International Banana Museum: California’s Happy Place
Visitor correction — October 27, 2026: The International Banana Museum in Mecca is listed as permanently closed by Visit California, and Atlas Obscura reports it closed indefinitely. A page from the collection’s operator mentions a later Mecca site but says entry and hours are uncertain; we could not confirm a reopening. Do not plan a visit based on the old article or historic map pin.
At first glance, the area surrounding California’s Salton Sea is strange, eerie, and desolate. The Salton Sea is a steadily dying lake that is contaminated by toxic farm runoff. Since the once popular Salton Sea began to decline in the 1970s, artists and other eccentric, creative folks have flocked to the lake’s shores in an effort to foster a sense of hope, joy, and renewal. One of the Salton Sea’s most unusual yet beloved attractions is the International Banana Museum.
International Banana Museum owner Fred Garbutt grew up near the Salton Sea, and was searching for a way to draw visitors to his family’s small commercial property. When Garbutt saw that the world’s largest collection of banana memorabilia was for sale, he decided that a room full of bright yellow tropical fruit was the perfect way to attract a steady stream of visitors and invoke happiness.
Garbutt’s small museum features banana earrings, plastic banana combs, and plenty of statues and paintings of hungry monkeys in hot pursuit of bananas. The International Banana Museum’s entire collection is housed in one room, but guests still spend hours perusing every last banana-themed picture, trinket, and writing implement. A vintage banana-themed turntable that is still in working order is one of the museum’s most popular items.
The grand highlight of the International Banana Museum is the snack bar. Visitors rave about the museum’s banana ice cream, frozen chocolate-covered bananas, and banana milkshakes. If the dystopian shores of the Salton Sea get you down, the International Banana Museum is the ideal place for a tropical pick-me-up. It is nearly impossible to feel down in a room that is filled with wall-to-wall yellow, and dedicated to one of nature’s sweetest and most joyful fruits. Move over Disneyland—the International Banana Museum is California‘s one true happy place.
UnusualPlaces Field Notes
- Location
- Former International Banana Museum, Mecca / North Shore, California, USA (closed; former entrance location is disputed)
- Access
- The museum is not open to visitors. Visit California labels it permanently closed; Atlas Obscura says it has been closed indefinitely since at least February 2022. The operator’s surviving hours page is an older COVID-era closure notice, not a current schedule. An operator-history page mentions a new site in Mecca but says hours and entry details are uncertain; no reliable reopening announcement or current visitor hours were found. Do not make a special trip or enter former premises.
- Admission
- Not applicable while the museum is closed. Historical admission details are not current and should not be used to plan a visit.
- Time needed
- Not applicable: the museum is closed and no current visit is confirmed.
- Best season
- No visitor season applies while the museum remains closed; no reliable reopening schedule was found.
- Opening hours
- Closed. Visit California labels the museum permanently closed, and Atlas Obscura reports indefinite closure. The operator’s surviving hours page is an older COVID-era closure notice, not current opening hours.
- Facts checked
- 2026-10-27
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