What I liked most is that they clearly prioritized fun, but without abandoning the learning side…read morecompletely. Some kids places lean too hard into "educational" and forget that kids actually want to have a good time. This place gets the balance right. Port Discovery was probably the number one highlight of our Baltimore trip with kids. I've been to a lot of family attractions, and this is one of the best places I've been to with my kids, plain and simple. The giant three-story slide was a huge hit, and the rope net climb to get up there made it even more of an adventure. My kids could have stayed on that alone for a long time. Another thing I appreciated was how many different types of spaces there were. It felt like every corner had something new, and they also seemed thoughtful about different kids' needs, including quieter areas and spaces that felt better for sensory-sensitive kids. We spent a few hours here pretty easily. Also worth mentioning: I liked that they weren't constantly trying to upsell us on extra stuff. That alone made the whole experience feel less stressful. For families with younger kids, this place is a winner.

this is legitimately the best childrens museum we have ever been to. the giant climbing thing up to…read morea third level slide is so cool! my daughter was too nervous to do it and I was shocked. hopefully we can go back and shell try next time. the staff was very nice. the room where there was an area to make tents was our favorite. I don't know if it is temporary, but the Egypt part was cool and scared my kids. so, be a little wary going in there depending on your kids age and readiness. this was so fun!

I brought my 6-year-old twin grandsons here and they had a blast. There are a lot of fun things…read morefor the kids to do, and the place is small enough to be manageable. it is well organized and kept clean. The rules require socks for kids and either socks or shoe coverings for adults. Make sure the socks have rubber things on the bottom if you think you will be in the disco room, as the floor is slippery. I highly recommend this place for some wholesome fun!

So much fun. Every detail AMAZING! We signed up for an hour and had so much fun we extended to…read more2!! Great Creative active play.!!! Not I front of a tv!!! Loved it!!!

a very beautiful interactive area to explore with my children- a lot of variety, we were able to…read morehave multiple pretend play experiences between traveling to space, dungeons, time with giants, salon time with unicorns, and brewing with witches- both my 3yr old & younger 9month old found their own level of entertainment with art coming to life some of the space required more parental monitoring- some exhibits were more art than play space, such as the instruments & fragile larger exhibits of tea parties & macabre art- but they do offer a lot of touch-me manipulative welcome spaces such as dress up stations, instruments, games, and puzzles-it was also a great experience because staff was often around to show us how to play or things to explore only 10$ a ticket for 2hrs, ample parking, clean bathrooms, lots of space- it was a pleasant place to spend our morning to note: if going with a larger group of ticketed adults/kids- check out groupon for deals they offer the kids a free book on the way out- to keep this going consider bringing a book to donate! they also have an expansive needed donations list posted- this place would be a great home for unneeded things highly recommend

Summary: while Doodlehatch is definitely not short of character, there are some key points that…read moremake it hard to love. A question I had prior to visiting Doodlehatch was "what is it?" The best answer I can think of is that it's an interactive art museum. There are tons of random sections throughout: a space area, a unicorn area, a tea party area, a giant bed, etc. Most are designed to be "interactive," but I don't know how much care + maintenance is going on. Parts of the exhibit don't feel sturdy and a lot of it doesn't feel clean. There are a lot of areas that have fabric that retain moisture/dirt like the giant bed (plush), bean bag chairs, and hammocks. Coming off a fresh pandemic, it didn't give the best feeling to "interact" with something like that. Conclusion: I think the concept is cute and the art is unique. The exhibit itself makes for a cute little outing. I'm just a bit more wishful as far as care/maintenance goes. I wouldn't describe myself as a germaphobe, but even so I didn't feel great about it.

OK. So for the record, it is very much overpriced And they…read moredon't take ACM reciprocity for other museum members, so that was a huge let down. That being said, they have a decent amount of activities, and my kid was never bored. There were a lot of different activities for kids of varying ages. The little brothers and the younger brother won't be bored. On top of that it's right next to the National Mall, so... four stars.

We went specifically for the Curious George Exhibit. It was underwhelming at best…read more The Children's Museum is located downtown, so you can only imagine how parking can be. There is a garage underneath the building and no there is no discounts for attending the museum. In my opinion, the space isn't very big and I was a bit disappointed with how it is kept up. Some of the installations did not work and there didn't appear to be enough staff available to keep up with items that are running low. Can't say it was the best experience and I doubt we will be returning.

Spot is pretty cute and not "huge". Overall very…read moreentertaining for toddlers and kids but can't say it's anything amazing but worth the money 100%. The lady at the front desk made me want to drop a star but can't say it's the owners fault. Reason being is she was very dry and quick with the rules I couldn't catch anything she was saying because she was so dry. Didn't seem like she wanted to be there but whatever that interactions like a second. It's basically a bunch of stations like shopping , doctors office, a slide, and so on. Like I said pretty cute.

Play Street Museum is a franchise that specializes in kids' play areas that encourages imaginative…read moreplay and fun settings. The one in Severna Park is one of my favorites to take the kiddos because it has a great mix of interactive toys and buildings. Just to name a few: - an area for crafts - one of those motorized air funnels that you can put a scarf in - ice cream store - grocery store - doctor's office - vets office - a recycling truck with slots to sort different recyclables - a play house with kitchen stuff - pretend firetruck and firehouse with hose and slide You can also opt into extra add ons that allow you to participate in crafts you can take home (think DIY activities like slime). I like that there's only a finite number of spaces for time slots so it never gets too crowded. You should check their website before going just in case they're sold out (I believe they do allow walk ins though). They also have punch cards for a slightly discounted rate. It's usually around $18 for a single visit, but comes out to like $15 a visit with a punch card at the time of this post. I would totally recommend for little ones, but they may start to get bored for any ages 5 or older.

