I don't often find myself in Olympia but when I do and I have the family in tow, then this is it! This is the family friendly, rain or shine you're going to want to visit. The Museum is quite large with both indoor and outdoor space. There's a cafe area with food and drinks. I was quite impressed about the amount of activities to do from crafts, to science projects to all sorts of ways to flex your creative muscles. This was quite the experience and bonus points for all the seating for adults. I can't wait to come pack! read more

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A must-go for all families with littles. Hours of exploration and hands-on entertainment. Our daughter especially enjoyed the bubbles and water exhibits. What could be better than endless play stations for them and zero cleanup for us?! Would go again and again. read more

Hands On Children's Museum - Children's Museums Near Me - Olympia, Washington

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There are so many things to do here, from pretend play, to water play, to science and building. It's a big facility in door and outdoor. They also have a full cafe with food and snacks and drinks, perfect for little kids and adults The only downside to mention is the 'nursing mothers' room is a chair, with a curtain around it in the 5 and under section, so that curtain gets ripped open all the time.. read more

What a wonderful place! We wished we lived closer. Our 6 and 9 year old had an amazing visit to the Hands On Museum over Spring Break. Even the adults had fun making crafts in the Makers Space. We will definitely be back! read more

a Museum where you can spend the entire day (if the kid could nap somewhere!) Our kid went wild seeing the water play areas , outdoor cycling, a lighthouse, digging dirt, science based rockets, sitting in a cop car or fire engine or using the light board! it's a complete experience for the whole day! we were travelling and could not sit beyond lunch time due to nap conflicts. it's a whole day pass and you can always come back! it's paid Parking but not expensive either! read more

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The hands on children's museum in Olympia is a must if you have children between 2-8. It has lots of fun hands on things for kids to play with and you can easily spend a couple hours here. Staff is friendly and the museum is clean. I used to go to this museum as a child myself (in a different location) and am so glad it's still around for my kids. However, I'm deducting a star because of how crowded this place can get, that you have to pay for parking, and that I was told I couldn't nurse (covered mind you) anywhere but in the designated nursing area. read more

Hands On Children's Museum - Children's Museums Near Me - Olympia, Washington

The museum was amazing, the toys and experiences are so engaging and the people are the best! The preschool there is amazing! Both my children attended and it was a great educational start. The teachers are great and give very individual attention. I highly highly recommend this HOCM!! read more

Are you a Blippi fan??? If you are, I bet you already know this place. When you're visiting Olympia with little ones (I'd say between 2 and 10 years old) this is a great place to spending a whole morning or afternoon. They have indoors and outdoors activities, so it's good for summer and winter. From ridding a tricycle to making your own crafts. They also have areas only for 0-4 years old, so your toddlers are safe. The cafeteria offers decent and healthy choices, but feel free to bring your own snacks. I bet on a crowded day it's hard to find a table but usually families eat quick. read more

Was okay! I think this place is for children a little bit older than 15 months old. They do have a small toddler section upstairs with little farm theme. They have military discounts The parking was very full They had a paint room with no paint anywhere to be found? A lot of the staff were sitting on the tables/chairs upstairs (I knew they were staff because they had uniform/shirts on) read more

Such a great museum for kids! There a large outdoor area with so many activities, and the indoors seems to never end. My kids would be entertained here for days! The highlights were the tricycles outside, the vet's office, and the construction area with the boulders. Parking wasn't too bad ended up with street parking which is cheaper per hour than their lot. When we left the lot was really full so if you go later in the day parking may be harder to find. read more

Hands On Children's Museum - Play vet - Children's Museums Near Me - Olympia, Washington

Hands down, this is the best Hands on Children's Museum there in Washington! My toddler loves this location so much. There's endless of hands on activities that includes outdoor and indoor activities. Staff members are always present to make sure everything is always in place and kept clean. It is a little drive from Seattle, but it is worth it. 10/10 would recommend to keep your little ones busy for hours! read more

