Grand Rapids Children's Museum
Grand Rapids Children's Museum
Grand Rapids Children's Museum
4.5
About
Children direct their own learning at this hands-on museum with both permanent and changing exhibits, where they play with slippery bubbles, study a live beehive, learn the magic of mirrors and more.
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
237 reviews
Excellent
121
Very good
89
Average
19
Poor
4
Terrible
4
M-Pilot
Marco Island, FL134 contributions
Nov 2022 • Family
Great experience for young children. This is probably more appropriate for children 10 years of age and younger. Lots of hands on things to do. Many artistic things. While it is not as impressive as some of the bigger city's museums it is a great offering for a city the size of Grand Rapids. Expect to spend 2-3 hours.
Written 29 November 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Happygoluckyang
Lansing, MI205 contributions
Mar 2023 • Family
This place was really neat! My boys ages 5 and 7 really enjoyed themselves. A lot of hands on and would recommend at least a couple hours. Parking was not fabulous. Hard to find a place in the street.
Written 27 March 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ben_sunderman
1 contribution
Jan 2022
This museum is completely hands on. Went with my 1.5 year old and let him run around in their little kids zone for over an hour. We explored everything else and it was all safe and engaging. Definitely worth coming to again and again.
Written 21 January 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mandi Brown
Fowlerville, MI119 contributions
Feb 2024 • Family
We tried to go later in the day when it wasn’t so busy. Parking was a joke and when we finally did find a place to park, there was a huge line outside to get in. We tried calling to see how long of a wait we should expect and there is no way to reach anyone there. I’m assuming it was just too full? I’m not really sure. After waiting almost an hour in the freezing cold we had enough and just left since it was closing in an hour anyway. We drove an hour and a half to get here so I’m very disappointed and frustrated.
Written 24 February 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Destination2517
2 contributions
The Grand Rapids Children's Museum is just the right size not too big and the staff made my kids feel real special. Check out the bubbles, the bees and the VW bug. My kids loved the stage area complete with dress-up. They also really liked the Rapids River with covered bridge and waders. If you need to watch the pennies, Thursday nights are just $1. It's on the top of our list when visiting GR, compared to other activities this is the greatest place to play.
Written 11 July 2003
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
COAPHOTO
Boyne Falls, MI13 contributions
May 2018 • Family
Let's me start by saying I wanted to really like this place so we gave it a second chance. So both times we visited the Grand Rapids Children's Museum my boys had fun... but mostly just playing in the block area. My son has to go to Helen Devos Children's Hospital a lot and my kids always ask to go to the GRCM. Two times we have gone and both times I about had a panic attack at how messy the floor got... and how crowded it was. There's pro's and con's to every place and I wish I could rave about it but unfortunately I can't.
Written 15 January 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
jpete02
Lansing, MI987 contributions
May 2018
Every time I come here my kids have a lot of fun, so they must be doing something right. First off, this museum is geared towards ages 3-8. Older kids may not find a lot to do here or may be bored.
After you come here a few times, you realize this isn’t that big of a museum. The little GR exhibit, which contains a grocery store, bank, and a restaurant takes up more than 1/2 of the first floor exhibit space. The kids love playing in this area but it does get crowded and chaotic. The rest of the first floor has a space for building with foam blocks and a little kids area, that is in desperate need of updating.
The second floor has a new hospital exhibit that is well done, a fun area with bubbles, and some musical instruments. Overall, you can spend 2-3 hours here, which is probably good enough if you have little kids.
Parking is an issue. Museum does not have its own parking lot. If you come on a weekend, you should be able to find metered street parking within a couple blocks. Weekdays are tougher and the closest public parking garage is three or four block away.
After you come here a few times, you realize this isn’t that big of a museum. The little GR exhibit, which contains a grocery store, bank, and a restaurant takes up more than 1/2 of the first floor exhibit space. The kids love playing in this area but it does get crowded and chaotic. The rest of the first floor has a space for building with foam blocks and a little kids area, that is in desperate need of updating.
The second floor has a new hospital exhibit that is well done, a fun area with bubbles, and some musical instruments. Overall, you can spend 2-3 hours here, which is probably good enough if you have little kids.
Parking is an issue. Museum does not have its own parking lot. If you come on a weekend, you should be able to find metered street parking within a couple blocks. Weekdays are tougher and the closest public parking garage is three or four block away.
Written 28 May 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ayelet Sror
Skokie, IL172 contributions
May 2018 • Family
I guess this is not unique to this museum but I don’t understand why parents need to pay to accompany their kids somewhere kids wouldn’t go alone anyway.
That aside, it was absolutely fascinating for our 2.5 year old, our 1 year old, and us. Unfortunately we went on the same day as two schools on field trips.
We were there 2.5 hrs and probably could have stayed more.
The first floor is for infants to 5 year olds. The second floor is more suited to older kids.
That aside, it was absolutely fascinating for our 2.5 year old, our 1 year old, and us. Unfortunately we went on the same day as two schools on field trips.
We were there 2.5 hrs and probably could have stayed more.
The first floor is for infants to 5 year olds. The second floor is more suited to older kids.
Written 24 May 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
540gm
Grand Rapids, MI16 contributions
Oct 2017 • Friends
This museum has ongoing and changing areas so you can repeat going with the same children. There are things to do and places to play for children with all kinds of interests. Excellent place to take your family.
Written 6 February 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
NicoleMJR
United States20 contributions
Jun 2017 • Family
My children are 10 and 11 but we've been to other children's museums that they've enjoyed so we thought we would try this one. I would not recommend this museum for children older than 8. My kids were not impressed because all of it was geared to a much younger audience, and the place was extremely messy and noisy. I'm not sure that I would have been extremely happy with this museum even if my kids were a little younger but if you are looking for an indoor activity for young kids and are in the area, it might be worth checking out. There were a few staff members on the floor that were knowledgeable about the displays and that did help to make it more interesting for my kids.
There is a parking lot ($2.50/hr -- can pay by credit/debit or cash) behind the museum or if you're lucky, there is limited parking (parking meters) on the street out front of the museum.
There is a parking lot ($2.50/hr -- can pay by credit/debit or cash) behind the museum or if you're lucky, there is limited parking (parking meters) on the street out front of the museum.
Written 30 June 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I took two boys, ages 9 and 13. They had fun with the bubbles and the spinners and the music section. It was a good way to spend a couple of hours although it's really better for younger kids..
Written 27 July 2022
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