This time of year many families face the same predicament: It’s winter. It's cold. Kids are bored. But the perfect solution is one quick car trip away.
If You Go
Children’s Museum of Indianapolis
3000 North Meridian Street
Indianapolis, IN
The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis encourages advance tickets. Buy them here.
(Save up to 20% by purchasing two weeks or more in advance.)
Billed as the biggest and best children’s museum, the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis doesn't disappoint. And the best part: it’s great for kids of all ages.
When a friend mandated that I visit with my kids, I thought, “But they’re not exactly kids anymore.” At 17 and 16, I figured they were long past being interested in that sort of thing.
I was dead wrong.
In fact, once my older daughter learned about the Scooby Doo Mansion Mayhem exhibit, she knew exactly how she wanted to spend her birthday. Inside a spooky mansion, we joined other “meddling kids” to solve the mystery of a jewel-stealing ghost hiding from police. If you want in on the action, act fast: the exhibit closes Jan. 22.
But even after it’s gone, there is plenty to do and see. Our family loved the Dale Chihuly exhibit, Fireworks of Glass, which is best viewed from a prone position, they say. The centerpiece, though, is the blown glass tower that can be seen from every floor of the museum. It's one of Chihuly’s largest permanent sculptures, with more than 3,200 pieces of blown glass.
Kids (and adults) who love space will find their fill here. In Beyond Spaceship Earth, you can step into a replica of the International Space Station, try on astronaut gear and perform experiments. Space history buffs can see astronaut artifacts and learn more about the men and women who’ve entered the world of space exploration.
An area where our family spent a great deal of time was the exhibit The Power of Children. Each vignette shows a peak onto the lives of four extraordinary 20th century children—Anne Frank, Ruby Bridges, Ryan White and Malala Yousafzai.
Elsewhere in the museum, take a trip to modern-day Greece, explore the tombs of ancient Egypt and the wonders of the sea. The museum’s most popular exhibit is Dinosphere®, which opened in 2004. It, like so many of the exhibits here, finds a way to captivate kids of all ages.
Mom and dad will enjoy the trip down memory lane in the exhibit American POP. Music, fashion, toys and TV shows all take the spotlight as pop culture is put under the microscope. Kids, too, get a glimpse into the toys and music of years gone by, from Donald Duck to One Direction.
Sit inside an Indy car, check out miniatures, ride a carousel and go on a train adventure – there is something for everyone at the Children's Museum of Indianapolis.
– Kathrine Nero