Excellent indoor/outdoor activities. Lots to see and do, more than you can possibly see in a few hours.
Kevin K.
This place is awesome, truly a wonder for kids of pretty much all ages to explore. It's huge, with several different large areas ranging from my favorite , the giant jungle gym, to a water play area, and more. This last time I went, I was very excited to check out the paper rocket launching area again, but was disappointed to find out I have a 2 year old, and he was plenty old enough to enjoy most of the museum. We also ate at the cafe, and were pleasantly surprised by how good the food was. It was reasonably priced and all very good. However there are 3 reasons I only give 3 stars. 1. The price is outrageous. It's $24 per adult, $19 for a youth, and $17 for a child. This means for a typical 4 member family, you're looking at spending $80+. As cool as the museum is, it's simply not worth coming more than once a year at this price. So many families who could enjoy this are simply priced out. 2. Most of the time (at least when I've gone), it's packed like a can of sardines. This makes bringing a younger child, like a 2 year old difficult. Because all of the activities are constantly swarmed by older kids. In some areas, it's hard to even just get through the walkways there are so many people. They have tried to combat this, by creating a few areas specifically made for younger kids, so that is nice at least. This would likely difficult to implement, but it seems there should be some sort of max capacity that's optimized for kids to get the most out of the museum. 3. The girl that took our order at the cafe was EXTREMELY rude. We simply asked her how big the chicken fingers are to get a gauge how much food would come with this "kids" meal. And she acted like we asked the most difficult question in the world and got so defensive and treated us poorly for some reason. Almost like the chicken finger size is a trade secret that she is sworn to protect.
Courtney H.
I've been bringing my kids for years to this museum and it is our favorite place to be. We love all the interactive and educational areas. This place is great. If you want to have something to do all day, you will not be tired or bored. Great for homeschooling families for a nice day out I'm not sure who has more fun me or the kids.
Nicole G.
The place was incredibly dirty, run down and overly crowded. The car exhibit was broken, run down and my kid was disappointed as they love cars. There should be a limit on how many guests can purchase a ticket per day especially on the weekends. There were no staff walking around to ensure kids aren't getting out of hand and parents were zoned out on their phones instead of watching their kids. The areas are "all ages" which isn't safe for toddlers when 10-11 year olds are sword fighting with pool noodles and parents don't care. The cherry on top of the experience was an rude dad yelling at me for my toddler trying to put water in there kids bucket.... These are kids for god sake, let them be kids. Again security in areas making sure incidents don't happen.
Katie Louise
About 1/3 of the museum was closed for renovation but we were charged full price. Not good for kids over the age of 8. Nothing for them to do any too many littles running around for the nuggets kids to enjoy themselves.
Tricia V.
The tickets are pricey ($90 for 4) but the museum looks like a bunch of eighth graders got together to paint scenes for their class play. Many of the exhibitions were boring and very small and had almost nothing to do for kids. But the worst of it was that there were no working elevators. I asked staff about this & got a shoulder shrug and I'm sorry. I'm 68 yo and have bursitis. I was able to climb the staircases a couple of times and then I had to wait in the car for my family as I was in a lot of pain. What would they have done if someone showed up in a wheelchair. I believe it's against the law -- the Disability Act -- to not have accessibility for disabled folks. I may make a complaint. UPDATE: Mgm called me, apologized, refunded tickets and are sending 4 tickets our way. Still stand by my comments about the museum in general.
Ray H.
Unbelievable! What an absolute waste of time and money ($60 for three people). About 30% to 40% of the exhibits were not working. Those that did work were old and not in good working order . . . not to mention that overall the museum felt dirty and not in good repair. Seems like Thanksgiving Point needs to invest some serious money in upgrading this museum, especially for the price they are charging. As it stands, I would definitely NOT recommend this museum.
Sophia G.
