The Durham Museum is in the old Union Station. I'm glad they were able to preserve the building…read morebecause it really is spectacular. There are many permanent displays about Omaha history, and there are train cars you can walk through; enthusiastic docents are often there to answer any questions. There are temporary exhibits here as well, and in the summers they will have something cool that the whole family will enjoy. There are lots of programs here, many of them free with admission or membership. I do recommend getting a membership if you think you might want to come at least a couple times in a year. And you probably will want to! There is a soda fountain/snack bar area. The ice cream is great! The food is okay. It's a museum and not a lunch destination. The museum is located right next to Omaha's Old Market.

This was my second time visiting The Durham Museum, and it continues to impress. My first visit was…read moreduring a free event honoring Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and this most recent trip was with a group for the "Negro Motorist Green Book" exhibit. From start to finish, the experience was excellent. The museum provided discounted tickets for our nonprofit group, communicated clearly throughout the planning process, and had a tour guide ready who found us right away. That level of organization and customer care made a big difference. The exhibit itself was powerful and deeply educational, highlighting the history of the Green Book and the realities African American travelers faced during segregation. Through artifacts, photographs, and personal stories, it sparked meaningful conversations--especially among our younger visitors. I also really appreciate the museum's intentionality around inclusivity and programming. You can feel that it's a space designed to educate and welcome a wide range of audiences. The museum itself is on the smaller side, with exhibits primarily on the lower level, which actually made it manageable for our group to move through at different paces. My kids love the super long train you can walk through and the nearby play area. Practical perks matter too--there's plenty of parking (a huge plus), and they even offer umbrella strollers to borrow, which is incredibly thoughtful for families. Overall, a meaningful, well-run experience that I would absolutely recommend--whether you're visiting on your own, with family, or as part of a group.

We are so lucky to have the Joslyn museum right here in Omaha. I've been to art museums all around…read morethe world, and this one stacks right up against them in terms of quality. I've been visiting the Joslyn since I was a child, and visiting as an adult brings back all those wonderful memories. The cool blue and green Storz Fountain art deco tile atrium, the amazing sculpture garden outside, and the temporary and permanent exhibits that are so thoughtfully curated. The Joslyn houses works from classic and modern artists like Monet, Basquiat, Jackson Pollock, Titian, Dale Chihuly, Bouguereau, Picasso, Renoir, Mary Cassatt, and Roy Liechtenstein, among so many more. They also feature several local artists and workshops that I think is so cool that they contribute to the local community in that way too. The Joslyn was closed for two years recently for expansion and restoration, as well as adding many more pieces of art to the collection. There are little signs on each new piece of art that says "New to the Collection" so you'll know you haven't seen that one before if you visited a lot before they closed and reopened. And what's really awesome aside from all that? It's free! I've only ever seen a museum of this caliber having free entrance in large European cities like London and Paris. You obviously are able to make a donation with your entrance, which I'm sure is encouraged to keep the museum running, but I love that it's offered freely for those who can't pay an entry fee but will benefit just like anyone else from the art housed there. I've seen comments here on Yelp saying that you can do this whole museum in 30 minutes. If you're doing that, you are absolutely doing it wrong and rushing through everything. My last visit was 3.5 hours long and I only saw two or three exhibit rooms. What's so great about this being a free museum is that you DON'T have to rush, because you can always come back later and see anything you didn't get to, in the first or second visit. With all the free things there are to do in Omaha, this has got to be at the top of the list, especially if you're an art lover!

This museum is free with 3 parts. When I visited, there was an ongoing exhibition that was not…read morefree. It is very spacious and has a decent collection of artwork. There are sculptures in the garden outside the museum. My favorite here is the beautiful fountain at the middle. Durham Cafe is located inside the museum (I reviewed this separately). They have a gift shop as well. Worth checking out if you're in Omaha.

Night Lite was SO COOL! I am a huge fan of the Night Lite…read morebecause it's low light, no screaming kids, and a DJ! It was about $20 for a non member and $15 for members!

This is a really fun science museum that is guaranteed to entertain your family. We spent a few…read morehours here on a Thursday in Omaha and my six year old had a blast. Our 16 mo old had fun too, but there is a lot to do for kids between the ages of 5-12. We all had fun walking around learning with some of the exhibits, and the indoor playground upstairs was a big hit. Our toddler even took a little nap while we were there in the comfy chairs upstairs so that was a win for us! Overall it's a new building, filled with fun things to explore, and definitely worth the visit if you're in Omaha. I'd say that especially if you're visiting when it's hot or cold outside this place would be ideal as it's perfectly air conditioned indoors.

