First visit to the GVM. Docent Cody gave us a tour, and he was excellent. He was very…read moreinformative, answered all of my questions. Cody took us through almost all of the exhibits and explained each one in detail. I do wish the museum were a little more interactive and kid-friendly. There were very few buttons for kids to push, and few things they could actually touch. I wanted to see a planetarium show. But the only available show looked to be for very young kids. I was hoping for a show for teens/adults. To make things worse, this is the only planetarium show this month. Maybe they can rotate shows in the future.

Great experience! Kids will definitely love coming to see the museum and shows. For $5 per show,…read morethat's a great deal. I'm not sure if the actual museum is free because we just walked in after the show. They show tons of animals in their habitat and a gift shop. I can't wait to bring my little guy.

I took my children here for a fun afternoon and it is a very cute place and kept the kids…read moreentertained for a while. When we arrived the street parking is sort of iffy, I believe they were doing construction but when we went inside the front desk was very welcoming and I just let my kids run around, there favorite part was the water room ( I am not sure the correct name for it ) but it was pretty cool. It's two levels so multiple things for them to do. It's is affordable and I plan to return and highly recommend if you have small kiddos

I think this place is an awesome addition to Modesto! wish it were there when my girls were little…read more however, I get to enjoy with my grand dude now. we went when it first opened and he loved it. very clean, lots to do and explore. however, now that he is going to be a whopping (lol) 6 years old in another 2 months... I felt like it probably won't be a place he's excited to go to again. he was able to whiz around and get through everything quite fast. But maybe it's because we have many of the things the museum offers at home? like the magnets. painting, crayons, target checkout center, groceries and kitchen...etc. OFC the slide was his favorite. and the stage. we stayed for the last 10 minutes of story time that was very well done by the gal that read the shape book. I would highly recommend this for anyone with kids 6 and under. I do need to add... the unfortunate news of the paint. I specifically asked if it was water based and washable. the girl said yes. I asked because I just put his new shorts on for first time. Well ofc he dropped blue paint on them and his sock. I asked if there was water and a towel so i could get most of it off before getting in car. Came home and immediately treated. Washed in cold water. Hung dry just in case. Still there! Then.. I soaked in oxi-clean overnite. Re washed. it did not come all the way out:( I called to let them know so it doesn't happen to anyone else. She apologized but really nothing more. I think this is a non profit... so, I just let it go. so, you've been enlightened to the possibility with the paint. Wear older clothes you don't care about! I will post pics.

We stopped by the World of Wonders Science Museum for their birthday celebration and honestly had…read moresuch a great time. WOW has always been a favorite for our family, but this event really brought the whole community together. The museum was full of energy with kids running from activity to activity, experimenting, building, and just having fun learning without even realizing it. The raffle baskets were fantastic and way bigger than I expected. You could tell local businesses and supporters really showed up for this event. There were vendors set up, tons of hands on activities throughout the museum, and yes, free popcorn which automatically makes any kid event a win. What I love most about WOW is that it never feels overwhelming or overly structured. Kids are encouraged to explore, touch everything, and be curious. You can easily spend a few hours here and still not see it all. It is such an important space for downtown Lodi and a great reminder of how valuable places like this are for families. Fun, educational, and genuinely community-driven. We had a blast celebrating with the WOW museum!

I was taking my cousins to the theatre and decided to have a day in lodi, luckily i found the…read moremuseum on google and we got there about an hour before closing. Upon coming in, the front desk was very kind and helpful. The museum itself isn't too big nor too small, but has a lot of interesting exhibitions and activities for the kids to do along with a gift shop. My little cousins had a lot of fun and learned about frequency wave lengths, electricity, and some brain ticklers, amongst other things. I hope this little museum can one day offer more exhibitions for the littles, but we had an amazing time nonetheless!