Yikes! For the prices they charge, I would hope they would invest it into the exhibits. Everything was visibly dirty. The puppets, vet animals and pretty much everything else was beyond dingy, matted and disgusting. The worst part was the front desk staff - sorry to say. They didn't seem to know what the different offerings were. When I saw a door about canopy tours when I first walked in I inquired about it. They were quick to measure my son and have me fill out forms. And THEN, after filling everything out was I told it was an extra charge. Because I had done the leg work and my son was excited, they got an extra $20 from me. I should also point out, nobody explained what the canopy tour was. I thought it was the ropes I saw kids climbing on - turns out that's the playground and the canopy course was really high in the sky and something far out of my son's ability. They also didn't tell me when they charged my card for $20 that it was non refundable or transferable. Well, once I realized that the playground was the playground and the canopy course was what it was, I went to the front desk and asked if I could return my tickets. They were happy to tell me that I couldn't for the reasons I mentioned above. Management - please train your staff better. They should be explaining and ensuring that parents know what they are getting into - AND that things cost extra money before we fill out forms. And absolutely ensure parents BEFORE they pay that it's not refundable. This place felt like a money grab, and I can't justify returning after my first visit.
Haleigh G.
This is truly the children's museum of children's museums! It is fun for all ages and has so many activities that kids love coming back again and again. We are on our second annual pass here (and we came a LOT while we were renovating our house and had nowhere to go during the day) and my boys (ages 4 and 2) still love coming here so much. There is also a high ropes course that my older nephews love doing and the outside area is also fun for warm days. During busy hours there are extra activities the workers run, such as play dough stations or Lego activities, so there is always something for everyone. The rotating exhibit is also a fun little change every couple months. If you have kids and live here--get a pass! If you have kids and are visiting--this is a great activity that you can spend hours at! Plus you can get a stamp to come back during the day if you need to leave for lunch or naps. This is a true gem of a place!
Haylee J.
Just, yes. This place is awesome. Kids of any age from crawling to climb will have fun here! We LOVE the museum of natural curiosity
I am a season pass holder for Thanksgiving Point and I have gotten increasingly frustrated with each visit to the "museum" of natural curiosity. Most of the exhibits are broken, dirty, or completely out of order. I wouldn't recommend taking a toddler-aged child. The exhibits seem geared to older kids. The playground area is definitely not appropriate for toddlers to navigate on their own without close parental guidance. There is so much potential here so it is disappointing when we are let down every visit. They need to tidy up update and add more exhibits to spread out the crazy crowds.
Alisha B.
This place is more playground than educational museum. Yes, exploration is part of learning and development, but it was very shy on the informational side. Granted, I've taken my kids to the phenomenonal Pacific Science Center in Seattle and Portland's OMSI center, both of which are packed with really fun science related experiences. Because of that disappointment, the steep admission prices and the horrible crowds (even first thing on a random Monday morning in March) we probably won't return for years. Among other things, they have... A jungle where you can squeeze a pillar to see how much force you can apply (like a snake). You can weigh yourself in terms of grasshoppers and hippos. Walking on rope ladders and climbing into a little plane is fun, although the crowds suck much of the pleasure out. The little village is also fun to explore. The music studio area was our favorite, where you can playban air harp, and a huge drum set, among other things. The little kids enjoyed the vet office, where they x-ray stuffies and "work on them" on the exam table. The giant Legos were fun, but there weren't nearly enough bricks in the room for all the kids. The water splash area was very loud but the littles liked it.
Isabelle C.
I was skeptical bringing my 1-year-old twins here because I was worried there wouldn't be much for them to do, but I was pleasantly surprised! This children's museum is definitely geared towards ages 1-8. There are two enclosed play areas for toddlers: one on the main floor with a vegetable garden & slide, and one downstairs with ball activities & slide. These are perfect areas to let littles play because you know they can't escape! All over there are "yuck bags" where parents can put toys that have been in children's mouths, which is a nice feature to keep things less germ-y. My only complaints: there are often toys strewn all over the place that don't belong where they should, i.e. balls upstairs that belong downstairs and veggies downstairs that belong upstairs. I get that kids are kids and probably carry these toys all around the museum with them, but it would be nice if staff periodically went around to clean up a bit. Additionally, the water tables for ages 0-2 are a blast but the water is pretty cold; I bet this feels nice during summer months, but it is chilly for the babies in wintertime. Also keep in mind: you have to keep babies clothed in the water table, you aren't allowed to put them in swimsuits or diaper-only-- we usually bring a change of clothes for after and that works great!
