Discovery Center
Discovery Center
4.5
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Sunday
11:00 AM - 4:00 PM
About
Discovery Center at Murfree Spring is a hands-on children's museum and nature center. The 32,000 square foot facility, in the heart of middle Tennessee, includes permanent exhibits and rich programming focused on science, technology, engineering, the arts, and math (STEAM). Situated adjacent to 22 acres of natural, urban wetlands, the museum offers daily programs, camps, school tours, and special events.
Duration: 2-3 hours
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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
200 reviews
Excellent
117
Very good
63
Average
13
Poor
4
Terrible
3
PlantDoc4UT
18 contributions
Oct 2023 • Family
We have season passes for the Discovery Center. It is an amazing place for toddlers and pre-schoolers. We took our two grands almost 2 and almost 4. They loved it. Tiny town has been redesigned and both enjoyed it. The Paw Patrol exhibit upstairs was nice to view, but little interactive value. A few things were out of order or not running (train upstairs), but there were plenty of things for our two to enjoy. Best advice is to go at opening or later in the day to avoid crowds. We arrived at 9 and there were a few families, by 10 three school buses of kids had arrived and it was very crowded and loud.. Most of the exhibits are not designed for older kids over 7/8. Outside the spring and boardwalk (now open) are great to see birds and other wildlife. The parking lot was full by the time we left. It's great to see the center utilized by the community, but it might consider limiting school groups to younger children and asking that there be enough adults to supervise.
Written 5 October 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.
Rose P
Nashville, TN525 contributions
May 2014 • Family
We come here often. It is really geared for toddlers up to about age 10. This place doesn't really offer much for kids older than that. My 3yr old absolutely loves this place. He always asks to go. He loves the retired fire truck downstairs and he plays with the large water feature. There is a slide at the top of the stairs that drops off near the water feature. The model trains upstairs only runs 2-3 times a day- so sometimes you will miss it. The little door going into the model trains room is cute for toddlers, but an adult can't squeeze through very easily - so that can make for some running around because you walk around into the train room, then your child scoots back through the little door, of course. Some of the exhibits have been broken for a while and it's a shame that they don't get fixed. My son asks why all the buttons on the train set do not work. There is a wonderful antique car upstairs to sit in. Across from that is a garage where kids can fix up the car. My son really likes the construction vehicles he can operate and the large building blocks on the other side upstairs that go up a conveyor belt. We always spend a good 2 hours here, and if we have time, we walk in the wetland areas outside. Tickets are inexpensive and you can get an annual pass.
Written 16 June 2014
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.
CivilWarTraveller57
Murfreesboro, TN44 contributions
Mar 2018 • Family
This is one of the first places we checked out after moving to M'Boro. We are always looking for somewhere to take the kids that is both fun and educational.
And this place is it!
It is geared towards younger kids (we being our 2 and 8 year old). And it has a great assortment of hands-on activities they can really get into and have fun. There isn't much need to hover over them and worry they will break something or play with something the wrong way.
My kids' favorite are the market setup (where you place grocery items in a basket then take it to a checkout belt) and the water table. But they have a little of everything.
If you purchase a membership, you get discounts on birthday parties as well.
And this place is it!
It is geared towards younger kids (we being our 2 and 8 year old). And it has a great assortment of hands-on activities they can really get into and have fun. There isn't much need to hover over them and worry they will break something or play with something the wrong way.
My kids' favorite are the market setup (where you place grocery items in a basket then take it to a checkout belt) and the water table. But they have a little of everything.
If you purchase a membership, you get discounts on birthday parties as well.
Written 23 April 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.
lindbladface
31 contributions
We come here once a year for a business trip with my husband and we'll not come back. We carried our 3 yr old here a few days ago and was disappointed. Over half of the interactive things didn't work or were out of order. So luckily my son is imaginative and he "pretended" they worked. Also they have volunteers there to help with questions or to inform you with the exhibits but most of them are teenage kids that walk around and tell kids what they can't do. We came here last year and my son did like the music exhibit but it's been replaced with the microbe exhibit. So now he can see what STDs look like under a microscope lots of fun! Overall my son did have fun but would have been better if things had worked. They didn't work last year either I guess I thought they would have fixed them by now. Basically not for profit doesn't have to be poor quality.
