Open Now: Experience Life of a Sailor
Step aboard Battleship IOWA, become a sailor for a day, and discover the people, skills, and purpose behind life at sea.
Open Thurs-Mon
10am-5pm
Last entry 4pm
PLAN YOUR VISIT
Allow 2 to 3 Hours
Location
LA Waterfront
Parking
Next Door
Highly Rated
Google 4.8/5
A Los Angeles Museum with a Mission
Battleship IOWA is more than a historic ship and more than a museum. Operated by Pacific Battleship Center, an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit, IOWA is not operated or maintained by the Navy. Her preservation, programs and daily operations depend primarily on visitors, members, event guests and donors.
Through Battleship IOWA, home of the National Museum of the Surface Navy, and initiatives including Maritime Pathways, LA Fleet Week and the Freedom of the Seas campus, we change lives by connecting people with history, service, maritime careers and one another.
Since 2012, more than three million people have visited, and our work has generated over $130 million in local economic impact. Every visit, event, membership, and donation helps preserve IOWA and move this mission forward.
Explore as a Visitor
Experience Life of a Sailor.
Explore Our Programs
Education, veterans and career pathways.
Host a Group or Event
Gather aboard an unforgettable landmark.
Support Our Mission
Preserve IOWA. Change lives.
Experience the Life of a Sailor
You don't just tour the ship; you join the crew.
1. Sailor Assignment
Every Sailor Has a Story. One of Them Is Now Yours to Follow.
Board the Battleship IOWA at the forward brow and receive your sailor assignment. Your assignment card has your orders to lead you to your sailor.
Along the way, hone your skills as you become a sailor recruit and walk in the footsteps of sailors.
2. hone your sailor skills
Receive your orders and collect skills in Customs & Courtesies, Seamanship, Navigation, Watchstanding, Communication, and Damage Control.
As you collect each skill, you experience the ship as a sailor would when first reporting aboard—learning its language, responsibilities, routines, and your place within the crew.
3. Reveal Your Sailor
As you approach the end of your journey, find the ships connected to your sailor on the new Great Ships wall and decide which Navy rate best fits you.
Then reveal the identity of your sailor and discover the experiences, choices, and defining moments behind the person you have been following.
4. Explore Deeper
Your Life of a Sailor experience does not have to end with the reveal.
Continue your journey through immersive career tracks that take you deeper into the ship and the work of its crew.
Choose the career track that interests you and see where life as a sailor could take you.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Connect with Our Community
September 11th – 25th Anniversary Remembrance
September 11th – 25th Anniversary Remembrance
Spooktacular Sleepover Family Overnight
Spooktacular Sleepover Family Overnight
Sign up your whole family for Battleship IOWA's SPOOKTACULAR family overnight
Freedom of the Seas 2026
Freedom of the Seas 2026
Join us for a historic evening at the 6th Annual Freedom of the Seas Awards Dinner to "Honor the Extraordinary".
Holiday Family Overnight
Holiday Family Overnight
UPDATES
PATHWAYS PROGRAM SUPPORTERS
Changing lives by helping people explore, connect, and chart their path.
PROGRAM SPONSORS
Limited time only beginning on September 5, 2026!
Kids Board Free
In the all-new Life of a Sailor experience, kids become sailor recruits, building their skills, following the story of a famous sailor, and joining Vicky the Dog on a scavenger hunt through Battleship IOWA.
Kids board free with a paid adult.