It is very small but alot of animals and birds behind glass that are stuffed. Very inpresses as a…read moreadult.

Another Sunday with my sister in law in charge of how we spend our day. She is famous for finding…read morethese obscure museums and the like to check out. Of course, they are usually closed when we get there, but this time we lucked out. The Jurica-Suchy Nature Museum at Benedictine University is really quite impressive. It's not very large, but they have a considerable collection of specimens. Taxidermied and preserved animals ranging from glass coral to polar bear. Not only are the specimens very well preserved (they put the sad furballs at the Field Museum to shame), but since most of the collection isn't behind glass you can get a really good look at them. If I didn't have the respect for museums that a Montessori school instills in a child I would be able to share a picture of me kissing a lion with you, that's how close you can get to them. The museum is located on the 2nd floor of the Birck Hall of Science. When we arrived the lights were off and we assumed Sue had confused their hours, but apparently they turn the lights on when someone arrives! We found the entrance and the docent welcomed us and turned on the lights. There is an annex across the hall with a dozen or so more stuffed creatures to check out. Aside from their impressive and well displayed collection the next best thing about this place...it's free! Free parking and free admission.

There is truly something for everyone here! Came on a Wednesday which is apparently discount day so…read moretickets were $20. This is an incredibly accessible experience. Mobility scooters available to borrow at the entrance, and also more in the back for those who might change their mind. Benches are located throughout. Maps are available at the front, and in several places throughout. Even though it's a huge building, it is really well organized and easy to navigate through. It's very close to the highway and worth the hour or so stop if you want to see something quirky and different!

The price to get in was definitely worth it. The historical expert named Tony is an expert and has…read morea story about everthing and most people could listen to him for hours. Thank you Tony for your prsentation on the Kennedy assasination in Dallas Texas in 1963.

This place is incredible. Very pricey, but incredible. I've been to many events here and they were…read moreall put together very well. The "barn" is a museum in its own wright. There's tons of old cars and John Deere tractors on display with descriptions and histories about them and the owner. The decor is extremely extensive as well, and I've never seen anything like it. I could wander around in there for hours!

My sister had her wedding here and it was the COOLEST venue!! I could have stayed there all night…read moreand still found new things! The attention to detail was incredible!

Excellent place to visit with or without kids. I really enjoyed traveling through the entire…read moremuseum. Downstairs they have a temporary exhibit highlighting fossils they are finding in the Green River Shale in Utah. From the large bones to the tiny buds of plants. The dinosaur exhibit on the first floor will particularly appeal to kids and vertebrate fossil fans. While I was drawn to the very nice collection of Mazon Creek concretions and my first in person view of a Tully Monster (which is the Illinois State Fossil). 2nd floor is more geology focused than paleontology and the 3rd floor is Biological. I spent some time looking at the different birds they had on display as well as the live reptiles in the education room. Plus a little fox at floor level where young children could Ben down and look eye to eye was a nice touch. We will definitely return. Rockford is close.

This museum is amazing! The amount of dinosaur fossils to view is incredible for being a smaller…read moremuseum and the staff is wonderful! We didn't realize it but the director actually showed us all the reptiles and let us hold/ pet them. She was so kind, patient and knowledgable! We will go back and highly recommend the trip!

We came here on a Sunday with my kids (5 and 3). It being March, the outside was open so we were…read moreglad to explore outside for a bit but it closed at 4 pm. I felt this time that the place was kept tidier. I saw employees moving from area to area and trying to keep things in place, which seems like a pretty tough task with the amount of stuff in each area. My kids had a lot of fun in the upstairs area. There's lots to do & for $12 each, it can easily keep young kids entertained.

I cannot recommend this place highly enough!! Absolutely killer on every level!! This is fun for…read moreadults to come to too! Obviously you need to be an inquisitive person and still enjoy learning new things.... But if you have some kids to bring it's literally like Disneyland but where they learn how everything works in the universe...... You really need to come here multiple times to take everything in..... If you care about your kids, and want them to be smart, this place is mandatory!

Loved the theme of "Wicked" for the experience! Listening to the music from the movies and the…read morechoreographed displays while walking thru the park was breathtaking! Add the smell of fires burning, the fresh snow, and the laughter of children - and i was transported to my childhood in MN. My only feedback was that there were areas that didn't get cleared, so they were inaccessible to the public. As they were listed in the attraction, I was disappointed to not be able to experience them. Especially when there was nothing at the beginning letting us know that parts were closed.