So many things to look at here. It's a self guided tour, and you can take as long as you want. So…read moremuch to take in and read about. We were there for 2 hours and we plan to come back sometime. They also had a few options to rent ghost hunting devices.

I REALLY wanted to love this place, as I LOVE all things paranormal, but sadly I was quite…read moredisappointed with this place, purely because of the lack of care and attention to detail. But because of how badly really wanted to love this place, I'm going to leave a super long review with points I really think could benefit you guys if you're open to it, and really help make this place flourish! So Each room we went into was just a big empty room, with a million cluttered artifacts lining the perimeter of each room, complete with the same laminated piece of paper typed up on word, accompanying literally every single item. So if someone wanted to read every single piece of paper in here, I have no doubts it would take AT LEAST 34 hours... And it's unfortunate bc they really did have a ton of awesome items with super interesting stories attached, but everytime you walk a couple more feet around the perimeter, you're again overwhelmed with the sheer amount of clutter/things to read. So I'd really recommend to the staff to try and change the layout of this place. Ideally the rooms would be smaller, so that you aren't overwhelmed by a big empty room. Even just some kind of cheap room dividers that simulate a divided up room would work. And the 2nd biggest recommendation I have would be changing up how you present information. At the very least that means just changing the sizes of the captions you have next to items, like making some of the captions in much bigger frames, and maybe keeping some small ones, there just needs to be more of a variety to keep the scene in front of your more interesting. And maybe don't have soo many captions that were excessively long, like you could sum up the item in just a couple sentences, and then save the entire detailed story about the item just for guided tours or something. Lastly- WHY IN THE WORLD DO YOU NOT LET PEOPLE USE THEIR PHONES? Don't you understand every time someone would take a pic of something in your museum and then post it on social media, that's LITERALLY FREE ADVERTISING for you! Trust me, you're only hurting yourself by not letting ppl share pics of their visit here.

Life as a prisoner is not for me. There's a friendly…read moreattendant at the entrance to guide you and give info annoy the jail. Very interesting especially for my hubby and his friend.

This is a one of a kind place worth visiting. It was a revolving prison that was used from 1885 to…read more1969. It had 3 floors of pie-shaped cells inside a cage. The fourth floor was where the jailer and his family lived. The staff were very nice and knowledgeable about the place. This is not free but your $10 is definitely worth it. Their small gift shop (also were you check in) has shirts, pins, and magnets. This is walking distance from the Union Pacific Railroad Museum which is also another place to see in Council Bluffs.

First time visitor Dog friendly grounds - saw a dog bag…read moredispenser gravel cement asphalt grounds Semi incline Free parking Did the tour - $17 for a little over 90 mins to see each level of the castle and hear the history Tours are on select days and times. It would indicate on the website and just appear and wait for the door to open to pay for entry. Or can be purchase ahead of time. Home was decorated for a weekend event but to see the details of the Mosaics, molding, rooms, creek of wooden floors, to just be inside a castle, and to hear how the Joslyn started from the ground up and truly gave back to the community even after of passing to ensure the community was taken of. They treated everyone including to those working for them like family. To wander around the grounds floor is pretty neat, to see the inside is pretty special. Would recommend especially those passionate for history, designing, and architecture.

Really a must see if you're in Omaha for a couple days, because how often can you say you toured a…read morelegit castle without leaving North America? The tour starts in one of the grandest rooms in the home and while it is a bit old-fashioned for this digital age, need I remind you that this is a literal castle? What's more old school than that? We visited in late fall so there wasn't much to see in terms of foliage or plant life, I suspect it is even more wonderful in the spring and summer.

This is a gem of a museum and worth the drive to Ashland. The rotating exhibits are a draw, such…read moreas the recent Star Wars fun, but the standing exhibits are worth the visit on their own. We've been here several times over the years and the museum never always looks well maintained and current. Love that Nebraska's astronaut is the current CEO of the museum!

They really stepped up their game with this latest exhibit. Star Wars has taken over. Amazing…read moretoys/merch, outfits and replicas from the movies. All the movie posters were represented. There was a fun game as well. The cafe even got in on the fun with a Star Wars themed menu. Highly recommend checking it out.

