10 Best Children's Museums In Ohio, USA

1. Duke Energy Children’s Museum

Consistently ranked among the top ten children’s museums in the USA, Duke Energy Children’s Museum features eight educational and themed play areas, plus two exclusively designed for younger, pre-school children. What’s most amazing is the various special exhibits that are perfect for children and parents or teachers to discover together. These range from The Energy Zone, KidSPACE, Inside the Grin, Kids Town, Little Sprouts Farm and many more. This magnificent museum is a brilliant way for children to learn about science, reading, arts, culture, history and friendly, hands-on play.

Duke Energy Children’s Museum

Address: 1301 Western Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45203, United States

Website: Duke Energy Children’s Museum

Opening hours: 10am - 5pm (daily)

Price: 14.50 USD (Adult), 13.50 USD (Senior), 10.50 USD (Ages 3 - 12), 5.50 USD (Ages 1 - 2), Free (Under 1 year & museum members)

2. Great Lakes Science Center

Science is the poetry of reality and the Great Lakes Science Center makes science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) come alive for children. Designed with hundreds of enriching hands-on exhibits, children learn through play on a wide range of topics from bio-med-tech, biology, science phenomena, engineering, recycling, robotics, NASA and much more. Just as enriching is The Curiosity Corner where DIY science experiments and science lab workshops take place. Best of all, science camps are held on-site during holiday breaks, so children can excel as junior scientists.

Great Lakes Science Center

Address: 601 Erieside Ave, Cleveland, OH 44114, United States

Website: Great Lakes Science Center

Opening hours: Mon - Sat: 10am - 5pm; Sun: 12pm - 5pm

Price: 16.96 USD (Adult), 13.95 USD (Youth aged 2 - 12), 14.95 USD (Senior aged 65+)

3. AHA! A Hands-On Adventure A Children's Museum

Editor's Note: Photo taken from the establishment's official social account

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Children see magic because they look for it and the magic begins at AHA! A Hands-On Adventure A Children’s Museum, with more than 60 interactive exhibits in a colorful indoor play park. Ideal for children aged six months to eight years, this museum educates children in a world of discovery, curiosity and imagination, with immersive hands-on play. In fact, the spacious 8,000-square-foot (743-square-meter) facility also has a nature playscape that’s open all year during all seasons, to discover Ohio’s natural beauty. Best of all, the museum holds regular science, technology, engineering, arts and math-centered programs for all visitors.

AHA! A Hands-On Adventure A Children's Museum

Address: 1708 River Valley Cir S, Lancaster, OH 43130, United States

Website: AHA! A Hands-On Adventure A Children's Museum

Opening hours: Wed - Sat: 10am - 4pm; Sun: 12pm - 4pm (closed on Tue)

Price: 8 USD per person, Free (Under 1 year)

4. COSI

Explore science and discover fun at COSI (Centre of Science and Technology), one of the top places to visit in Ohio. This brilliant science center is located in central Ohio and it’s perfect for all ages and scientists-to-be. Be impressed by over 300 interactive science experiences when exploring their 9 galleries across a spacious 320,000-square-foot (29,729-square-meter) facility. Wowing guests are the many world-class traveling and permanent exhibitions, engaging live shows, little kid space for little learners and planetariums that bring the wonders of outer space to Earth. Truly credit-worthy is their award-winning educational outreach program that brings the wonders of science to students across Ohio and neighboring states.

COSI

Address: 333 W Broad St, Columbus, OH 43215, United States

Website: COSI

Opening hours: Wed - Sun: 10am - 5pm (closed on Mon & Tue)

Price: 40 USD (Adult), 35 USD (Youth aged 2 - 12)

5. Imagination Station

Let your children’s imagination run wild at Imagination Station, the awesome science center in Toledo, Ohio, that is a favorite family destination. Packed with exciting exhibits and attractions, this non-profit, hands-on science museum features more than 300 exhibits for children of all ages, from toddlers to grown-ups who are still kids at heart. Highlights at this museum include simulator films, eight Learning Worlds, the Gravity Room, the High Wire Cycle and plenty more. Look out for the special activities during term breaks and live demonstrations that ignite the love for science in young minds.

