I visited Midway in the summer of 2016. Unlike at Iowa, I was pretty much just a general visitor, so this review is probably somewhat more accurate to what the normal experience is like.
Me with the gorgeous construction model of Midway
Midway is a truly fantastic ship. I might even say she was better than Iowa except for the lack of 16" guns. The hangar deck has lots of exhibits about the ship, while the flight deck is full of planes, mostly from the mid to late Cold War. Most of the ship is open, including the bridge (which does require a free escorted tour), one of the engine rooms (which have the same turbines as Iowa), the various squadron rooms, and different varieties of crew spaces. The CIC (Combat Information Center) is a truly amazing space, very very similar to the real one on America that I got to see. I wanted to steal it.
I think I was aboard about 5 hours, and got to see almost everything. My pace is usually fairly similar to that of the general visitor, because I know most of the stuff on the signs. Overall, the exhibits are of very high quality, and there were lots of very knowledgeable guides around, even if they did refuse to admit the inferiority of their unarmored and unarmed ship. The crew of Midway has a great ship on their hand, and you should go and see it.
I visited Midway again in 2022, and wrote up a more detailed review. I also took the opportunity to visit the nearby Maritime Museum of San Diego, which was also quite good.
Comments
My wife took me there on a surprise visit to San Diego.
I geeked out for hours. Engine room. Berthing rooms. The bridge. The planes. The bomb trolley in the cafeteria. The dentist's office. The exhibit on the Battle of Midway. The builder's plexiglass model of the carrier so you can see all the rooms at once.
This is not the only fun place she has taken me to. Should I mention that she has built up quite a lot of credit with me when proposing surprise trips to places? This is a big part of it.
@Tony -- I also remember being surprisingly fascinated with the cafeteria and dentists office. I guess it's a sign of good exhibits!
I think my favorite part was just moving around the ship and seeing the clever things they did to save space -- it was like a jungle gym for adults. Probably not fun to live in, but very fun to clamber around for a few hours as a teenager.
@bean -- IIRC there's a submarine you can tour right next to Midway. Did you go there? Any comments?
You get used to it. Moving through spaces like that quickly and without hurting yourself is a skill most people seem to pick it up after a while shipboard. I can't say exactly how it works, but I'm a lot faster through ships than most people, just because I can trust that I'm not going to run into anything.
I thought that the San Diego Maritime Museum was all sailing ships until you mentioned B-39 in the comments on the ship ride post. Because of that, I never got down there. I'd kind of planned to, but always in the distant future. Might have happened in the summer of 2017 if I hadn't been busy moving.