A different type of review! I had a blast at the 90s event for adults! I really appreciate the museum putting this together and having such wonderful activities! The amount of staff was great and they were all so helpful! It was fun to step back into time while climbing the jungle gym items, playing with crafts, learning a thing or two and grabbing a snack from the cafe without the kiddos! Thanks and look forward to more in the future! read more

We love the Hands on Children's Museum so much we are considering getting a membership. You could easily spend the whole day here and never get bored. My daughter's favorite, and always her first stop, is the ice cream parlor. It is her favorite game at home and she loves using the scoopers and taking orders. The area it is in also has a flower area, baked goods counter, veggie patch and store area, a kitchen and pizza parlor/sandwich shop. Everything is sized for littles so they can pretend to their heart's content. Her second favorite is the art room on the second floor. They have clay, drawing supplies, and rotating crafts. The coolest part of the art room is the sculpture area. They have a ton of supplies, think chopsticks, bottle caps, felt, that can be glued together to make art. There are hot glue guns to stick everything together and a drying rack. They also have an area with emergency vehicles, a veterinary office and a baby nursery for kids to pretend in. My daughter's favorite is the helicopter! Outside is a sand digging area, a tricycle track, large games and a ship. When I say ship, I mean an almost life sized ship for kids to climb, crawl and explore on. It's always the highlight. Honestly, this only scratches the surface of what they have. The best part is you can bring a lunch and eat in the cafe area. They also have food for purchase. read more

This is a great museum for kids, our 4 year old daughter loved this! Outside near the museum is also public water play area which worked out perfect for a hot day. There are all kinds of areas to explore for kids of various ages. Outside there's a track to ride a tricycle around, there's a ship, there was areas to build your own mud pie, and areas to climb and play. Inside there was some slides, play areas, and other interesting things. Absolutely fantastic and highly recommended. We were just in Olympia one night, this was a perfect activity. read more

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The museum was cool and all, but omg this nursing spot! This is the nicest place I've breastfed in public. I appreciate the curtains, which can make you more secluded or pulled to the side to still be part of your group. The chair was comfortable and can turn to either side. I like that it's looking over at the baby area, the oyster. Two kids under two were able to have fun in the 4 and under area, and I was very impressed with this nursing spot. Having signs around saying where it is might be helpful, I didn't see any and stumbled upon it. Families might have a breastfed baby and older kids, and might not hang out in the 4 and under area to find this. read more

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Came here with my 2.5 year old daughter and it was a blast! She instantly recognized the museum as a place Blippi visited and was even more excited about it. This was our first time at a children's museum and I wish I had came here sooner during the warmer months! My daughter loved all the indoor activities and also did some crafts on the upper level. Price wise it was on the pricier side but I get why a membership is beneficial! I will definitely be looking into getting one of those! read more

Our first time to the Hands On Museum was in November of 2022 for First Fridays and we've been coming back once a month ever since. We were gifted a membership for our almost 2 year old son who absolutely ADORES this place. One of our favorite parts of the Museum is the cafe they have on site. It's the perfect place to grab some snacks so your little can refuel for all the activities they have. Every time we go, our son finds a new favorite place and he never gets bored with all the activities he has at his finger tips. They have a space for crafts in addition to outdoor activities, engaging all the different senses for something fun and new every time. If you've never been before, I highly recommend checking it out, especially on the first Friday of the month. It will give you a small taste of what to expect for you and your family. During our most recent visit, we participated in their "Noon Years Eve" party and watched some cool science experiments! We can't wait to continue our experience here in 2023! Thank you, Hands on Museum! read more

Hands On Children's Museum - Children's Museums Near Me - Olympia, Washington

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This is a beautifully designed children's museum. My 5 year old and 16 month old explored for almost 3 hours. Lots of exhibits and a fun art room for clay modeling and coloring. Street parking was very close, gift shop had very reasonable prices. Nursing nook available on the second floor. Employees seemed friendly and engaging. read more

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Wonderful place to take the grandkids! Ages 5, 6, and 12 all had a great time playing and learning. read more