We had a great time visiting with family at the Cantigny Cocoa Cabanas a few days before Christmas…read more There are only a few cabanas by the outdoor skating rink & they are cute A frame structures with a fireplace inside & a fire pit outside with seats for 10 people. Each cabana has a server & you order foods & drinks (alcohol & non-alcoholic) & the hot cocoa is free. Kids & adults alike will enjoy this experience. Cabanas are $100-$300 for a 2 hour period & there is a $150 minimum food/beverage purchase. The kids had pizzas & chicken tenders & fries & adults had beer, espresso martinis, margarita & mules. It's pricey, but worth it for a holiday splurge for groups of 10. The kids ages 6-11 loved it.

My daughter had had her wedding here. It was wonderful as were the people who were there to help…read more Great place to visit. Big part of ILLINOIS history!!

I highly recommend stopping in for a tour of this magnificent structure. The cost is $5 per person…read more They often hold a "Free Day" so, you might not have to pay anything. The curator Erin is very kind, and knowledgeable. Most reviews on the place are contributed to TripAdvisor, but I felt the Yelp audience would like to know of a place they could visit on a rainy day. Or anytime! I believe the tours are Thursday - Saturday at designated time slots from around Noon to 3pm for a duration of an hour. Call ahead for more info and planning.

My friend and I had an errand out in this area and decided to see what else there was to see while…read morewe were here. This museum (the home of the Hegeler and Carus families, who were involved in a local zinc company and also a publishing house, Open Court Press) is a national historic landmark and is unique because it was owned by the same family the whole time, & they never made any fundamental updates to the house so it's largely as it was when designed by WW Boyington (who also designed Chicago's Water Tower and the old Joliet prison) in the 1870s. Several rooms have been restored, but you can see in areas where it hasn't where time is taking its toll (for example, the main hall was painted with egg tempera paint, and that organic element [the egg] is now degrading after 150 years). Still, the parquet floors are amazing, and details like pocket doors, carved wooden decorations and historical elements like the speaker tube system in the walls for speaking through the house are unusual! The house also contains the only German-style turnhalle (gymnasium) in a historic home in the US. Other interesting details include an ornate butsudan (buddhist cabinet shrine) due to Hegeler's interest in Eastern religions. We just took the general tour ($15), but you can do half house (upper or lower half for $50 each) or whole house tours ($100). The longest one is apparently 3.5 hours with two breaks and children are discouraged since it is long. You must register for the tours as they max out at 6 people. Despite it saying "masks are required" and our temperatures taken at the door, our guide was initially trying to take his mask off to talk and the other couple on the tour followed suit. When my friend and I left ours on, they all put them back on at some point. The rooms do have 6 foot markers on the floors, but since some of the rooms aren't big, if you had a full tour group this would be an issue. There is an elevator so the Mansion is handicap accessible. Overall, this seems to be one of the bigger attractions in LaSalle, so take a tour if you're in town.

This mansion is beautiful and a amazing historic site to see!! The house tour is incredible! I…read morehighly recommend going here and learning about this incredible family!

Museum is great for kids younger than 5 years Water table…read morefeature is fantastic! However the cafe can use some improvement We orders macaroni and cheese it was a small bowl about 4 " with bunch of noodles & cheese thrown on top and as a side a dried up mandarin for close to $ 7 you can do better Ended up not eating

We visited here on first night when driving to Chicago last week. Parking was fine since a few…read morehours before closing. The cafe in basement was closed. The first floor looked like tornado went through. Honestly earlier time of 4pm closing is probably when staff does cleaning and sorting. It is too bad there isn't cleaning and sorting throughout the day. A lot of exhibits are for older kids so my son didn't find much interested in it. Outdoors was tinker lab with bubbles which closed early at 3pm. 2nd floor was quieter and not as crowded. There were a few places for baby play area. Overall we were underwhelmed with this. Kohl children museum had outdoor play area which looked better which we visited the next day. This is closer to our hotel but not much for our son's interest. This is better probably when he is older.

The place is so retro lived all the pin ball machines they had. It is a good place to come with…read moreyour family and have some fun. You can buy the coins with your debit card . I would have given this place 5 if the attendant would be nice to its customers or as he claims to be the owner. Not very polite and rude. I truly enjoyed playing the machines and so the young kids that were there playing nice location and always nice festive decorated

My fiancé took me here for Valentine's Day. It was decorated inside and out - so cute!! There was a…read morespecial deal for Valentine's Day that had a little box of chocolates with the coins! We came a few hours before closed and would've been entertained to stay longer otherwise. I was also given a few roses on the way out! Multiple games were play until you win and there was a cool selection from Mario Kart to pinballs. Would definitely come back!