The 2026 Junior and Senior Prom was held at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. It was a well-organized event and had enough activities to keep students entertained.
During the dance, the African Exhibit and aquarium were open, as was the open space for the DJ and food stations. The aquarium was very big and very fun to walk around. The downside was that the aquarium was only open till 9:30 p.m., which was kind of a bummer. I’m not sure the reason it was only open till that specific time, but the dance went on for another hour and a half after it closed. Despite that, I thought this was a great venue and a terrific experience.
Inside the venue, there were two photo booths. Although the lines were long, they were manageable to wait in due to the fact that there were two booths. It also helped that they were big enough for large groups to take pictures together. The only complaint is that you could only get two photo strips after taking pictures, which was difficult for large groups.
The DJ was in a room in the middle of the Academy of Sciences building. It was definitely not the most popular due to there being a good number of activities elsewhere in the venue. That may seem like a bad thing, but as someone who isn’t the biggest fan of the DJ pit, I thought it was cool. At traditional dances, the only activity is the pit, and if you don’t care for it, too bad! So I thought it was a positive thing that there was more to do than dance.
Another fun activity within the event was karaoke. I didn’t participate myself, but it was fun watching others do it. Even some teachers participated. It seemed like they had a large variety of songs, and they weren’t exclusively clean songs.
At the coat check, where they hold your jackets for you, they provided plastic flip-flops for people to wear. This was helpful for girls in heels or very uncomfortable shoes, so I appreciated the idea.
The food options throughout the dance were tacos, crepes and a chocolate fountain. I liked that they had two different areas for the food, so the lines weren’t wrapping around the building. The tacos were very delicious. I also liked how they had sweet and savory crepes. The tables and seats were limited, which was an issue because there was a random assortment of areas where food was not allowed, although it does make sense due to the amount of open exhibits with live animals. For drinks, they provided Shirley Temples, which were definitely a favorite for most. They also had small sodas and water stations.
The last important thing was the parking at the venue. It was honestly great. It had enough space for everyone. They had a secure underground lot, which was very close to the actual building where the event was held. I only had to pay $18 for parking, which is fantastic for the city. The parking being a manageable price was a big plus for people who didn’t want to or couldn’t pay for a ride or party bus, especially if the parking price is split among friends in the car.
Overall, I had a lot of fun, and I felt that it was not just a dance, but a fun place to hang out with infinite food and drinks.