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I have to say, and based on most people's opinions and reviews this is going to be an unpopular opinion, but our experience at the Hands On Children's Museum was by far one of the most disappointing outings we've had in a long time. Some things that we thought could've been better: 1.) The cost: While the cost for an adult is just $18.00, that's the same price as a child aged 18 months - 17 years. The usual "free" or discounted admission for young kids at most places or museums is only up to 17 months! What?! I've never heard of paying full price for our 2 year old. 2.) The noise: We were completely overwhelmed and on sensory overload being there. The high ceilings, the hard surfaces, and the number of people all led to a volume level that left us on edge and with headaches. I'm glad we brought the kids' headphones. 3.) The exhibits: While in theory the idea of the museum is great, the execution is not up to par. They have way too many exhibits and things to do in the space they have; and without having a cap on the number of people in the building at one time makes for a very crowded feeling (also adding to the noise). Additionally, many of the exhibits and toys to experiment with were broken or not working; the overall museum felt dirty. 4.) The staff: The front of the house staff were fine, welcoming us and wishing us fun; but the in house staff was pretty worthless. Teenagers were walking around and I'm sure tasked with making sure visitors were safe, following rules, and well supervised by family members. Unfortunately, I saw many infractions, many unsupervised child's, and lots of unsafe behaviors. I also saw many staff walking aimlessly through the museum and looking the other way. Last thought, for those that do go there, be aware of the outside space. There's a tricycle route around the area but there are minimal fences or barriers. One must look around for the kids whipping around the corners and zipping down the straightaways. All in all, it was poor experience and we will not come back. read more

My oh my.... It's a dream coming true for all hyperactive kiddos! Just joking. It's a place made for all children who love to have a great time! This hands on museum seriously have all the educational and fun games and exhibits for kids to play with. I love the fact the museum offers indoor and outdoor activities. First, you will need to get in line to check in in the lobby. Next to the lobby is the cafe. Note: Once you are in, you stay as long as you wish until you decide to leave or the museum closes. If you purchase food or beverages at the cafe, you cannot bring them around the museum. Closed bottles of water are allowed to be carried around. So are baby's milk bottles or any baby cups because.... How else will the babies be able to drink??? Outdoor: different themes from light house to mud house and riding tricycles around the paved path. Indoor (downstairs): different themes from scientific project to water table and to farming tables to vet clinic. Indoor (upstairs): toddler play area with gates, so those curious little ones won't run away easily! There's a slide in that play area, too. Outside of the toddler play area, there's a big covered slide for the bigger kids to go down from 2nd floor to 1st floor. Also, there are different rooms on the 2nd floor with more themes such as construction or physics room! You have to pay for parking. We parked in the parking lot for $1.50 per hour. You can pay for your parking at the meter or front desk. If you park on the street, then you're responsible for that meter since the street belongs to the city of Olympia now. We stayed for a total of 3 hours and 30 mins until we could see that our toddler was totally pooped out from the day. I, myself, got over-stimulated by just looking at the kids running around and having too much fun on their own. I was happy to see that my daughter discovered the slide for the first time and went on it constantly. She just needed to take turns with other toddlers and babies though. read more

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We LOVE this place. My kids (2 and 4) ask to go here all the time. We live an hour away and still got a membership because we go so often. The special events are great (NYE and Halloween parties, meet a mermaid, science demonstrations, play wise weekly classes, rotating art activities, ect). It can get crowded so we usually like to get there right when it opens and leave midday when it's getting crowded. It's also a lot less crowded late weekday afternoons. The cafe and gift shop are very reasonably priced. They have great outdoor play space. The garden area is beautiful and has so many varied things growing (flowers, fruit, vegetables). The new sand/ocean exhibit is lots of fun. There's too much to do in one day (a great problem to have!). Staff have always been friendly and helpful. read more

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We had an absolute blast! Very clean and so much fun! My daughter is 18 months and was able to participate in 90% of things some with help from mama (lifting and such). I was so impressed with all the immersive exhibits. She has never been so fully entertained before! Her favorites were both water exhibits. We spent around 2 hours. Also grabbed lunch at the cafe, enjoyed their options for lunch. It's a little on the spendy side $33 for both me and my daughter but there was no time limit. Overall we will be back. Soon! read more