Railtown State Historic Park is extremely cool and fun for all ages! We got to stand on the caboose…read morebuilt for Back To The Future III, viewed the train smoke stack from Little House on the Prairie train, coal powered steam engines, and we saw the Well from the olddddddd show Peticoat Junction: We also were able to see some old trains including ones with wooden grates in the front, and lots of train parts!! He enjoyed explaining things to me.. For a very small fee you can take a ride on a train. Walk around the grounds and see old engines, workshops with all sorts of parts, machines of all sorts. A map is providing for easy understanding of the grounds. It is a trek to get across the grounds and would be difficult for someone with mobility issues. Both of my children grew up coming to not only this park, but to Columbia also. Our family has made many trips here over the years. We love combining, education, history and adventure. They host Christmas events here like the Polar Express train ride to North Pole. This was such a spectacular event I brought my daughter to when she was little. We watched the movie the night before. When we arrived in our pajamas for our VIP seat, we stood in line where we were lovingly harassed by actors. We boarding the train after getting a golden ticket! We sat in the back car. Actors were dancing and singing and chasing hobos off the train while we enjoyed a ride and spilled hot cocoa out of polar express keepsake mugs. Arriving at North Pile and seeing the elves and Santa pushed it over the edge for my young daughter. She was beyonnnnnd excited!! Will I return: We always do. There's something incredibly nostalgic about this place!

This review is for the polar express train ride. Let's cut right to the sleigh bells: At a cool $85…read morea pop, this ride definitely costs more than a lump of coal. For my family of three, we signed up for the holiday hype, and while it wasn't exactly perfect, it was certainly an event to remember! Singing Christmas carols was an absolute delight! My personal highlight? The hot chocolate scene. The performers were fantastic, and the cocoa itself was surprisingly delicious & paired with a yummy snickerdoodle cookie. The trip to the North Pole, while blessedly short, felt truly magical. Watching all the kids scramble to one side of the train to catch a glimpse of Santa's HQ was a sight. Now, for the "improvements" section. The train apparently needs a gallon of WD-40. Parts of the ride were punctuated by a noise I can only describe as "ears-piercing squeaky"--a sound that could shatter a candy cane. Also, when the classic Polar Express story was being read, those of us in the back were left playing a fun game called "Can You Hear Me Now?" (Spoiler: We could not). Finally, the outside scenery was less "winter wonderland" and more "passing landscape." It would have been brilliant if they had just added a few festive Christmas decorations along the route. Just a few! We aren't asking for a full-scale holiday village, just something besides barren trees. While our ride came with a few minor mechanical and auditory "features," we still had a magical time. It wasn't perfect, but what ever is?

Yesterday the McHenry Mansion had free entry as well as cradts at the museum, carroage rides and…read moremore! While visiting the museum, my family and I had a wonderful time getting info on the Stanislaus Libraries in the area, looking at Modedto artifacts and making crafts! The staff were very kind and helpful! Overall, we had a wonderful time!

I had always wanted to stop in at the McHenry Museum, but I never took the opportunity to go, until…read morerecently. The museum hosted an event right before Graffiti Night to kind of kick it off. It was a free event to go inside the museum, and outside were lots of classic cars, trucks, and a few bicycles!! I included lots of photos inside and out!! Well, they had another event last Saturday night! "A night at the McHenry Museum!" What a cute and fun idea!! It was great for all ages. We received a night guard evidence log when we checked in at the front desk! Right before that, we were welcomed by a greeter who opened the door for us. They had nine exhibits with stamps from the people dressed in period or historical costumes. They each gave a little demo or speech about the exhibit they were in. They were all so friendly, and interactive. It really made the scenes come to life! One exhibit was trying to get gold out of the clay rocks, to turn into the cashier for play money, which in turn one could "buy" real candy. I had such a wonderful time. I hope they do this activity again, sometime soon. It would be fun to know about it way in advance, so I could dress up too. That would be really fun! I did not find out about it until a few days before. However, I am so glad I went!

Well as of last year the Mistlin Gallery closed permanently. It was taken over by the City of…read moreModesto and a good community of artists of all ages were left disbanded. We had a wonderful gallery with events and shows and volunteers committed to the arts. Sad to see it go........

A local treasure that many cities the size of Modesto don't have: a good-sized gallery devoted to…read moredisplaying local art, with a gift shop that sells pieces by local artists, including very affordable prints and cards. Some of the same local artists whose art you can buy also give classes in the learning space. Exhibits rotate often, and there are always announcements for the next one. Now here's the thing with a place that displays a lot of local art: the aesthetics will vary. There are artists I think are top-notch (and I buy the print versions I can afford because my current budget doesn't stretch to originals to go over the sofa). There are artists I think are.. having a great time with self-expression (so I don't buy). Regardless, it is delightful that these are my neighbors (more or less), and many are depicting the local landscape in a part of California that tends to get neglected. Where else can I buy prints of actual Modesto-area places, rather than the "more important" beauty spots elsewhere in the state? I adore this gallery and go as often as I can. Occasionally they will feed you cheese bits or whatever, in a festive way.

