Plan your Visit
Free Field Trips to The Tech Museum for California Schools K-12
To qualify for free school group admission, your group must be a California K-12 school (public, private, charter or home); school district or county office of education. Reservations are required two weeks in advance. Free field trip admission applies to the museum galleries only. The Hackworth IMAX Dome films, The Tech Museum Science Labs and special exhibitions are an additional fee.
Title One Schools are eligible for fee-waived educational experiences at The Tech Museum, please ask about this opportunity when making your reservations.
For Booking please call: (408) 294-8324 (option 3) or sign up for a Field Trip online.
Field Trip Policies
To help us provide you with a positive and efficient process for booking and planning your trip to The Tech Museum, please read and become familiar with the following reservation policies.
Getting Started
- You will need to know the number of students, teachers, and adult chaperones attending, the planned date, and a few alternate dates, as well as the expected arrival time.
- Please ask about our Tech Museum Science Labs and Hackworth IMAX Dome Theatre experiences that will enhance your student's visit to The Tech Museum.
- When you are ready, contact our Group Sales office at (408) 294-8324 (option 3) to book your trip. You may also sign up online.
- Please note that Tech Museum Science Labs and Hackworth IMAX Dome films must be booked over the phone not online.
- To apply for a trip through our online system, you must have a valid email address, as this is where we will be sending your confirmation information.
- Submit one application per visit. To book multiple trips on different days, please submit separate requests.
Trip Booking Tips for Teachers
- The Tech Museum is open Monday-Sunday 10:00a.m. - 5:00p.m. year round. From late September through mid-June, The Tech Museum opens an hour early (9:00a.m.) for field trips.
- March, April and May are peak months for school field trips. For best selection of activities, try requesting trips in September-October or January-February.
- We suggest at least 2 hours to visit The Tech Museum galleries, 1 hour for a Hackworth IMAX Dome film, and 90 minutes for a Tech Museum Science Lab session. Don't forget to allow at least 30 minutes for your group to have lunch, if you are staying for the entire day.
- Be sure to make arrangements for transportation as soon as you book your trip with The Tech Museum, as the activities you want may not be available if you need to change your trip date.
- We invite you to visit The Tech Museum prior to your field trip to become familiar with our galleries and floor programs. Sign up for our Free Educator Membership and visit The Tech Museum today.
- Upon arrival, on the day of your trip, each student will be issued a TechTag. Use your TechTag at many of the exhibits and take your museum experience back to the classroom.
- Additional science-based self-guided materials are available at group check in. These materials are content and grade-level-specific.
Chaperone Policy
The Tech Museum Requires a minimum of 1 adult chaperone per 8 students to ensure a safe and rewarding experience. Chaperones must be over 18 years old and not currently attending the school. Chaperones accompanying students are responsible for supervising them at all times. This includes while your group:
- Visits the museum's galleries
- Participates in a lab
- Is on-board escalators or elevators
- Inside The Hackworth IMAX Dome Theater
- Shops in The Tech Store
- Visits Café Primavera
Please download and distribute the chaperone map, before arriving to The Tech Museum. Prepare your chaperones by reviewing The Tech Museum policies, rules and your trip itinerary.
Group Name Tags
The Tech Museum Requires all school groups to wear group name tags or have some other identifying item (logo T-shirts, badges, etc.) as a way of recognizing specific groups. For the safety of the students, name tags should indicate the group name only, not individual names.
After-school Programs
After-school programs may be eligible to take advantage of The Tech Museum's free field trip program too. To be eligible, your program must be located on a district school campus and working to provide after-school programs directly within a public school district. Your program must also be free for participating students and their families. For more information on After-school programs or to make reservations please contact our group sales office at (408) 294-8324 (option 3).
Science Labs
- The Tech Museum Science Labs align with California standards of learning.
- Science Lab sessions are available (Monday through Friday) throughout the school year. Science Labs begin at 9:30a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and last 90 minutes. Labs have a Maximum of 32 students per session. Each Science Lab session costs $225.00.
- For a listing of The Tech Museum Science Lab classes offered with lesson plans and California Science Standards please visit our lab web page.
- Be advised that Science Lab space is limited so book early.
- Title One Schools eligible for fee-waived labs, please ask about this opportunity when making your reservations.