Elizabeth J.
My kids love this place. It's fun for kids of all ages. If you're alone with your kids it can be a little stressful when they scatter. My kids love the water area as well as the climbing area. The outside is nice when it's not too hot. The playground has shredded tires on the ground which gets super hot in summer. There's some awesome caves and a coy pond as well.
Jessica L.
I went with my 7-year-old and her school's entire 2nd grade on a field trip to the Museum of Curiosity. The hour long bus ride was very loud because the kids were so excited. When the bus dropped us off at the front, we walked through some tiny doors to get inside (I could have used the normal sized door, but that wouldn't have been as fun). There were so many different areas to explore! We barely visited them all within the hour. We could have easily spent more time here. Even as a boring old adult, I had a lot of fun! We started in the rain forest area where the kids did a lot of climbing and then screamed in fear as they slid down an awesome slide. Apparently it has two fun surprise drops :) I wish I had gone down it (I didn't know adults could). After wrangling my group of kids, we headed to a different area where they could build with huge Legos, become a veterinarian, be on tv, do magic with optical illusions, put on a play on a small stage, play music, and exercise. We headed to a different area where they learned about the weather and played with some water (without getting soaked). I now know what it feels like to have 85mph winds blowing down on the top of my head. It makes for a great hair day :) Be sure to hang on to your hats! We only had a few minutes left, so we ran outside to explore. There was a fun playground, but around the corner was a cave with a waterfall. There were some ponds with koi fish that the kids loved. We ran out of time to do everything we wanted to do. My daughter has been asking to go back and the older kids wants to join her. We might plan a family trip out here. It was a blast!
Excellent indoor/outdoor activities. Lots to see and do, more than you can possibly see in a few hours.
This place is awesome, truly a wonder for kids of pretty much all ages to explore. It's huge, with several different large areas ranging from my favorite , the giant jungle gym, to a water play area, and more. This last time I went, I was very excited to check out the paper rocket launching area again, but was disappointed to find out I have a 2 year old, and he was plenty old enough to enjoy most of the museum. We also ate at the cafe, and were pleasantly surprised by how good the food was. It was reasonably priced and all very good. However there are 3 reasons I only give 3 stars. 1. The price is outrageous. It's $24 per adult, $19 for a youth, and $17 for a child. This means for a typical 4 member family, you're looking at spending $80+. As cool as the museum is, it's simply not worth coming more than once a year at this price. So many families who could enjoy this are simply priced out. 2. Most of the time (at least when I've gone), it's packed like a can of sardines. This makes bringing a younger child, like a 2 year old difficult. Because all of the activities are constantly swarmed by older kids. In some areas, it's hard to even just get through the walkways there are so many people. They have tried to combat this, by creating a few areas specifically made for younger kids, so that is nice at least. This would likely difficult to implement, but it seems there should be some sort of max capacity that's optimized for kids to get the most out of the museum. 3. The girl that took our order at the cafe was EXTREMELY rude. We simply asked her how big the chicken fingers are to get a gauge how much food would come with this "kids" meal. And she acted like we asked the most difficult question in the world and got so defensive and treated us poorly for some reason. Almost like the chicken finger size is a trade secret that she is sworn to protect.
I've been bringing my kids for years to this museum and it is our favorite place to be. We love all the interactive and educational areas. This place is great. If you want to have something to do all day, you will not be tired or bored. Great for homeschooling families for a nice day out I'm not sure who has more fun me or the kids.
