10 7th St W, St Paul, MN 55102, USA
Phone +1 651-225-6000
Minnesota Children’s Museum Overview
The Minnesota Children’s Museum is a fantastic destination in downtown St. Paul dedicated to providing an entertaining and educational experience for children. This expansive museum features numerous permanent galleries and occasional traveling exhibitions, ensuring there’s something for every visitor.
Fun for All Ages
This museum claims to cater to children aged 6 months to 10 years; however, it’s uncommon to find children over 7 enjoying the exhibits. Infants who cannot crawl may struggle to engage with the various activities.
Once babies begin crawling or rolling over, they can benefit from the Habitot room, which offers padded floors free from larger children and presents new textures, sights, and sounds.
Toddlers and preschoolers will delight in the vast Earth Works Anthill, where they can climb, crawl, and encounter various critters as well as splash in a small stream.
For preschoolers and older children, the World Works gallery is a favorite. This space allows them to get creative with water, bubbles, and paper while engaging with a miniature block factory, usually overseen by a tiny foreman instructing peers on block placement.
The Our World gallery provides a child-sized neighborhood with mini versions of a supermarket, Metro Transit bus, post office, and doctor’s office, offering opportunities for imaginative “grown-up” play.
Seasonally, visitors can enjoy the ArtPark located on the roof, featuring a sandbox, interactive water play, arts and crafts activities, flowers, and fun wind toys that encourage open-air creativity.
Everything in the museum is designed to be child-friendly, allowing easy access for small visitors and minimizing sharp edges. Children are encouraged to climb, press, pull, crawl, jump, create, and experiment with every hands-on exhibit available.
Special Events
In addition to the main exhibits, the museum hosts numerous events each day. Activities may include playful toy sessions, arts and crafts, face painting, storytime, and even live animal encounters.
This vibrant atmosphere explains why children excitedly anticipate their visit while parents often face the challenge of coaxing their reluctant little ones to leave for mundane activities like eating or napping!
Tips for Visiting Minnesota Children’s Museum
- Consider a membership: Members receive free entry for one year. For a family of four, just three visits can make membership worthwhile, especially if you’re regulars seeking indoor fun during inclement weather.
- Best parking options: Convenient parking is available in the ramp diagonally across from the museum, with signage directing visitors. Museum guests enjoy reduced parking fees.
- Ideal visiting times: Experience quieter times during Tuesday mornings or late weekday afternoons, especially Fridays, while weekends and school group visits on weekday mornings are typically busier.
- Stickers for safety: Each visitor receives a sticker from the admissions desk. It’s a good idea to affix it to your child’s back to prevent removal and ensure they remain identified.
- Bring an extra change of clothes: Given that many exhibits involve water or messy activities, it’s wise to be prepared for potential spills!
- Dining options: There isn’t a full dining area within the museum. While snacks and coffee are available for sale, many more appealing options for dining can be found nearby in downtown St. Paul. Picnic areas with tables are also located near the entrance and on the second floor.