The Hackworth IMAX Dome Theatre
- The Hackworth IMAX Dome Theatre holds 295 guests and seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
- Plan to line up for your film 15 minutes prior to your show time. This will allow the Hackworth IMAX Dome usher to scan your ticket and for your students to find seats before the film starts.
- Please refer to our calendar for regular showing Hackworth IMAX Dome films. Many of these films have downloadable comprehensive Educator's Resource Guide.
- If you are a group of 50 or more, the 10:00a.m. and 11:00a.m. time slots can be reserved with a film from our library of your choosing.
- Title One Schools eligible for fee-waived Hackworth IMAX Dome films, please ask about this opportunity when making your reservations.
Lunch Policy and Facilities
- The Tech Museum requires that student lunches be stored in our multi-use room or in lockers during your visit.
- Before leaving your school site, please collect all lunches in boxes or plastic bags so that they are easy to transport when you arrive.
- To secure items of value, a small number of lockers are available for 50 cents near the elevator on the Ground Level and on the Lower Level.
- For groups desiring to purchase food, Café Primavera @ The Tech Museum offers a range of lunch and snack items. For advance ordering information, please call (408)885-1094 or email vsaldana@thetech.org.
- We also offer movie concessions at The Hackworth IMAX Dome Theater.
- Groups may eat lunch in Cesar Chavez Park (located across the street) or, based on availability, in The Tech Museum's large multi-use room, New Venture Hall. This room accommodates up to 300 students and is available on a first come, first served basis.
Confirmation
Once you have reserved your field trip, you will receive a confirmation email. Attached to this email will be your confirmation letter containing all the activities you have reserved, the cost for each activity and The Tech Museum payment policies. To accelerate you check in please bring your confirmation letter with you on the day of your visit. If you do not receive your confirmation within 3 business days, please contact us at groupreservations@thetech.org.
Payment
- Payment in full is required at the time of check-in. We accept cash, AMEX, Visa, MasterCard, Discover and school-issued checks.
- Groups that choose to pre-pay may call (408) 294-8324 (option 3) to make payment by credit card.
- Pre-payments by check, sent via mail, must be received by The Tech Museum before the date of your visit.
Payments should be made out to The Tech Museum and mailed with your invoice to the attention of Accounts Payable at:
The Tech Museum
201 South Market Street
San Jose, CA 95113
After you have made your reservation you will receive your confirmation information and any additional information requested via email. Please review this information in detail and notify us immediately of any errors. Please make any changes to your attendance on your invoice to avoid overpayment.
| Ticket | Students | Teachers & Required Chaperones |
| Self Guided Field Trip(Galleries Only) | Free | Free |
| Add an educational Hackworth IMAX Dome film | $4.00 | $4.00 |
| Add Hands-On Science Lab | $225.00 per class. Maximum of 32 students and 1 chaperone per class |
Title One schools may be eligible for a fee waiver for Tech Museum Science Labs and Hackworth IMAX Dome theatre films.
Cancellations / Late Arrivals
- Groups must arrive at least 20 minutes prior to their first scheduled activity to allow time for unloading and check in.
- We realize that groups may arrive late due to situations beyond their control. If our schedule allows, we will try to accommodate those groups who arrive late so that they still enjoy a full experience. As our labs and IMAX films must start on time, this is not always possible
- If your group will be significantly late arriving on the date of your trip, please call the Group Sales Office at (408) 294-8324 (option 3).
- For all cancellations, we require an email at least two weeks in advance of your scheduled field trip.
- If you must cancel or reschedule, please email groupreservations@thetech.org, or call the Group Sales Office at (408) 294-8324 (option 3).
Directions amd Parking
Please download and distribute to your drivers our carpool and bus parking map.
Visit our Directions & Parking page for more directional and parking information.
Transportation Support
Ace Rail, Capitol Corridor, and VTA offer free or discounted fares for school trips.
VTA
- Take advantage of the opportunity to take students on field trips traveling by VTA buses and light rail for Free.
- Each teacher is eligible to receive up to two "class passes" every school year
- For details and how to apply for the class pass, visit www.vta.org/schedules/fares/programs_class_pass.html
ACE Rail
- For schools coming from the Central Valley, we are an easy walk from the ACE Rail station.
- Visit www.acerail.com or Call +1 (800) 411-RAIL for more information about school discounts.
Capital Corridor
- For schools coming from Alameda County, Capitol Corridor offers round-trip fares for as little as $3.00 per person.
- Visit www.capitalcorridor.org/fares_and_tickets for more information.