12 Best Children's Museums In Texas, USA

children's museums in texas
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Arts and culture shine bright in the Lone Star State. Discover magnificent art in Texas, the USA through museums that exhibit various subjects such as art, culture, history, and science. With a wide range of museums to choose from, some are specially made for children that can educate and spark a sense of discovery for their growth. Pack your bags, choose a family-friendly hotel, and accompany your children as they learn while having fun by doing some sightseeing and even engaging in an interactive activity. But why visit only one? Have an extended vacation and stay in a vacation rental and let your children learn space and science at McKenna Children’s Museum, do lots of activities at The DoSeum, or learn and play at Thinkery, and more. Check out the best children’s museums in Texas, USA.

1. Perot Museum of Nature and Science, Dallas

Perot Museum of Nature and Science pano 02
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user Joe Mabel used under CC BY-SA 3.0

One of the best museums in Texas, the Perot of Museum of Nature and Science offers tons of exciting activities for kids and kids at heart! Learn more and see dinosaurs at the T. Boone Pickens Life Then and Now Hall. The hall features ancient animal bones, and fossils, and even showcases real-time research ongoing as paleontologists study fossils freshly dug from the field. Or, revel in the modern-day descendants of the dinosaurs, birds. Guests will enjoy exhibits of fossils, and footprints and include an interactive activity where they can build their bird. There’s also an exhibition about outer space in the Dallas Astronomy Museum where guests can see images captured from the Hubble Space Telescope.

Perot Museum of Nature and Science

Address: 2201 N Field St, Dallas, TX 75201, United States

Website: Perot Museum of Nature and Science

Opening hours: 10am - 5pm (daily)

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2. Fort Bend Children's Discovery Center, Sugar Land

The grand re-opening you've been waiting for is almost here! Tot* Spot will re-open to our guests on Tuesday October 4th. Add it to your calendar. We hope to see you there!

Posted by Fort Bend Children's Discovery Center on Friday, September 30, 2022

This children’s museum promises to be a playground for the mind. Fort Bend Children’s Discovery Center offers exhibits and programs that aim to entertain but ultimately, to educate. “How Does It Work?” is an exhibit that shows how simple machines used in daily life work including chemistry, physics, and biological concepts. Guests can also learn to appreciate and preserve African heritage at “Cum Yah Gullah” which is a storytelling of the story of Gullah.

Kidtropolis, USA, is also one of the museum’s most popular attractions. It simulates a real city where the kids can get jobs, invest their money, and learn about money management and financial planning.

Fort Bend Children's Discovery Center

Address: 198 Kempner St, Sugar Land, TX 77498, United States

Website: Fort Bend Children’s Discovery Center

Opening hours: Tue - Sat: 10am - 6pm (closed on Sun & Mon)

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3. McKenna Children's Museum, New Braunfels

McKenna childrens museum 2012
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user Larry D. Moore used under CC BY-SA 3.0

A museum to build healthy young minds and wholesome bodies, McKenna Children’s Museum can educate your children through some selected fun activities. With 11 exhibits to choose from, children can play using their senses like sight, touch, and even smell. Enjoy a simulation of American nature with tents, trees, and bridges through Hill Country Campgrounds exhibit or a play in Lend-A-Hand Ranch exhibit that simulates a Texas ranch. Your child can also pretend to shop for groceries in Grocery Store or accompany them making art in the Wonder Shop.

McKenna Children's Museum

Address: 801 W San Antonio St, New Braunfels, TX 78130, United States

Website: McKenna Children’s Museum

Opening hours: Mon - Sat: 10am - 5pm (closed on Sun)

Price: 7.50 USD

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4. Northeast Texas Children's Museum, Commerce

Commerce August 2015 40 (Northeast Texas Children's Museum)
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user Michael Barera used under CC BY-SA 4.0

Opening its door since 2002, Northeast Texas Children’s Museum provides exhibits for kids to play, learn, and be creative. Most of the play spaces are indoor with activities that make your children try different roles, play pretend, and learn everyday things. There is a simulated hospital, farm, train, and an outdoor space with a fort for kids to play.

Northeast Texas Children's Museum

Address: 100 Maple St, Commerce, TX 75428, United States

Website: Northeast Texas Children’s Museum

Opening hours: Tue - Sat: 9:30am - 4:30pm (closed on Sun & Mon)

Price: 5 USD (adults); 6 USD (children over 2 years old)

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5. The DoSeum, San Antonio

DoSeum San Antonio
Source: Photo by Flickr user amboo who? used under CC BY-SA 2.0

Originally named as San Antonio Children’s Museum, The DoSeum attracts children of all ages, with parents accompanying them, for some educational fun. Exhibits, programs, and even field trips will encourage kids to learn or discover science, technology, engineering, mathematics, arts, and literacy. Exhibits include Sensations Studio where children can play with lights and sounds, Little Town that simulates a city for children, and Spy Academy that teach kids intelligence through missions.

The DoSeum

Address: 2800 Broadway St, San Antonio, TX 78209, United States

Website: The DoSeum

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

Price: 14 USD

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6. The Discovery Science Place, Tyler

Tyler May 2016 19 (Discovery Science Place)
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user Michael Barera used under CC BY-SA 4.0

The establishment can be traced to 1993 with a mission to ignite curiosity in young minds through fun, hands-on exploration. Today, The Discovery Science Place is a museum that stays true to the first mission—becoming a museum for children to discover the world with fun and engaging exhibits, programs, and events. Children can play with train sets, let their imagination wander, and explore a simulated town in Hometown, USA. They can also explore a simulated cave and do some wall climbing in Discovery Landing.

