point on everything else.
Travel website The Points Guy subjectively values Hilton Honors points at 0.6¢ each — that makes the bonus worth $450.
Welcome offer: 125,000 Hilton Honors points when you spend $2,000 in the first three months.
Instead of Silver status, like the no-fee card, the Ascend offers complimentary Gold status. That comes with the same benefits as silver, plus two major additions: you'll get free breakfast during your stay, and you'll be eligible for a room upgrade, assuming there's a free room available.
The Ascend earns 12x points on Hilton purchases, 6x points at restaurants, gas stations, and supermarkets — all within the US — and 3x points on everything else.
Between the 125,000-point welcome bonus, and the fact that the Ascend card offers a free weekend night when you spend $15,000 on it within a calendar year, you've got the makings of a nice long hotel stay without having to pay a thing.
The card also comes with 10 free day passes to Priority Pass airport lounges, and offers a free weekend night when you spend $15,000 on it within a calendar year. The Ascend has a $95 annual fee, but chances are the benefits will offset that for you.
Welcome offer: 150,000 Hilton Honors points when you spend $4,000 in the first three months.
The premium Hilton Honors American Express Aspire card has a hefty $450 annual fee, but it comes with so many perks, benefits, and rebates that it's more than worth paying for Hilton loyalists.
First, it offers up to $250 in Hilton resort statement credits each card membership year, as well as a up to $250 in airline fee credits per calendar year. Right away, those two credits cover more than the annual fee.
But wait, there's more. The Aspire also offers a $100 Hilton on-property credit every time you book a stay of two nights or longer at a Hilton property — you just need to book through a specific website for cardholders. You can use this right away during a San Diego month stay.
The card also offers a free weekend night reward each year — regardless of how much you spend — and a second weekend night if you spend $60,000 on the card in a calendar year. It also comes with complimentary top-tier Diamond status which, as you'd expect, entitles you to greater benefits than other levels of status.
The Aspire earns a tremendous 14x points per dollar spent with Hilton, 7x points on flights booked with the airline, car rentals, and at US restaurants, and 3x points on everything else.
