We took advantage of the CoolPASS offered by Experience Columbia, SC getting us access to the South…read moreCarolina State Museum, EdVenture Children's Museum, and the Riverbanks Zoo & Gardens and thoroughly enjoyed the weekend! Great dollar value if you're interested in all locations mentioned. The museum was easy to find and offered plenty of parking in a lot shared with the EdVenture Children's Museum. They had many exhibits that our 7 & 12 year old enjoyed but they thoroughly enjoyed the second floor galleries with the dinosaur exhibit and the habitat exhibits. Staff was very friendly and helpful when fielding our questions. They also enjoyed seeing the the history of SC through the years represented through artifacts and the changes from the colony, war, and industrialization of the city with mills and the railroad. They also have a planetarium and a 4D shows offered throughout the day. Highly recommend adding this to your itinerary if you are in the Columbia area! The selection of exhibits were fun to see and educational.

My family had such a wonderful time at the museum. We loved the mix of science and history. We…read morereally enjoyed the natural history and telescope exhibits. My son really enjoyed an old theater where you could see vintage cartoons. And one area you could see a picture of what the building looked like when it was a factory. They have a nice gift shop and a café. If you do not want to leave to eat lunch. We left and came back for lunch and there was still plenty of parking. We would definitely come back to the museum and see the war part that we didn't get a chance to see.

Amazing find in Columbia to learn about history that's more centralised around South Carolina's…read morerich military heritage! There is a huge emphasis on the Confederate side when it comes to their civil war exhibits and it is truly unique to learn and see this part of American history! Also they have exhibits for Revolutionary War, Spanish-American War, WWI, WWII, Vietnam, and the global war on terror; Not as exhaustive as the civil war exhibits but still very awesome to see! I would definitely come back!!

I love museums but confess I have trouble loving this one. It just reminds too much of all the…read moredeaths and struggles of the Civil War with problems we are still forced to confront today. However, we must maintain history and for that purpose the Confederate Relic Room and Museum does a decent enough job of it. Surprisingly the museum has all kinds of drawings of Confederate naval ships which naval operations were far more extensive than I had thought and are near completely overlooked within the museums of Gettysburg. They also have a gun, saber, sword and uniform collection, the labeling of some of which I would question such as what is clearly a sabre being as a sword. The pride of the museum however seems to be its flag collection. Indeed it is said to have the most inclusive battle flag collection of any museum within the United States, though however, it is focused mostly upon the regiments & etc. of South Carolina. Though I can't exactly say I'm a fan of it, as a museum it is unique with well set up displays; hence Four Stars.

They just had my detailed, FACTUAL original review (and one owners unprofessional, snooty…read moreresponses) removed for being too truthful I guess. Here's a shorter version... cute photo opps, but do NOT waste your money on their birthday packages. It's average at best, contrary to one of the owners being an "event planner". Go take your pics and celebrate your event elsewhere as it is not worth the money they charge for what you get. Is that better?

Yall About to Get ALL this black Girl Magic!! I love that it…read moreis a black female owned establishment that caters to any age, race or gender. *They literally had at least 25+ different stations that were great for photo Ops! *I LOVE that they offer you a selfie ring light that you can personally use (for free) and there is also one at each station (very unique) *I LOVE that one of the co-owners (Melissa) was there to greet you with a warm welcome and a smile. *I LOVE that there is ample parking and the venue is easy to get ton *I LOVE that they change the rooms according to the seasons which is very unique and creative. This was a fantastic experience that you can enjoy alone or with friends. And check them out for their Friday night turn up!!! Enjoy the photos! *all rooms not listed *

We took advantage of the CoolPASS offered by Experience Columbia, SC getting us access to the…read moreEdVenture Children's Museum, South Carolina State Museum, and the Riverbanks Zoo & Gardens and thoroughly enjoyed the weekend! The EdVenture Children's Museum shares the parking lot with the State Museum but if you have a young one - the children's museum can be an all day excursion due to the vast activities, hand-on learning and fun that is available in this massive space. Clean spaces and helpful staff. A great stop to add if you are passing through or to even plan a family trip around! Highly recommend! Affordable entry prices and annual memberships available if you are a local!

This is a cute place geared towards the little ones. There is plenty of space and parking and the…read moreprice is low to get in. I wish some of the things weren't messed up, broken or closed. I think it will be great when the Dino part is open. My kids really loved the arts and crafts upstairs. I really enjoyed the planes but things are broken and need updated. I am glad I went and I think if you're in the area you should visit but I wouldn't go out of my way to visit

Went over to their Palmetto Shooting Complex for a little fun at the 3D Archery Range!…read more I had a great time. If you plan to only use the Practice Range, you don't really need a cart. They are not too far off of the road. 10, 20, 30, 40, & 50 yards positions. However, if you want to shoot at the one of their 20 3D Stations, you'll want to get a cart. Those targets include deer, bears, hogs, cougars, and turkeys! That place is fun!

