The Kitsap Peninsula region has museums for every interest and February is a great month to explore them, especially if you’re a Seattle or Kitsap hotel guest.

Visitors at participating downtown Seattle hotels enjoy half-price admission to more than 40 regional museums during Seattle Museum Month. Among them are a trio of Kitsap attractions. As a bonus, two of those museums – the Kitsap History Museum and the USS Turner Joy – are also extending half-price admission to Kitsap hotel guests who show their keycards.

An additional four Kitsap museums participating in Seattle Museum Month are always free.

Here’s the rundown:

Bainbridge Island Museum of Art

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550 Winslow Way East

Close to the ferry terminal

Hours: 10-6 daily

Admission: Free

Focus: Contemporary art from the Puget Sound region

Highlight: Family-friendly A Story Place features 30 life-size ceramic figures listening to a child reading a story about them.

Kids Discovery Museum (KiDiMu)

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301 Ravine Lane NE, Bainbridge Island

Close to the ferry terminal

Hours: 10-4 Tuesdays through Saturdays, noon-4 Sundays

Admission: Half-price ­–­ $3.50 adults and children, $3 military and seniors over age 65; always free the first Thursday of the month

Focus: Hands-on art, science, cultural and scientific programming for young children

Highlights: Pirate tree house, art studio, a light wall, a magnet wall, a tiny town complete with an electric car and KiDiMu ferry, a tiny tots area for toddlers, babies and breastfeeding moms

Events: Check the calendar for art, math, literacy and science activities.

Kitsap History Museum

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280 Fourth St., Bremerton

Close to the ferry terminal

Hours: 10-4 Tuesdays through Fridays, noon-4 Saturdays

Admission: Half-price ­­– $2

Focus: Kitsap County culture, heritage and history

Highlights: Old Main Street, Kitsap arts & crafts, hands-on gallery with technology from the past, Native American longhouse, floating bunk house, stump farm and mosquito fleet routes

Naval Undersea Museum

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1 Garnett Way, Keyport

Winter Hours: Open daily 10-4, except Tuesdays

Admission: Free

Focus: Navy’s undersea operations, technology, combat, research and salvage

Highlights: Interactive exhibit about the ocean environment, control room of a Cold War-era submarine

Events: Navy Band Northwest Concert at 2 p.m. Feb. 21; Discover “E” Day, 10-2 Feb. 27, with hands-on engineering activities for the whole family

Puget Sound Navy Museum

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251 First St., Bremerton

Next to the ferry terminal

Winter Hours: Open daily 10-4, except Tuesdays

Admission: Free

Focus: The naval heritage of the Pacific Northwest from 1840 to the present

Highlights: Exhibits include submarines, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, the USS John C. Stennis aircraft carrier and the history of tattoos

Events: Last Saturday Kids and Family program on codes and ciphers all day Feb. 27

USS Turner Joy Museum Ship

http://www.ussturnerjoy.org

300 Washington Beach Ave., Bremerton

Close to the ferry terminal

Winter Hours: 10-4 Wednesdays through Sundays

Admission: Half-price ­– $7 for adults, $5 for youth (13-17), $4 for children (5-12), $6 for seniors over age 62; always half-price for active military and dependents, always free for active military in uniform, Tin Can Sailors and children age 4 and younger

Focus: The destroyer’s role in U.S. naval history, including participation in the Gulf of Tonkin incident that escalated the country’s involvement in the Vietnam War

Highlights: About 90 percent of the ship is open for self-guided tours

Events: Love letters and Valentine-themed displays Feb. 12-14; Celebrate Admiral Turner Joy’s birthday Feb. 17 with cake on the mess deck


Valentinetti Puppet Museum

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257 Fourth St., Bremerton

Close to the ferry terminal

Hours: 11-3 Tuesdays, 11-4 Wednesdays through Saturdays, 5-8 p.m. First Fridays

Admission: Free

Focus: Celebrates the art and history of puppetry around the world

Highlight: Coin-operated Pelham mechanical puppet show from England with dancing marionettes

Events: Recycled Puppet Workshop, 11 a.m. Feb. 20, $10 for the first child and $5 for each additional child in a household, call 360-373-2992 to reserve a spot; Stories from Junk Puppet Land, performance by Bill Jarcho of Zambini Brothers, 2 p.m. Feb. 27, Olympic College Theater (15th & Ohio Streets), $7, For tickets.

For more Kitsap Peninsula museums, galleries and cultural attractions, Click here.