Do you like trains? Do you like science? Do you like happy kids doing hands on fun things and learning? I take all of my friends with kids age 2-11 years old here when they visit...i have YET to have one unhappy customer. They have a military discount and I think Veteran's Day deal. The tickets are pricey but I'm telling you it's worth it!!! Where else can you crawl through a PVC pipe tunnel and pop up in the middle of a miniature train village! The magnetic fishing poles off the boat, the bubble booth, the bottle rockets, the miniature golf, the theatre costumes, and the health exhibits...all huge hits with boys and girls alike. Honestly, the parents and I have a blast too every time. Who doesn't like crazy science experiments? The train room though usually grabs the boys attention and you have to drag them out of there. Seriously....rainy or cold day...go there. Add a ferry trip from P-mouth to Norfolk or vice versa and you have pretty much had the most fun kid day ever.
We love going to the Children's Museum. Between the bus that kids can pretend drive to the grocery store where they can ring up their grocery items to the train room to the bank where they can send and receive like in a drive through, this is a fabulous place to take children.
My kids always enjoyed the Children's Museum in Portsmouth. After the renovation, it is now more like a science center. Lots of information and hands on activities for all ages. More photo ops than you could imagine so bring your camera.
something for everyone here. Adults and children alike were able to enjoy the exhibits here. Skip the planetarium, though, since the cinematic experience is a bit underwhelming. Make sure to allot plenty of time for the better second floor, where the “invisible" scientific forces of nature like magnetism, sound waves, and gravity can be experienced hands-on. Also not to miss is the train exhibit. Not very hands-on but a wonder nonetheless with all the details and downtown main street replica.
My kids are 6 and 3 years old. We got there at opening time. Great time to go so we got to do everything before it got busy. My kids had a blast. They do have a military discount which is nice. It's very open and lots of hands on experiences for the kids. Great place to spend the day!
We took our 3 kids here right before Christmas on a weekday. We had it to ourselves and honestly, we wish that we had planned on spending more time. Our kids, (ages 8, 4, 16 months) all had something to check out, imagine, play with and explore. It was very clean, good bathrooms and reasonably priced. Great little place - in fact, the best kids museum/please touch museum that we've been to. The bubble section was perhaps the most fun and unique - seeing my kids and my dad in a giant bubble together was awesome. Great memories.
While visiting family in Virginia I took my toddler to the museum. It was a little pricey but once we got inside it was well worth it. We could have spent days there. There was so much to do and see I was a child in a candy shop along with my toddler. To this day he talks about the food store where he picked his food and rang it up at the cash register, he talks about the trains and different vehicles, the bubbles and more. It was an amazing experiance and perfect way to wrap up a family vacation in beautiful Virginia. A great place for children of all ages! We will absolutely visit the museum again next time we are in Virginia!!
My family joined last week and we found many exhibits were broken, or not working. The motorcycle that children sit on needs to be thrown in the trash. It was broken down, worn out, nothing worked, and it was filthy. The fire truck had switches that do not work. The fire hoses only one worked. In the grocery store the egg exhibit did not work, no tomatoes or beans to pick off the vine. In the vet section the animals were dirty, cage latches do not work and med items was missing. Up stairs the in the theater the costumes and puppets were dirty and many missing. We don't mine paying for a yearly admission, but at least keep the exhibits clean and stocked. We know some children take things, but they should have replacements for the items taken. We could name more broken or damaged exhibits, but we hope the staff and leadership will take a closer look in the future. Gene R
It is absolutely awesome with little&young kids. There is like a street with a grocery, a bank, a doctor`s cabinet, etc. and everything is kid size, small ones can enjoy touching things they are not allowed in the bank, etc. Trains collection is rich& beautiful! Worth spend a day, had a good time.
Look, for a Local with kids this is not bad, but since we have visited many Children's museums from different states, this one is not as big or Impressive, but still vey Informative and it does have some hands on education, play areas that are really good for kids,