This is something that we are desperately missing in Ottawa. Although a tad expensive to get in, 21…read morebucks-ish per adult, 14 for a 4 year old..... I get it, the prices need to be on the higher side so they can make sure the animals are being well taken care of. We went on a very quiet Saturday, so it felt like we had the place to ourselves. Staff were so friendly. This place would be great for a rainy day, but it was hard to stay couped up indoors when it was such a nice day outside. We were able to leave and have lunch else where (there was no cafeteria that I noticed on site), and we were able to come back after and hang out a bit more. The kids were not too impressed with the fish, but they LOVED the water table activity center. I'd recommend a visit at least once.

amazing experience! highly recommend for families! The staff is very knowledgeable and the animals…read moreare well taken care of. Otter and beaver education and training times are worth a visit.

Love it. We went when the Dambo Trolls were there so that fully shapes my experience. Even…read morewithout the Trolls it would be a fun place to visit. Walk all the trails - it's fun. The ball run was even surprisingly fun. Get a ball! Even adults - just do it. It was a lot of fun taking turns and watching the ball go down. The inside was also interesting- watching the river otter swim loops. The gift shop is large and full of great items with a huge variety. Books and clothes and gifts. And of course the Trolls were the best part: absolutely stunning and magical

It's a wonderful place to visit, I saw people of all ages here to enjoy the beauty of this area…read more Just a note that they do not let anyone in even to park, before their posted hours. The entry works pretty smoothly though, and since we had prepaid tickets, they were able to look us up, give us a map and we were parked quickly. I was there specifically for the Thomas Dambo exhibit. He is a Danish sculpture artist known for his giant trolls made out of recycled wood. Each troll is unique and has a name and purpose....to save the Humans and teach them about sustainability. The trails are beautiful in the woods and clearly marked. There was a beautiful section of the forest where an original piece of music was being played from 24 speakers as you followed the trail. An enchanting small lake filled with water lilies was out the back door of the main building. They have a small cafeteria and a nice gift shop.The building was full of interesting exhibits, including a tank with otters.

Frederic Remington (1861-1909) was born nearby in Canton NY and his family moved here to Ogdensburg…read morewhen he was eleven. At an early age, he had a talent for art. He attended the art school at Yale University and eventually went out west to Montana at age nineteen, returning to Ogdensburg and eventually his first publishing in 1886 at the age of twenty-five. He is perhaps best known for the sculpture "The Broncho Buster" which has a copy here on display. As well, a number of his other paintings of the west. The images have captions and there are art tours/discussions on a regular basis. I have encountered his works at the Great Plains Art Museum in Lincoln NE, the Denver Art Museum and the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. You will know it when you see it. [Round number review 22600 overall - 1577 of 2024 - 493 in New York]

The online museum shop does not respond to emails or phone calls…read more I wanted to purchase a small Cowboy reproduction sculpture that weighs 10 pounds and would be shipped by UPS. According to the UPS web site the shipping cost would be $25.66 to $40. The museum shop checkout shipping cost was $225. I tried to email and phone them about this cost but the shop never responded. Gary C.

It's normally hard to find something for our autistic 8 year old grandson to enjoy, but this museum…read morehas so many things he loves it's easy to get him to go there , drop the electronics that he's addicted to , and just have fun. We love the renovations and new exhibits, thank you to all the contributors that made it possible!

We love it here! Fantastic programs and great exhibits. The family membership is definitely worth…read moreit if you live nearby... you will want to visit more than once!

Tons of interesting displays on the topics of Astronomy, Geology, Fossils, Biology and Archaeology…read more Fun activities for parents' "future archaeologists" digging up bones and operating remote control dinosaurs. I loved the amazing collection of metals and minerals. Bring your camera for photo ops posing your children with their head inside a life-size dinosaur's mouth! Fun for the whole family! Business hours are Saturday 1 to 4 PM.

