A spiny prickly pear, or nopal, is right along one of the paths and is one of the plants at the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum outside Tucson that is used by traditional herbalists on Mar. 13, 2018. Some plants have medicinal properties and will be highlighted in a class on March 18, 2018. Prickly pear has been used to treat type 2 diabetes and high cholestrol among other uses.

 A.E. Araiza / Arizona Daily Star

It isn't the first time, and let's hope it won't be the last.

Once again, the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum has made TripAdvisor's annual list recognizing the top 25 museums in the country. 

This year, Tucson's beloved desert museum came in 18th place — the same rank as last year. The National 9/11 Memorial & Museum in New York took the gold for first place this year.

TripAdvisor's Travelers' Choice Awards for Museums started in 2013 and the desert museum has been recognized almost every year.

For the first two years, the museum took a spot in the top 10 nationwide. In 2013, the museum even made the top 10 list of museums across the world.

The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, 2021 N. Kinney Road, is the second museum in Arizona to make the list. The Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix ranked 15th. 

The awards are given based on the quality and quantity of TripAdvisor reviews through the course of the year. 

Animals at the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum 

Photos: Animals at the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum

Look through the gallery to view animals that make up the museum.

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Contact reporter Gloria Knott at gknott@tucson.com or 573-4235. On Twitter: @gloriaeknott