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My son and I had an amazing time at the Hands on Museum. The line was fairly short we got through pretty quick. Will definitely be back read more

Hands On Children's Museum - Train, crane - Children's Museums Near Me - Olympia, Washington

We had a wonderful time at the Hands On Children's Museum. It is an incredibly well kept facility, very clean and safe for children of all ages. Kudos to the staff - they were super friendly and great with my girls. Our favorite part was the story teller with his drum, dance, and lovely stories. He was very engaging and very sweet. I would visit HOM again just for the story time! My daughters spent 4 hours playing and we didn't even see everything. My oldest was completely "zonked" after the day and had a nice long nap in the car ride back to the hotel. Needless to say, we had a wonderful time and we look forward to a future visit. Again, thank you to the wonderful team and staff. You all are absolutely wonderful human beings. read more

Finally had the chance to take my kids here and they had a blast. There is so much to do here as there's an entire outdoor area + 2 stories inside. A lot of different rooms to explore and let your kids get deep into play. My kids favorite part was definitely the Tides to Trees climber. There was a petting zoo on the day we went which was really nice/organized - my kids loved interacting with the bunnies! I love that they have the first Friday of the month $1/person so it allows more people to be able to experience this place. Definitely check out their website if you're planning to go there's a ton more helpful info there. read more

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This place is absolutely amazing. Its expensive hands down. I was skeptical, but it was worth every since cent we spent. We got there right at opening, brought a packed lunch and ate in the cafe, and played until closing! Its magical place. Its a dream full of imagination for all kids. The Hands on Childrens Museum has many areas of fun to play. The exhibits are educational, yet fun. The indoor area is two stories with a huge art room. The outdoor area has a huge garden, bicycles and dig yard. I highly recommended this museum. The drive from Seattle is not to far, nor bad. We got there with almost no traffic, and there is a Chick-Fil-A half way back to Seattle. :) We live in North Carolina, and we are so happy to came to visit! If you're in the area please make this one of your stops in the PNW with small children! read more

Hands On Children's Museum - Children's Museums Near Me - Olympia, Washington

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Awesome place i had more fun then the kids cant wait to go back with my kids clean and clean place to play read more

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One of the best places to go to on a rainy, holiday weekend. Our family visiting from Portland always swings by this place on their way back to get out the last of their wiggles before the long ride home and we happened to join them on the festivities. There is so much to see and do for kids of all ages - my 9 y/o still loves this place after all these years. There is a water table, construction room, multi-level play feature, the pipe room with handkerchiefs and huge pompoms, performance stage, Art room, etc. In all, we spent about 4 hours here. Parking was widely available in both the large lot and street @ $1.50/hr. The cafe had lots of options to choose from. Your family will leave tired and happy. read more

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This place is great for kids. I took three kids, ages 5,8, and 10. They all had something to do at all times and really enjoyed the variety to chose from. I highly suggest this for anyone that wants to get out with their kids and let them burn some energy. It's definitely great for when the weather is not the best, because they have so much to keep them occupied inside. They did have an area for them to play outside, which would also be great for those nicer days. read more

My son had an amazing time at the museum! There were so many different things to do. From climbing and sliding down structures. To exploring how to make a rocket fly. Two levels of exploring and they have an outside area to run around, climb, shovel dirt and ride bikes. You can definitely spend more than 2 hours here. They also have a cafe area. So if you need to grab a snack or take a break you can leave the play area grab a bite. Then you can return back to the play area. It's a great place to bring your kids! read more

Very entertaining. Animals are not here all the time so check with them. My granddaughter had a good time. It's best for 3-5 years old max. My granddaughter is 7 but she had fun. read more

Hands On Children's Museum - Chilling she had a workout. Had to take a water break. - Children's Museums Near Me - Olympia, Washington

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Great place! We love everything! There is so much to do at this museum that is kid friendly and fun! read more

