20 best museums for families across the USA
Families have a multitude of choices when it comes to museums. They span the country, and range from the iconic to the lesser known. Enjoy this museum trip around the country and see where you next want to go exploring with your clan.
American Museum of Natural History - New York
One of the largest museums in the world, this iconic museum (upon which the film 'Night at the Museum' was based) is 1,600,000 square feet, or several city blocks. You'll soon see why it's a hit with kids, its 45 exhibition halls holding fossils, animal dioramas, and ocean life. A 94-foot reconstructed blue whale will greet you; he's the same one you may have seen referenced in the hit comedy 'How I Met Your Mother.' There's no fixed admission, but there are charges for the museum's Sky Show, IMAX and temporary exhibits.
California Science Center - Los Angeles
The California Science Center is a wonderful place to explore exhibits such as Ecosystems (touch an iceberg, see the underwater kelp forest) and the Air and Space exhibit, where you can actually visit the real space shuttle Endeavor. Kids love Science Court, where they find many interactive displays, including a bike you can ride across a cable, three stories high.
Center for Puppetry Arts - Atlanta
Since Kermit the Frog and his creator Jim Henson cut the ceremonial ribbon in 1978, this museum has become the largest non-profit that is solely dedicated to the art of puppetry. Family performance tickets include admission to the show, museum, and Create-A-Puppet-Workshop. Shows feature talented resident company artists and international artists reenacting classic stories as well as new works.
Center of Science and Industry - Columbus, Ohio
Kids love diving into the many exhibits that await them here, such as Adventure: In the Valley of the Unknown, where they can navigate through a maze. They'll become detectives in an upcoming Sherlock Holmes exhibit. Live science shows - such as Rat Basketball and Chemistry Live! - are included with admission. Camping overnight, birthday parties and summer programs are other fun offerings.
Children's Museum of Houston
Kids love the highest three-story climbing structure of its kind (no adults allowed), loads of hands-on exhibits and the hilarity of rolling in a huge human hamster ball. There are also lots of educational exhibits and a play area just for tots. Thursday nights are free for families.
Children's Museum of Indianapolis
Consistently ranked as a top family destination, the Children's Museum of Indianapolis, the world's largest children's museum, provides 5 floors of hands-on activities for discovering science, history, culture and the arts. Near the SpaceQuest Planetarium, the museum lets kids see real NASA exhibits, and build their own model before testing it in a wind tunnel. The glass-blowing exhibit and stunning 43-foot tall colorful tower of 3,200 pieces of glass by artist Dale Chihuly are must-sees.
The Children's Museum of Denver
Catering to kids from infancy to eight years of age, the Children's Museum of Denver has all sorts of creative and interactive exhibits, from a bubble station to a mini grocery store. Kids can climb on a real fire truck or create their own work of art with the Arts a la Carte program The puppet theater and wood shop area are favorites too. A colorful carpeted toddler room with a "no running" policy is a bonus for parents of tiny tots.
Discovery Center - Rockford, Ill.
The Discovery Center in Rockford, Ill. houses 250 exhibits, including one recent exhibit honoring hometown astronaut Janice Voss. Patrons are discovering a new Secret Garden in the museum's outdoor science park, Rock River Discovery Park. Young ticketholders explore science and sports at this popular museum, and even ride a virtual snowboard (sure to be a big hit in light of Sochi coverage). They can also give a weather report in the interactive news studio or ride a real tractor in the new Ag-Zibit.
Discovery Place - Charlotte
In this large and sophisticated museum, all ages will find something amazing to do or see. Kids experience new state-of-the-art sights and sounds in the Discovery 3D Theatre, where glasses are a must. In World Alive, they see all sorts of creatures in the aquarium, rain forest and learning labs. Running daily are highly entertaining shows, including fun science experiments and meet-and-greets with resident museum animals.
Exploratorium - San Francisco
San Francisco's Exploratorium, now in its new location, is considered a proud, vital part of the city. Kids and grown-ups of all ages experience 600+ exhibits in this "21st century learning laboratory." Young explorers crawl through chambers and mazes in the totally dark - and totally cool - Tactile Dome (reservations required). One artist took 37 years to build: the world's largest toothpick sculpture, and it's here, too. Two full acres of outdoor exhibit space round out this modern museum's fabulous waterfront location.
Henry Ford Museum - Detroit
Visitors to the Henry Ford Museum get to see some of Henry Ford's own personal collection of cars, including his very first, from 1896. They'll also find many other historical vehicles, such as limousines that have carried presidents, and the bus where Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat. The Ford Quadricycle lives here, as do modern-day hybrid and electric cars. Want to take a virtual test drive in an old Model T? No problem. A race car exhibit intrigues as does the IMAX theater and a fascinating Ford factory tour.