Preston Castle Haunt - what a yearly tradition! My wife, my parents, and I have been making the…read morespooky pilgrimage for years now, and it never disappoints. You just can't beat a haunted house that takes place inside an actual haunted prison. The vibe alone gives you goosebumps before you even step inside. Add in the scare actors (who I'm convinced are local kids living their best creepy dreams), the friendly staff, and the affordable merch, and you've got the full package. This year's haunt felt longer with even more scares tucked around the corners--right up my alley! Preston keeps stepping it up, and I'm here for it. Until next year, Castle... we'll be back.

Came here for the haunted house event about a week ago and I'm not sure if I would come back again…read more Tickets were $35 each (purchased online) and you have to park and walk about 10-15 minutes to the castle or you can take the little van that drives you there which also takes the same amount of time. We took the van to the castle but they don't drop you off directly in front of the castle so you still have to walk down through security and then to the castle. Porte potty's are available right before security and once you walk up the hill to wait in line to enter the castle. There were a couple food trucks when we went, we were expecting a few based on what was said online but not sure if it depends on the time. We waited over an hour in line to enter the haunted house and if you do really believe in ghosts this place is pretty haunted. The event itself wasn't scary, the actors aren't able to touch you but there's obviously loud screaming and they may be a bit too close for comfort to get a reaction out of you. You do have to climb up and down quite a few stairs and then there's a second part lead outside and back in the castle (barely any lighting and it's a dirt road so you have to carefully walk). Many strobing lights as well so do avoid if you are triggered by that. The energy throughout the castle was not pleasant or welcoming, I was very excited for it to be over as the haunted house itself was not very good and I was mostly tired from all the walking. There's a merch truck outside at the end of the castle as well. We also decided to walk back instead of waiting for the shuttle but there absolutely no lighting and many ditches with uneven flooring so you have to be very careful. Overall experience was not my favorite and I wouldn't come back again.

Very cool spot. This place is probably best for school-aged children. They do have one wall with…read moreconnector toys for the toddlers but that's about it. It's small but a nice spot to spend under an hour. Also finding the entrance was hard because google maps takes you to the wrong main gate.

I almost got into the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory! Yes, the Lawrence Livermore National…read moreLaboratory is self-described as "a premier research and development institution for science and technology applied to national security." Because they are working with important stuff pertaining to national security, nuclear materials and other top secret stuff, they won't let the average Yelper in there. But, right outside their front gate is the Discovery Center. The Discovery Center is a small museum that gives you a brief introduction to the lab and what they do. They have hands on and interactive exhibits for children to play with. Most of the exhibits were well maintained. It is an interesting way to spend an hour. The staff, at least on the day were there, was fantastic. Since we were the only ones there, she almost gave us a personalized tour to explain some of the exhibits and talk about the lab and what they do. They have an easy scavenger hunt for children with a nice t-shirt as a prize. They are pretty generous with the scavenger hunt and let children of all ages play. The museum is priced just right for most Yelpers. It is free! It's a nice place, with not a lot of visitors.

It was pretty nostalgic coming here with my kids. I lived in Merced for a few years as a kid during…read morethe first Desert Storm War back when this was Castle Air Force Base and they were flying b-52 bombers over Merced everyday that would shake the windows of my house. We were driving up the 99 from Fresno to Manteca and I thought it would be a fun detour for my kids to see. They were pretty pumped to see the SR-71 Blackbird and one of the old old Air Force Ones. I wish there would have been more planes available on public display without having to pay to get into the museum since we were there after hours and couldn't see any of the other ones except for through a chain link fence. Still a pretty cool experience though and worth the short detour.

As a life member and over 45 year supporter I will say this; I was embarrassed by the state of the…read moregrounds at the outside exhibit yesterday. Lots of overgrown weeds up and around the airplane displays. The walkways need tending too as well. The condition of the planes has deteriorated a bit as well. As an airplane lover I would never say don't go. The history there is considerable. The docent volunteers are devoted folks from the area and a lovable bunch at that. But present management of the overall grounds, buildings and to some degree the planes themselves REALLY needs to be addressed. I took the former chairman of the museum board with me and he was shocked at the way it looked. Come on folks. Get it together raise some funds what ever and let it shine as one of the greatest air museums on the west coast.