Hands On Children's Museum - Playing in the 1-4 area. We love this place! - Children's Museums Near Me - Olympia, Washington

We had an AWESOME time here today. I scheduled a 2:00 check in time (knowing they closed at 5:00) and paid in advance last night. I figured that would give us 3 hours and we took the whole 3 hours! My daughter is 9 and there was plenty to do for her. I was a little concerned that maybe she was too old. Not at all. The museum is half indoor and half outdoors. Even if it was a rainy day, there would still be plenty to do, but the outdoor area was a lot of fun. Lots of things to climb on, water stations to play, microscopes, sluicing through rocks to find gems, ships, big and small tricycles, hula hoops, an amazing craft space, "pretend" rooms, such as a veterinary clinic and nursery. Also, they have a partial police car, ambulance, firetruck, and helicopter kids can climb in to play around. I thought that was cool. The other children and parents were very nice and I felt like they all played together well and took turns. The only downside is that we arrived at 2:00 and we new the Cafe closed at 4:00, so we made sure to get over there by 3:15 and it was closed down already other than pre-made snacks. I'm not sure if that's a regular occurrence, but the correct time should be posted. We did double check when we arrived. All in all, a really an awesome place. read more

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I like it here. +'s : My boy loves it here. I have never been treated badly by an employee. Everyone has been respectful. Nice and clean any time we visit. Love having the freedom to just check everything out in the order we want for however long. Despite being there at times when it was really busy (pre-COVID-19) things always worked out as smoothly as they could. Overall have just always had fun and willing to return. read more

Hands On Children's Museum - Sasquatch - Children's Museums Near Me - Olympia, Washington

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If there's one reason I'd want to live in Olympia, it's for this Children's Museum. This place is AMAZING. We went on a rainy weekday and it was pretty busy (guessing due to the weather). However, even with it being busy, we never really had to wait to experience any of the exhibits and most of the kids here were really well-behaved. There are some areas for the older children that aren't really great to take the smaller kids into because the older kids kind of run rampant and don't pay attention to the little ones. Consider yourself warned! We could easily spend the whole day here. There's SO much to do. There's lots of things to climb on, learn from, and play with! There's water play, spots to read, spots to put on puppet shows... You name it, they've probably got it here. Food is decently priced in the cafe and it's actually not that bad, either. I had an artichoke pesto grilled cheese sandwich and it was tasty. Definitely would get again. They had plenty of other food options that sounded good and there's a ton for kids and adults to choose from. Two floors of fun, this place is the PERFECT spot to take little ones. Definitely will return when I'm in the area, my son had an absolute blast! read more

We went to Hands on Museum in November 2021. Overall the place is nice and clean. There's plenty of indoor as well as outdoor activities for kids. Outdoor activities that includes a mini garden with activities, trike and some construction toys area with a large ship and a light house. Age appropriate activities for ALL children and interests. What a gift to provide and experience that exposed young vulnerable families the opportunity to play with their children and have every need met while in a safe environment. Excellent space to promote learning and fun for children and adults. There was parking and a handwashing station by the door. The staff is nice and kind. This is an awesome day out for kids. We went for a day trip from Seattle and it was totally worth it. The food area closes at 3pm and you had to purchase packaged food after that. The outdoor craft and gem station closed at 4pm. We are big fans of the Children's Museum. On the way out the kids took the big slide from the 2nd floor to the first. Wish it was closer to home but it's worth the drive. Highly recommended. Overall an awesome place. read more

Wow. What a place to bring my 3 year old. She could hang out here for hours...maybe days. :) amazing learning experience too!

My child loves this museum he won't stop playing with the water stream. So many fun activities for the younger kids and many chances for them to interact with other kids. There's many play areas including little crawl areas and outdoor bike space. My son was crying to stay. The pricing is so affordable and it's a place that you can stay with your child at all day if wanted. read more

Very disappointed in the 2 tiered pricing system. I'm not exactly sure why I have to pay more for buying tickets at the counter. Hopefully there's some good justification for having to pay more even if there's someone at the counter regardless of how you paid for the tickets. read more