My five-year-old has been to more than a dozen children’s museums in her short life. She’s loved every one of them, but apparently, she doesn’t know what she’s been missing.
According to a recent survey, the City Museum, located in St. Louis, Missouri, is the ultimate children’s museum. In addition to having a second-floor, 13,500 square foot aquatic waterworld where kids of all ages can get up-close and personal with more than 10,000 sea creatures (from sharks to stingrays, and seahorses), the museum also boasts a five-story jungle gym with two real-life jets that kids can climb on. There’s also an enclosed “Monster Slide” that drops riders the length of three staircases, and a rooftop Ferris Wheel from which visitors can glimpse the iconic Gateway Arch.
For younger guests, the museum boasts a “Toddler Town” filled with pint-sized tunnels, slides, an indoor ball pit, bridges, and an art room. Meanwhile, older kids can explore the “Enchanted Caves” attraction, which offers guests the chance to walk, climb and crawl through the museum’s spiral conveyor tunnel system. The caves emanate from deep within the heart of the 10-story brick structure and wind their way to secret hiding places.
City Museum managers define the popular tourist stop as a cross between “a playground and a theme park.” The museum recycles St. Louis’ past and uses it as a means to teach kids about the wonders of science and industry. Awe-inspiring exhibits abound from the walk-through whale on the first floor to the “Puking Pig” exhibit, which consists of a large metal drum that fills up with roughly 150 gallons of water, then tips over and spills into a pool.
If you are planning a trip to the City Museum, expect a lot of company. The hands-on musuem is one of St. Louis’s most popular sites, attracting more than 700,000 visitors annually.
Related Articles: