The American Museum of Natural History on the Upper West Side is by far our favorite museum. What’s not to love, from the moment you walk into the Theodore Roosevelt Rotunda housing the Barosaurusexhibit, the world’s tallest freestanding mount of a dinosaur. to the Rose Center For Earth and Space to the 94 foot Blue Whale in the Millstein Hall of Ocean Life, cool IMAX films and so much more, you can expect to spend the entire day learning and having fun.
Recently, we enjoyed an all day trip to the museum. We of course took in the Butterfly Conservatory where we saw hundreds of butterflies.
This is one of our favorite yearly exhibits. No place can you get so close to butterflies and of course, my daughter and her friends kept hoping to have a butterfly land on them. Another favorite is the Journey to the Stars Space Show in the Hayden Planetarium. The images in the show are just amazing. Luckily, we were able to check out the dinosaur exhibit that just ended. Afterwards, we wandered the two dinosaur halls because my daughter just loves dinosaurs. At that point, we just wandered with no destination in mind because there is just so much to see.
Whether you live in New York or are visiting, The American Museum of Natural History is a must see destination.
Here are just few of the events in February and beyond. Click here for the full schedule of events.
Butterfly Conservatory
Visit this re-created tropical forest environment filled with over 500 live butterflies.
Mystery at the Museum: An Accomplice Adventure
Embark on an exciting adventure through the Museum! Meet characters, follow clues, and solve puzzles as you unravel a tale that takes you to iconic locations and behind-the-scenes areas. Part game, part theater, and part walking tour, Mystery at the Museum is an experience you won’t soon forget. Select Saturdays and Sundays for kids ages 10+.
A Night of the Museum Sleepover – (January 27, February 25, March 9, March 24)
This wildly popular nocturnal adventure is a chance to explore the Museum after-hours and camp out under such icons as the blue whale. For ages 7 to 13 and their caretakers.
Journey to the Stars
Narrated by Whoopi Goldberg, this one of the museums most popular shows. Featuring extraordinary images from telescopes on the ground and in space and stunning, never-before-seen visualizations of physics-based simulations, the dazzling new Journey to the Starslaunches visitors through space and time to experience the life and death of the stars in our night sky, including our own nurturing Sun. Tour familiar stellar formations, explore new celestial mysteries, and discover the fascinating, unfolding story that connects us all to the stars. Those who come along for the journey may never see the night sky in the same way again.
Click here for the full schedule of events.
American Museum of Natural History
Location: Central Park West at 79th Street
Website: amnh.org
I love this museum, been there many times. So huge though! But a great way to spend the day in NYC.
Totally agree – such the go to museum
A night at the museum? That would be exciting, so much fun and learning.