This museum is free. The gift shop has shirts, magnets, toys, books, and some shirts. I learned a…read morelot about the history of the Union Pacific Railroad and the other earlier train systems in the west. The train models and replica are great. The train driving simulator was nice to try not to mention other interactive displays. This is a well curated museum and is definitely worth visiting.

This a beautiful museum. There's a lot of history to learn about with actual furniture that…read morebelonged to President Lincoln. This is a fun place for people of all ages, including children. There is also some very friendly staff to give you the history and info as you're walking through the three stories of this museum.

I randomly saw something about the Thomas Dambo troll exhibit the week before I was due to be in…read moreDes Moines for a dog event, so I made a note to try to stop by on my way home if it worked out. I was done with the event a little after lunch time, so was passing through Omaha at about 3 PM - a couple of hours before the garden closed. It was a cooler, overcast day so it was safe for my dogs to hang out in my car for an hour or so. A good bit of luck, since I'm not sure I would have been able to find a shady parking spot. Admission to the garden is roughly $18 for non-members, and when you buy your ticket with a credit card at the self-serve kiosk it gives you an option to cover credit card fees - which I chose to do so all told I paid $21 to see these trolls. I will not that there is one troll that is outside of the entrance to the garden - the one with the little car - so even if you can't justify the admission price it is still worth taking a few minutes to come see that troll. They are all built of reclaimed wood and recycled materials, with incredible detail right down to their fingernails. While I came primarily to see the trolls, the grounds are beautiful. It is still early enough in spring that just a few things were in bloom, but those things were pretty spectacular - such as the field full of dafodils. There were beautiful plantings of other spring bulbs and several magnolias were in bloom. The gardens have some beautiful hybrids as well as traditional cultivars. The trolls were scattered throughout the gardens, but it was not a difficult walk to see them - though there are some short inclines I think it would take no more than an hour to see all of them if that were your only agenda. There is also a troll tram available for a nominal cost. I found strolling through the gardens to be a peaceful break from highway driving. You can still hear some traffic noise, but there's plenty of birdsong as you get away from the entrance. Each of the trolls was unique, but there wasn't any signage to tell you about their unique personalities (you can look that up online, though - and Thomas Dambo's website is a wonderful rabbit hole to go down if you are so inclined). My favorites were the one with the birdhouses and the buddha-like one in the Japanese garden. I almost left right after seeing all of the trolls, but then decided to exit through the conservatory an I am glad that I did. It was warm and humid inside so I didn't stay for too long, but it is packed with tropical foliage including beautiful orchids, pitcher plants, ferns, tropical trees, and a koi pond with the biggest koi I have seen in a very long time. I didn't have much in the way of expectations of Omaha or these gardens when I thought I'd stop to see the trolls, but I am impressed. People were friendly. The gardens are beautiful and it seems family friendly - a children's playground takes up a good chunk of real estate within the garden - and starting in May four-legged friends can walk with you in the gardens on Monday (I think?) evenings. Well worth a visit.

A must visit spot while in Omaha! We got hit with beautiful 70 degree weather and took advantage of…read moreit by coming here. We got our steps in while admiring the greenery and well thought out flowers. My toddler enjoyed Sophia's garden playground the most. While I enjoyed the super massive greenhouse. There were so many photo opportunities. They don't allow outside food or drinks which is a bummer for those traveling with kids! However, there are two cafes that offered food for purchase. It looks like they offer events during the holidays. Looks especially fun during Christmas time, we'll definitely be back!

RailsWest was absolutely wonderful. I just had my wedding here on May 17th and it was fabulous. Kat…read morehelped us with everything we needed. She made sure we had the tables and chairs we requested, plus closing the venue for the time block we needed. The day was almost magical, it was so wonderful. Several trains went by during our time there, so we got to hear the horn and feel the rumble as they passed. I am very pleased as a train enthusiast to have been able to have my wedding here. It was my first time marrying and I will always look back on that day with fondness. This was the best time of my life.

This Rock Island depot is only one of two remaining in the state of Iowa and is on the Natl. Reg…read more of Hist. Places. There are a number of rolling stock enclosed within a fence; my favorite is a CB & Q lounge car "Omaha" which contains a solarium. In the depot are a number of old fashioned displays of artifacts which belonged to the railroads serving the town. What I like most about these depot museums is the fact that I'll come across an item I have never seen before. In one room is an HO layout of Omaha/Council Bluffs. Outside are active rail lines of BNSF and Iowa Interstate.