Imagination Station

Address: 1 Discovery Way, Toledo, OH 43604, United States

Website: Imagination Station

Opening hours: Tue - Sat: 10am - 5pm; Sun: 12pm - 5pm

Price: 13 USD (Adult), 12 USD (Senior). 11 USD (Age 3 - 12), Free (Under 2 years)

6. Akron Children’s Museum

Editor's Note: Photo taken from the establishment's official social account

The best way to make children good is to make them happy, and happiness begins at Akron Children’s Museum, which boasts 7,000 square feet (650 square meters) of space for fun. Filled to the brim with hands-on, interactive exhibits designed for bright minds aged zero to ten years of age, even parents are impressed by the interesting displays. With over 20 exhibits that educate children on science, technology, health and culture, the museum is committed to engaging and encouraging children to learn through play. Further, the play area is divided into different areas of play so kids can make-believe what they want to be. At an affordable price of 5 USD per person, this adventure is a steal for a whole day of fun.

Akron Children’s Museum

Address: 216 S Main St, Akron, OH 44308, United States

Website: Akron Children’s Museum

Opening hours: Tue - Fri: 10am - 4pm; Sat - Sun: 10am - 5pm (closed on Mon)

Price: 5 USD per person, Free (under 1 year)

7. Medina Toy And Train Museum

IGo choo-choo and woo-hoo at Medina Toy And Train Museum, the compact double-story museum that showcases various collections of train cars and railroad sets. In addition, the museum also features a wide variety of dolls and traditional toys from yesteryear that are considered vintage today. If actual scenic train rides are not an option at the moment, children can still go exploring and playing with the model cars, trains and train parts on display, where curious hands are allowed to assemble the models and touch the huge array of retro toys. This is an eye-opening experience in Ohio for model train hobbyists and children keen to learn the history behind the museum and its antique toys.

Medina Toy And Train Museum

Address: 7 Public Square, Medina, OH 44256, United States

Opening hours: Mon - Sat: 10am - 5pm; Sun: 12pm - 5pm

Price: 3 USD

8. Little Buckeye Children's Museum

Editor's Note: Photo taken from the establishment's official social account

Let little hands explore, play and learn at the Little Buckeye Children’s Museum, where great young minds think alike. The non-profit museum features many hands-on, play-based exhibits and displays that develop creative and critical thinking, social skills, motor skills and problem-solving ideas in addition to parent-children interaction. With over 40 different interactive exhibits, the entire place is a stimulating and safe environment to engage in play-based learning. It’s a great destination during one of your weekend trips. In addition, there are mini-stores, a water table, the building zone and a train room to thrill both kids and parents.

Little Buckeye Children's Museum

Address: 44 W 4th St, Mansfield, OH 44902, United States

Website: Little Buckeye Children's Museum

Opening hours: Mon - Fri: 10am - 4pm; Sat: 10am - 5pm; Sun: 12pm - 5pm

Price: 9 USD (Age 2 & above)

9. Ohio History Connection

History comes alive at the Ohio History Connection where Ohio’s history from the Ice Age until the present day is chronicled in the most interactive ways, for the public. The Ohio History Center is the headquarters of the Ohio History Connection and showcases many exhibits ranging from sports, culture, architecture to history. Further, the center explores life from ages past, endangered Ohio species, and it presents a well-maintained collection of restored Civil War battle flags. Not to be missed is the exhibit featuring the mastodon skeleton and the Dickens Victorian Village for a taste of Victorian heritage.

Ohio History Connection

Address: 800 E 17th Ave, Columbus, OH 43211, United States

Website: Ohio History Connection

Opening hours: Wed - Sun: 10am - 5pm (closed on Mon & Tue)

Price: 12 USD (Adult), 10 USD (Senior & student with college ID), 6 USD (Age 4 - 12), Free (Under 3 years)

10. Children's Museum of Cleveland

Share the wonders of creative play at the Children’s Museum of Cleveland, established in 1981 and located in the midtown neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio. Located in a historic mansion, the museum is one massive interactive playground with well-designed spaces to learn, explore and discover new ideas through play. Here, children learn to write their own script with ready tools and sharpen their thinking skills in a variety of interactive exhibits and programs. Known as an open-ended inspirational space for the 21st-century learner, the museum features hand-on science displays, climbing stations, dedicated age-appropriate play areas, science wonder labs, open galleries, reading zones, a water lab and plenty more.

Children's Museum of Cleveland

Address: 3813 Euclid Ave, Cleveland, OH 44115, United States

Website: Children's Museum of Cleveland

Opening hours: Mon - Fri: 9am - 4pm; Sat: 10am - 5pm; Sun: 12pm - 5pm

Price: 12 USD per person, Free (under 1 year)

Spark your children's curiosity

Only children believe that they are capable of everything, and this belief comes true at the many children’s museums in Ohio, which cultivate the love for learning science, technology, engineering, math and almost everything. So, bring the whole family to discover these amazing museums.

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