The place was incredibly dirty, run down and overly crowded. The car exhibit was broken, run down and my kid was disappointed as they love cars. There should be a limit on how many guests can purchase a ticket per day especially on the weekends. There were no staff walking around to ensure kids aren't getting out of hand and parents were zoned out on their phones instead of watching their kids. The areas are "all ages" which isn't safe for toddlers when 10-11 year olds are sword fighting with pool noodles and parents don't care. The cherry on top of the experience was an rude dad yelling at me for my toddler trying to put water in there kids bucket.... These are kids for god sake, let them be kids. Again security in areas making sure incidents don't happen.
About 1/3 of the museum was closed for renovation but we were charged full price. Not good for kids over the age of 8. Nothing for them to do any too many littles running around for the nuggets kids to enjoy themselves.
The tickets are pricey ($90 for 4) but the museum looks like a bunch of eighth graders got together to paint scenes for their class play. Many of the exhibitions were boring and very small and had almost nothing to do for kids. But the worst of it was that there were no working elevators. I asked staff about this & got a shoulder shrug and I'm sorry. I'm 68 yo and have bursitis. I was able to climb the staircases a couple of times and then I had to wait in the car for my family as I was in a lot of pain. What would they have done if someone showed up in a wheelchair. I believe it's against the law -- the Disability Act -- to not have accessibility for disabled folks. I may make a complaint. UPDATE: Mgm called me, apologized, refunded tickets and are sending 4 tickets our way. Still stand by my comments about the museum in general.
Unbelievable! What an absolute waste of time and money ($60 for three people). About 30% to 40% of the exhibits were not working. Those that did work were old and not in good working order . . . not to mention that overall the museum felt dirty and not in good repair. Seems like Thanksgiving Point needs to invest some serious money in upgrading this museum, especially for the price they are charging. As it stands, I would definitely NOT recommend this museum.
Yikes! For the prices they charge, I would hope they would invest it into the exhibits. Everything was visibly dirty. The puppets, vet animals and pretty much everything else was beyond dingy, matted and disgusting. The worst part was the front desk staff - sorry to say. They didn't seem to know what the different offerings were. When I saw a door about canopy tours when I first walked in I inquired about it. They were quick to measure my son and have me fill out forms. And THEN, after filling everything out was I told it was an extra charge. Because I had done the leg work and my son was excited, they got an extra $20 from me. I should also point out, nobody explained what the canopy tour was. I thought it was the ropes I saw kids climbing on - turns out that's the playground and the canopy course was really high in the sky and something far out of my son's ability. They also didn't tell me when they charged my card for $20 that it was non refundable or transferable. Well, once I realized that the playground was the playground and the canopy course was what it was, I went to the front desk and asked if I could return my tickets. They were happy to tell me that I couldn't for the reasons I mentioned above. Management - please train your staff better. They should be explaining and ensuring that parents know what they are getting into - AND that things cost extra money before we fill out forms. And absolutely ensure parents BEFORE they pay that it's not refundable. This place felt like a money grab, and I can't justify returning after my first visit.
This is truly the children's museum of children's museums! It is fun for all ages and has so many activities that kids love coming back again and again. We are on our second annual pass here (and we came a LOT while we were renovating our house and had nowhere to go during the day) and my boys (ages 4 and 2) still love coming here so much. There is also a high ropes course that my older nephews love doing and the outside area is also fun for warm days. During busy hours there are extra activities the workers run, such as play dough stations or Lego activities, so there is always something for everyone. The rotating exhibit is also a fun little change every couple months. If you have kids and live here--get a pass! If you have kids and are visiting--this is a great activity that you can spend hours at! Plus you can get a stamp to come back during the day if you need to leave for lunch or naps. This is a true gem of a place!