The Discovery Science Place

Address: 308 N Broadway Ave, Tyler, TX 75702, United States

Website: The Discovery Science Place

Opening hours: Tue - Sat 10am - 5pm; Sun: 1pm - 5pm (closed on Mon)

Price: 6 USD (children ages 2-12); 8 USD (adults)

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7. Galveston Children's Museum, Galveston


This children’s museum in Galveston is a place to play as well as a place for exploration, discovery, and creation. Just like any other in this list, Galveston Children’s Museum has exhibits where children can play and also learn. Kids can stroll around a simulated town in Our Town, build and create at Building Zone, paint or shape art in A Stroke of Genius, and perform in Now Starring You.

Galveston Children's Museum

Address: 2618 Broadway Avenue J, Galveston, TX 77550, United States

Website: Galveston Children’s Museum

Opening hours: Tue - Sat: 9:30am - 5pm; Sun: 12pm - 5pm (closed on Mon)

Price: 7 USD

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8. Play Street Museum, Frisco


Just like the name, Play Street Museum is a place where children can play but also still learn something in a fun way. With branches all over the USA, this play space that puts data and science in playtime was first created in Frisco, Texas in 2008. Play Street Museum is a place that imitates a city for children to interact with. Bring your children to activities such as dressing up and playing roles, doing arts and crafts, playing building toys, and even discovering new things along the way.

Play Street Museum

Address: 5729 Lebanon Rd #120, Frisco, TX 75034, United States

Website: Play Street Museum

Opening hours: Mon - Fri: 9am - 5pm (closed on Sat & Sun)

Price: 12 USD (children ages 1 - 8)

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9. The Woodlands Children's Museum, The Woodlands


This is a humble space for children that combines excitement and education. The Woodlands Children’s Museum is a place of diversity where children of any ethnicity and culture are welcomed to play. Exhibitions that you can find in the museum are The Remax Play House where kids can play pretend, The Market that can serve as a simulation of a supermarket, building structures with foam blocks in Dream + Build, or discover what water can do in Water Play.

The Woodlands Children's Museum

Address: 4775 W Panther Creek Dr #280, The Woodlands, TX 77381, United States

Website: The Woodlands Children’s Museum

Opening hours: Tue - Sat: 10am - 5pm; Sun: 12PM - 5PM (closed on Mon)

Price: 7 USD

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10. Children's Museum of Brownsville, Brownsville


A learning space that encourages interactive and creative play, Children’s Museum of Brownsville offers various exhibits and events for children to play. Play pretend at a simulated cafe named All World’s Cafe or at a simulated hospital with the name of Dr. Bones Health Clinic. Kids can also discover the element of air through controlling their flow in Flex Air. Other exhibits include Construction Zone where children can build and Future Artists of America where they can create art and do some theater.

Children's Museum of Brownsville

Address: 501 E Ringgold St, Brownsville, TX 78520, United States

Website: Children’s Museum of Brownsville

Opening hours: Tue - Sat 10am - 5pm; Sun: 12pm - 5pm (closed on Mon)

Price: 8.50 USD

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11. Thinkery, Austin

The thinkery austin 2014
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user Larry D. Moore used under CC BY-SA 3.0

In 1983, Austin Children’s Museum was founded for children and their parents to play in a space where they can also learn. Today, the place has been transformed into Thinkery, a 40,000-square foot (37,161.216 square meters) children’s museum in Austin, Texas, filled with interactive exhibits that educate and engage children. The exhibits use science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) as subjects for children to explore. Discover trains in Train Town, create something in Innovator’s Workshop, play with lights in Light Lab, and play outside in Our Backyard.

Thinkery

Address: 1830 Simond Ave, Austin, TX 78723, United States

Website: Thinkery

Opening hours: Tue, Thu - Fri, and Sun: 10am - 5pm; Wed: 10am - 8pm; Sat: 10am - 6pm (closed on Mon)

Price: 14 USD

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12. Children's Museum of Houston, Houston

With the tagline of “a playground for your mind,” Children’s Museum of Houston is a place where children can have fun and learn subjects such as science, history, health, and human development. There are plenty of exhibits that kids can choose from. Children ages zero to two can play in Tot*Spot where they can do some active play while discovering something new. Older kids can discover the outdoors with plants and woodland in the EcoStation or have fun and also learn by getting wet in FlowWorks. Play in a simulated town called KidTropolis, get into engineering in Constructioneering, learn Korean culture in Heart and Seoul, do physical obstacles in PowerPlay or Challenge Course, and learn science in Power Science Lab.

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Children's Museum of Houston Admission

Duration: 1 to 10 hours

Learning and playing with your loved ones in Texas

The Lone Star State is a place for everyone. If you are visiting with children, bring your loved ones to a children’s museum for a fun time. Watch or even accompany them as they learn and play in museums. Each museum offers exhibits that can educate and engage kids in various activities. Play pretend or create something - a children’s museum is an ideal place for your kids to have some good time.

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Frequently asked questions about children's museums in Texas, USA


Any must-sees we missed? Tell us about them in the comments section or write a post here to help out fellow travelers!
Disclosure: Trip101 selects the listings in our articles independently. Some of the listings in this article contain affiliate links.

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A freelance journalist and writer currently based in Bali, Indonesia with a keen interest on timeless pieces and globally relevant issues. Writing everything and doing odd jobs is my means of living.

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