Worth the tiny price of admission. This is the National headquarters of Turkey hunters and clubs…read moreacross the USA in the sleepy little historical town of Edgefield SC. Just 30 min ride from Augusta, and you step into a Town not a city, jam packed with history. Gift shop, super fun for kids and all ages. There are displays of all sub-species of turkeys, some I'll bet you've never seen and did not know even existed stuffed and in dioramas of their Natural Habitat. Displays of National prize winning art from framed art to hand-carved turkey calls and beautiful hand made knives. Talking animatronics and videos tell the story. And some of the most beautiful taxidermy I've ever seen including a 7 ft tall cougar leaping to snag himself a turkey! Gotta go back soon. Then eat lunch at Bob's Cafe in Town of Edgefield. It's the best Southern Cooking in the CSRA. The Old Edgefield Grille is good too, though pricey, in a gorgeous old mansion. But the Best handmade hamburger is at The Billiard Parlor on the Courthouse Town Square. Freakin awesome.

My family plans on stopping bye this weekend to check out the planetarium museum. They are located…read moreat South Carolina State University, in Orangeburg SC. There is alot of history on this campus. I called to make sure they would be open, a nice lady answered the phone and gave me all the info needed. She is a one man operation for now, but stated she would assist us when we arrived. Tip: call before you go for opening time, website doesn't have opening times. Update Oct 21, 2023 Arrived abit late, but the Director Ingrid was gracious enough to wait on our arrival. The facility has several rooms and space to host events, and has very nice planetarium. They have ongoing renovations being done in the museum. Ingrid gave us a tour of the facility and the vision of the museum going forward. We did view a show in the planetarium, it was absolutely amazing! It was a very relaxing and educational experience. We really enjoyed our time, thank you much Ingrid for your time. I cant wait to visit again and see the renovations.

My sister and I loved our tour with Historic Columbia. We visited the Hampton-Preston house. The…read morestaff was very friendly and honored my sister's student discount even though she didn't have her ID with her. Our tour guide is a current history PhD student at USC. She was very knowledgeable and clearly had a passion for history. The tour group was small and intimate, allowing us to ask as many questions as we desired. I would love to go back sometime and do one of the three other tours. Highly recommend this group!

Perhaps I'm biased, but I love Historic Columbia and so should you. The houses are beautiful and…read morewell-loved, the tour guides are knowledgable and friendly, and the gift shop has something for everyone. They are in the process of updating and adding more landscaping which makes the surroundings of Robert Mills and Hampton Preston even lovelier. They also are out there doing good for the historical community and are very involved in helping preserve the history of Columbia. Finally, they are creative - they do historic happy hour tours, neighborhood walking tours, spooky nighttime graveyard walks, and awesome fundraising events. This is really an organization to be aware of and get involved with.

My sisters and I had fun exploring the museum! We didn't know the second floor was up for…read morerenovations until sometime mid January so we got to explore the first floor only. It was still fun and interesting to catch out. The staff were kind and informative as well!

A great art museum in Columbia SC. We went to see the French painters exhibition…read more The exhibition was well worth the trip.

My cousin and I went here the saturday before Halloween and ummm yea it was kinda wack. What…read morebrought us into the club was the music that was blasting from the streets. The music was good for sure and that deserves a half star...The atmosphere of the club is dark and dreary which is kind of cool in it's own way (another half star), and since they don't serve food they allowed us to get delivery (some West Indian spot nearby) and eat it there! Hahaha that shit is unheard of from where I'm from so that deserves a star on it's own. The crowd here is so peculiar... It possibly could be a gay club bc there was a group of older men dressed up in drag for Halloween and just looked too damn comfortable... Everyone here was weird but the bartenders and staff was nice. Ummm the reason why we stayed was because of my cousin...her feet was hurting, she was tipsy, and married! Guess she wants me to stay single! lol No need to come back here!

If I could give this establishment zero stars, I would. Unless you have endless amounts of time to…read morewaste at a restaurant, do not bother. The service is performed by high school sorority girls who would rather socialize with each other than help you. The food is average, at best. The day I went, there were two dogs behind the counter. I love animals as much as they next guy but I'm a little disturbed by pets being 100 feet from where my food is being prepared.