Musee Mecanique

Considered one of the best museums in the Fisherman's Wharf neighborhood, Musée Mécanique features hundreds of antique penny arcade and coin-operated music and amusement machines, all in an accessible and walker-friendly museum. Fodor's notes that some favorites include "the giant and rather creepy "Laffing Sal" (you enter the museum through his gaping mouth), an arm-wrestling machine, the world's only steam-powered motorcycle, and mechanical fortune-telling figures that speak from their curtained boxes."

Both writers and travelers mention that the museum is popular for children and a great history lesson for young and old alike, since many of the machines are more than 75 years old. Perhaps best of all, the museum is free, and the only cost is in using a machine. So remember to at least bring one quarter.

Musée Mécanique is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.