Written 15 June 2011
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.
Karen B
Murfreesboro, TN4 contributions
Jun 2016 • Friends
grandkids loved all the busy activies.....all ages something to investigate.....great under 5 gated play area...educational and fun...outside scenic/picnic area
Written 28 June 2016
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.
A2coolcity
Fishers, IN1,713 contributions
Jul 2023 • Family
The vision and mission of this family oriented as designed with young children and their families to enjoy learn.
Unfortunately- the management has not maintained the quality that was supposed to make this a great experience.
Check out my pictures and you can see first hand they they have exhibits that are OUT OF ORDER - broken, unsafe and worn out.
If they want to restore or update this - then I think it can have its history rewritten to be amazing.
But currently at $12 per person (kids too) - it’s definitely not worth the price of admission.
Hopefully the management will see this review and begin to reinvest and fund raise to recreate a great place for kids and their Families to love to learn.
Unfortunately- the management has not maintained the quality that was supposed to make this a great experience.
Check out my pictures and you can see first hand they they have exhibits that are OUT OF ORDER - broken, unsafe and worn out.
If they want to restore or update this - then I think it can have its history rewritten to be amazing.
But currently at $12 per person (kids too) - it’s definitely not worth the price of admission.
Hopefully the management will see this review and begin to reinvest and fund raise to recreate a great place for kids and their Families to love to learn.
Written 26 July 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.
PSLA
Murfreesboro, TN87 contributions
Jun 2023
What a disappointment this visit to the Discovery Center was. Our visit was in early June. Being summertime we did expect it to be crowded, that was not an issue. However, it is clear, the place is not well kept and very run down. Many of the exhibits were broken or disorganized. You would expect disorganization given the center is for kids after all. But, as an example, the area for small children with a "doctor office," "post office," "grocery," etc (that is blocked off by a gate) was practically empty of the items that are supposed to be in them. There was zero pretend food in the grocery and no "mail" at the post office and only a stethoscope in the doctor office. Our kids were one of about 5 in the area and I looked for items for them to play with and could find hardly any. Obviously they had be taken out of the area and placed elsewhere in the center. The "house" in the center is in much need of additional items and repair. We attempted to play with the "repair shop" car upstairs and it too was falling apart. There were only two trains on the play area track. The model train was not running and no signage to tell you it was not running. Where are the employees/volunteers? Should they be doing a walk through every so often putting renegade items back where they belong? We saw zero help inside the center except for the front desk folks and camp counselors. Then finally the nature walk is closed for repair. Had no idea it would be closed as it is not listed on the center website. This Center is is much need of an overhaul--it is old and tired.
Written 9 June 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.
Nancy S
Murfreesboro, TN36 contributions
Mar 2018 • Family
The Discovery Center is a must-do attraction, especially if you have small children to entertain. Science, music, dinosaur hunting, a water table, and a 2-story slide are just a small list of fun, educational exhibits. There is a dedicated area for toddlers as well. Check their website for hours of operation and admission at explorethedc.org.
Written 5 March 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.
Jason C
78 contributions
Aug 2014 • Family
We bought season tickets when my children were younger, because we were told that the exhibits change every so often. The only thing I noticed changing over the year we had our passes, was that the exhibits started missing pieces and the interactive exhibits stopped working. To look at this place from the outside, you would think, wow! This is going to be a great place. But not so. The walking paths around the wetland areas are pretty cool. But, you can just walk them, you don't have to pay admission for them.
Written 7 July 2015
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.
Lovestoexplore37
1 contribution
Jan 2015
The trains don't start on time. There are missing pieces in exhibits. The exhibits themselves are old or out of order. This place needs a major overhaul.
Written 17 January 2015
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 believe the cost for kids is $5.00 and for adults it is $10.00.
Written 8 March 2015
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