Just, yes. This place is awesome. Kids of any age from crawling to climb will have fun here! We LOVE the museum of natural curiosity
Restaurantji Recommends
I am a season pass holder for Thanksgiving Point and I have gotten increasingly frustrated with each visit to the "museum" of natural curiosity. Most of the exhibits are broken, dirty, or completely out of order. I wouldn't recommend taking a toddler-aged child. The exhibits seem geared to older kids. The playground area is definitely not appropriate for toddlers to navigate on their own without close parental guidance. There is so much potential here so it is disappointing when we are let down every visit. They need to tidy up update and add more exhibits to spread out the crazy crowds.
This place is more playground than educational museum. Yes, exploration is part of learning and development, but it was very shy on the informational side. Granted, I've taken my kids to the phenomenonal Pacific Science Center in Seattle and Portland's OMSI center, both of which are packed with really fun science related experiences. Because of that disappointment, the steep admission prices and the horrible crowds (even first thing on a random Monday morning in March) we probably won't return for years. Among other things, they have... A jungle where you can squeeze a pillar to see how much force you can apply (like a snake). You can weigh yourself in terms of grasshoppers and hippos. Walking on rope ladders and climbing into a little plane is fun, although the crowds suck much of the pleasure out. The little village is also fun to explore. The music studio area was our favorite, where you can playban air harp, and a huge drum set, among other things. The little kids enjoyed the vet office, where they x-ray stuffies and "work on them" on the exam table. The giant Legos were fun, but there weren't nearly enough bricks in the room for all the kids. The water splash area was very loud but the littles liked it.
I was skeptical bringing my 1-year-old twins here because I was worried there wouldn't be much for them to do, but I was pleasantly surprised! This children's museum is definitely geared towards ages 1-8. There are two enclosed play areas for toddlers: one on the main floor with a vegetable garden & slide, and one downstairs with ball activities & slide. These are perfect areas to let littles play because you know they can't escape! All over there are "yuck bags" where parents can put toys that have been in children's mouths, which is a nice feature to keep things less germ-y. My only complaints: there are often toys strewn all over the place that don't belong where they should, i.e. balls upstairs that belong downstairs and veggies downstairs that belong upstairs. I get that kids are kids and probably carry these toys all around the museum with them, but it would be nice if staff periodically went around to clean up a bit. Additionally, the water tables for ages 0-2 are a blast but the water is pretty cold; I bet this feels nice during summer months, but it is chilly for the babies in wintertime. Also keep in mind: you have to keep babies clothed in the water table, you aren't allowed to put them in swimsuits or diaper-only-- we usually bring a change of clothes for after and that works great!
My kids love this place. It's fun for kids of all ages. If you're alone with your kids it can be a little stressful when they scatter. My kids love the water area as well as the climbing area. The outside is nice when it's not too hot. The playground has shredded tires on the ground which gets super hot in summer. There's some awesome caves and a coy pond as well.
I went with my 7-year-old and her school's entire 2nd grade on a field trip to the Museum of Curiosity. The hour long bus ride was very loud because the kids were so excited. When the bus dropped us off at the front, we walked through some tiny doors to get inside (I could have used the normal sized door, but that wouldn't have been as fun). There were so many different areas to explore! We barely visited them all within the hour. We could have easily spent more time here. Even as a boring old adult, I had a lot of fun! We started in the rain forest area where the kids did a lot of climbing and then screamed in fear as they slid down an awesome slide. Apparently it has two fun surprise drops :) I wish I had gone down it (I didn't know adults could). After wrangling my group of kids, we headed to a different area where they could build with huge Legos, become a veterinarian, be on tv, do magic with optical illusions, put on a play on a small stage, play music, and exercise. We headed to a different area where they learned about the weather and played with some water (without getting soaked). I now know what it feels like to have 85mph winds blowing down on the top of my head. It makes for a great hair day :) Be sure to hang on to your hats! We only had a few minutes left, so we ran outside to explore. There was a fun playground, but around the corner was a cave with a waterfall. There were some ponds with koi fish that the kids loved. We ran out of time to do everything we wanted to do. My daughter has been asking to go back and the older kids wants to join her. We might plan a family trip out here. It was a blast!