In 1972 Playland closed and Musée Mécanique became a part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

[3] The museum was featured in the 2001 film The Princess Diaries[4] and in a 2011 episode of the Japanese television show GameCenter CX.

[citation needed] In 2002, when renovations to the Cliff House had begun, the National Park Service announced plans to relocate the Musée Mécanique temporarily to Fisherman's Wharf.

Many of the protesters believed that the money was unavailable to fund the move and renovations, and many had strong feelings about the museum's historical and nostalgic significance from its history at Playland.

[1] Despite the locals' love for the original location, National Public Radio described it as "cramped, noisy, damp and a little dingy.

[1] In 2011 U.S. News & World Report called the Musée Mécanique one of the top three "Things to Do in San Francisco".

[8] The museum has a collection of over 300[2] mechanical games and amusement devices including music boxes, coin-operated fortune tellers, Mutoscopes,[3] video games, love testers, player pianos, peep shows, photo booths, dioramas, and pinball machines.