The original farm house of the Wilder family, as in the family of Almanzo Wilder, husband to Laura…read moreIngalls Wilder, with some reconstructed outbuildings, all as described in Farmer Boy. There's a tour of the barn buildings and farm house, which ran us $25 for a family of of four but was well worth it and clocked in at about an hour. Arrive by 3:30 to make sure you get the full tour on a given day. It helps quite a bit to have read the book Farmer Boy (or other Little House books) before the tour, although not necessary to enjoy it as a slice of American life. This is essentially an idealization of the historical American farm (no manure smells or tetanus) and is private history, so it's not necessarily completely accurate or authentic, but the narrative they put together is quite decent. The guide (Kyle) was extremely knowledgeable although not afraid to say 'I don't know' to some questions, and was diligent about finding the answers to questions he didn't know about later. Extremely well-done tour guiding. I'm a little ambivalent about the political uses of the Little House books (the story's been co-opted a bit by Randian philosophers, in no small part because Rose Wilder Lane was one herself) but even with their gauzy views of pioneer history and selective editing of the Ingalls' real story, they remain classic reads and real musts for kids. There is a small museum which is a free entry, and a pretty decent gift shop featuring a library of the Little House books (and the somewhat more questionable "authorized by the estate" series, albeit out of print titles) and a number of related history books. The crafts are not tacky at all and are in keeping with the Americana theme. (One notable lacuna - the Eric Sloane books on heritage American farm tools, buildings, and methods, which are an obvious inspiration.) Both our enthusiastic ten-year-old and normally bored by such stuff seven year old enjoyed it very much, as both adults did. The one missing part is the demonstration garden and orchard are quite small, and there aren't many actual farm animals (just some sheep). That hardly seemed to matter to either of them in the end, though. This is a long way away from most things, but if you have a Laura Ingalls Wilder nut in the household or are interested at all in American social history, it's worth a side trip if you're in the area.

I came by during their Scotland festival and wasn't offered a tour, but I did have access to…read morehighland dancing, cows, and haggis in addition to a lovely couple of hot dog trucks and a small outdoor market. Apparently it was super crowded for them, but I thought it was the most pleasant and laid back Scots festival I've been to in the US (I was at one in Newfoundland that was a bit less hectic). The house and barns were staffed by workers in period costume (as well as cows). I was told about spinning and the reconstruction and weaving and cooking. The staff members were lovely and funny and nice. They also were very, very kind when I accidentally broke the house. The displays are excellent of their kind and grounded really strongly not only against Laura Ingalls Wilder's books but also against period reference books. I was really impressed, but I do think it's a lot of reading for small children. The volunteers were excellent about explaining things, though. The gift shop was lovely and stocked a great selection of books...I've read or own most of them, but it was nice to see them all in one place. The only drawback is the isolated location. I stopped on the way back from Montreal, going probably 2 hours out of the way (I know map quest says it's only an hour and half, but customs took a long time).

A fascinating historical gem in Saranac Lake. The exhibit was curated to perfection. I learned so…read moremuch here and was thrilled to see they offered some historical copies for purchase in the gift shop. I would love to see this exhibit expanded.

Great time and informative- we appreciated the effort from Alex and the enthusiasm for his work and…read moreprofessionalism-

A neat museum with several floors of exhibits featuring a self-guided audio tour. Really good day…read moretrip. There's also a Mennonite Museum and Railway Museum not too far away (those are not open year round though). Would definitely come back. Lots of maple treats to choose from before you go.

Really worth the time. John is terrific. Incredible artifact's. This gem in the middle of nowhere…read moreneeds a visit. You will be glad you did. Besides the maple syrup aspect The collection of chain saws dating back 200 years are there to view. Really great. After the museum grab an ice cream treat at Wishys day is the best ever.

The Canadian Museum of Nature is an architectural masterpiece, blending Beaux-Arts symmetry with a…read morehistoric exterior and a striking glass tower. The Earth Gallery's gem collection and the Bird Gallery are exceptional, and the gift shop is high-quality. However, my visit was heavily disrupted by large school groups monopolizing the interactive displays. To avoid these groups, try visiting after noon, as morning hours are peak time for field trip arrivals.

It was as much fun touring this museum as it was watching the smaller kids get excited looking at…read morethe dinosaur fossils and the live insects. There was so much content even limiting it to just Canadian flora and fauna. The building itself is impressive, and everything is nicely organized inside. Parking would be my one peeve. You can walk to it from the light rail if you're okay with that and it's night weather, but we found that for a group, it was actually cheaper to take a Lyft, ironically. While this museum is designed to be a great source of information for kids, adults will like it too.