Metropolitan Museum of Art - New York
The Metropolitan in New York is a wonderful place to introduce youngsters to a multitude of art experiences, from ink demonstrations to puppet shows to story time. This world-famous museum is surprisingly family-friendly and encourages budding new artists. Vast major collections, from arms and armor to musical instruments, enthrall visitors in the many wings of a magnificent historical building (two million square feet), which dates back to the late 1800s.
Minnesota Children's Museum - St. Paul
The popular Minnesota Children's Museum is wowing patrons with its exciting new exhibit 'Dinosaurs: Land of Fire and Ice. ' It's the only hands-on dinosaur exhibit where children can actually touch bones; make fossil rubbings; then don insect costumes, buzz through a volcano and swampy bog; and end up in a Troodon's nest, complete with dinosaur eggs. Overlooking downtown St. Paul is the museum's rooftop Art Park, where nature and art meet - its tree fort and sand cove are both big hits.
Museum of Science and Industry - Chicago
Chicago's MOSI is the second largest cultural attraction in Chicago and the largest science museum in the Western Hemisphere, The museum of Science and Industry is quite a place to explore. It holds the Apollo 8 spacecraft that carried the first humans to ever orbit the moon. It's also home to a German submarine captured during World War II. Located in the beautiful former Palace of Fine Arts overlooking a lagoon, the museum offers movies in its Omnimax theater. Patrons can count on a fresh rotation of exhibits, like this year's rarely-seen artifacts, to commemorate the venerable institution's 80th anniversary.
Musical Instrument Museum - Phoenix
Touted as the 'World's Only Global Musical Instrument Museum,' this intriguing repository offers fun edutainment. Collections include instruments from around the world; instruments that "play themselves;" celebrity instruments; and a gallery where kids can play a variety of instruments from around the world. Lectures and live concerts also make the calendar, and new this year is the 'Women Who Rock' exhibit.
National Museum of Play - Rochester, N.Y.
This sprawling 150,000-square-foot museum, from its playful and whimsical architectural exterior to its imaginative interior, is the only one devoted solely to the study of play. Even though historical exhibits recount familiar friends from Sesame Street and Berenstain Bears, the museum's interactive nature is what delights kids of all ages. A butterfly garden and life-size pop-up book especially entice young family members. Besides the museum's fun exhibits, special events also happen regularly, such as the Lyric Opera's performance, where guests are invited to dress in costume for the Royal Ball. Children also get a chance to meet Finley, the mascot from the Rochester Razorsharks basketball team.
New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science - Albuquerque
Kids love the large bronze dinosaur sculptures at the entrance to this Museum - and they're only a hint of things to come. The New Mexico Museum of Natural History has a wonderful dinosaur display, including a large 'T. Rex' skull with which they come face-to-face. The 'Timetracks' exhibit traces the history of New Mexico, dating back to prehistoric times. Kids especially enjoy walking through a volcano with its 'lava' light-up floors, or catching a show in the DynaTheater or Planetarium ('Fractals Rock' is a favorite).
Please Touch Museum - Philadelphia
The Please Touch Museum invites kids to do just that: touch and experience all kinds of fun exhibits on its two floors of adventure. The Flight Fantasy exhibit allows kids to use their own energy to experience varieties of flying machines. Musical instruments await in the Rainforest Rhythm exhibit. Children go down the Rabbit Hole to Wonderland, weave through a maze and walk through the Hall of Doors and Mirrors. Families can also catch a puppet show in the theater, ride a carousel and meet Clifford the Big Red Dog at an upcoming Story Time this month.
Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum - Washington
Eight million people a year visit this most visited museum in our nation's capital. Containing the largest collection of aviation and space artifacts, the National Air and Space Museum is truly fascinating to all those interested in flight. Twenty-three galleries exhibit such fascinating treasures as the 1903 Wright Flyer, the Spirit of St. Louis and Apollo 11, to name just a few. All kinds of planes and jets are on display as well as artifacts from space voyages. The Planetarium and IMAX theater add to the fun.
Explora Children's Museum - Albuquerque
Housed under a colorful domed roof, the Explora Children's Museum in Albuquerque offers fun and learning for all ages. Art and science come together in its new 'Light Shadow Color' exhibit. One-act and full-length plays occur in the museum's theater, where real-life scientists and their achievements are depicted; audience members ask the performers questions afterward.
VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE
Each of these museums is a nominee in the 10Best Readers' Choice contest for best family museum: click here to vote, or go to 10best.com/awards/travel. You can vote daily for your favorite, until Monday, Feb. 17 at noon.