There's fun kids' activities in the Maryland Science Center downtown Baltimore. We're members, so…read moreit's free to go as often as we like! With that, we can stay with any one thing we're in the mood for, and next time see other stuff. This time, (Apr 2026), it was all the color-panel floor! No, I dont know what the official name is. The kids with us just ran and danced and played across the changing shapes and colors, and sometime just lay there as the colors and shapes changed around them, while other kids of all ages joined in for longer or shorter times. I don't think they have free days, but there are some inexpensive entry categories, and you can bring a friend in with anything but the most basic membership.

With your ID and your Bank of America card you can enjoy free admission to the Maryland Science…read moreCenter on the first Saturday of the month. Okay for adults but best with kids. The two of us were done under 3 hours. I loved the paper airplane shooter.

Very nice little but packed museum in Lutherville! I loved learning about the history of fire…read morerescue and all the tools, gadgets and trucks they used to use. The museum also gave insight into how the fire men used to live at the stations. Very interesting stuff. They also give you a free poster! Recommend!

WOW What an experience this has to be one of the best fire apparatus collections I've been to. You…read morecan tell they take great pride in the museum!!!

A 45-minute drive from D.C. on a good day, Ellicott Mills Children's Museum is the area's newest…read morechildren's museum. Open from 1-5p p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, here's what you should know: 1) Admission: It's free. However, considering giving a donation to keep the history alive. 2) Space: Located inside a historic Quaker one-room schoolhouse, the museum is literally three rooms- a classroom, a general store and a "great room." Through exhibits and an alphabet scavenger hunt in the general store, visitors learn about 19th century life in a mill town. 3) Staff: Most are volunteers and friendly. 4) Parking: They have parking at the court parking lot or on the street. There is a restroom on site.

Such a cute little museum! I would 100% go back here. My kids loved it and the people who work here…read moreare so incredibly nice! They are very knowledgeable about the history of the building and give you tours. There are aspects that are interactive and my kids learned so much.

Apparently it changed its name in the last couple of weeks from the B&O Railroad Museum, but it was…read morecool when I went and look forward to any other upcoming changes. Although my Monopoly piece souvenir has been rendered obsolete. Anyway, there is plenty of parking and plenty of giant trains. I would recommend coming in the spring or fall because while cool, the giant train warehouse gets a bit toasty in the summer. You start off inside with a bunch of different train models. There is an exhibit on the underground railroad, but it feels disconnected to the rest of the museum. Then you can go into the roundhouse with full sized wagons trains with signage to tell you about the functions/time period/etc. There are more outside as well. It feels very thorough for the 19th and early 20th century, but it would be great if they incorporate more modern trains someday to show the throughline from the past to present. Except for the limiting time outside due to weather, it is an exceptional space with actual train cars you won't see anywhere else. The fact it was an old train station reused for a museum is a great use of an old space. It's something that will be engaging for children and adults.

The museum itself was really amazing. I thought the inside of the museum was beautifully maintained…read morewith great attention to detail. The admission price was very reasonable, and my young kids really enjoyed the time we spent there. This museum is connected to the Smithsonian, though you wouldn't know it. It's very quietly stated on one of their signs, but not many other places. Some things that weren't as positive were that the website is out of date. The website said there were rides outside for kids. Which there was technically one ride. But it hasn't been in operation for quite some time. The other ride wasn't there. The other bummer was that I left an item behind at the museum. Even though I called the museum the week after our visit 3 times, left voicemails every time, and emailed, no one has ever gotten back to me. It really disappointed me that they have no one to help customers. Even when we were there, staff was minimal. Museum cutbacks I assume. Still, I would go back.

For my first Baltimore review, I'm giving praise to a solid overall art museum experience. And it…read morewas also a museum experience that was completely FREE! When I was looking at Baltimore attractions closest to my Airbnb, I instantly made a note. And from the moment that I first walked through its outdoor sculpture garden before even entering the building, I knew I was in for a treat! It might not be as expansive as other art museums I've been to, like the Philadelphia Museum of Art and MOMA. But it's well curated with impressive Asian and African art wings, an awesome section devoted to local Baltimore artists, and works from artists spanning across the globe and centuries. I've touched on it in the opening, but the fact that its a free museum experience unless you choose to pay less than $10 to see the special featured exhibit is absolutely amazing and unfathomable! Since the current featured exhibit had the works of Matisse, whom I've seen plenty of times, I decided to take in everything else, and could have easily spent 5+ hours taking it all in! With features like this inside and out, and the incredible value, I'm honestly surprised that the BMA doesn't get mentioned in the conversation about must-visit art museums in the US!

I had the pleasure of attending the opening day of Flashback: Two Centuries of Baltimore…read morePhotography. This was such a dope curated experience with so many talented photographers. What blew me away most is the community these creatives have to support them in their endeavors. It warmed my heart to see the support and appreciation for the art. It was amazing to speak to people born and raised in the city sharing the memories of the photographs they had seen. The staff was amazing in handing such a busy day! Shout out to MICA students running a smooth photography area for people to capture special moments of the attendees. Please be sure to support this exhibition. Please visit the museum! There's something there for everyone!