University museum known for its exhibits on prehistoric life, popular with children.
University of Michigan Museum of Natural History in Ann Arbor
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My favorite is the shiny rocks! Small but satisfying collections, and some educational talks too. Great gift shop.
MoreIt was really cool! Learned a things, discovered the names of local plants. Take the kids or go dont, just go!! It took a couple hours to walk and look, read and touch things.
MoreWow! What a great time my family had here. My 6yo is really into dinosaurs right now and he absolutely loved this museum. Theres so much to see on all 3 levels, way too much to list. I thought it was really neat to see scientists actually working and be able to see their labs. Interesting, educational, and lots of fun for all ages. The gift shop had a nice selection of items for sale. Admission is free. Place is new and very clean. My only complaint is finding the building and where to park, which was hectic and stressful. I drove past this building and around the block probably 4 times before I realized there was an underground parking garage and it was in the middle of a campus. Google maps isnt up to date on the parking location. This is a must see if you like museums. Recommend!
MoreSmall museum but very well done. In the paleontology section we got to talk with one of the researchers who was exposing a fossil of a fish. He also showed us a number of other fossils and told us about the animals. There is no charge but they do ask you to donate to the museum and the donation was definitely worth it. Id go again.
MoreMy daughter and I had a great time here. Lots to see and do with ever changing exhibits. It’s a free thing to do in Ann Arbor. Great for kids 5-16 or so, I’d guess.
MoreNice building, but not the natural history museum that it was in the old building. It had less than half the displays it had in the old building and also was more like a building for classes then a museum. The old building was what one expected to see if you call a place a museum.
MoreBeautiful museum! Such a gem. New one opened in late 2019, so definitely visit again if its been a while.
MoreWe had so much fun and it was FREE! Learned a lot and wasn’t busy when we went!
MoreAmazing museum, which is also very interactive and immerses you into the natural history. Today, we were very lucky to run into Jim, who took us on a tour to his office to see his two beautiful aquariums. It was feeding time for the octupus in one of the tanks. What could bring you closer to nature itself than seeing it? We all enjoyed it very much and hope that his sea dwellers can become an offical part of the museum.
MoreI took my 6 year old son who loves dinosaurs. He had a good time. I was disappointed in how small it was but my son enjoyed it. I really thought due to their advertising there would be a full T-Rex skeleton but there is just a head. My son had looked forward to that.
MoreI wish I could visit this place everyday. I brought my 5yr old son here for the weekend. His favorite part was dinosaur bones, of course. My favorite was the DNA and the Planetarium. There something here for eveyone.
MoreWonderful museum! Ive been going to this museum for well over 30 years. The remodel is absolutely amazing with wonderful hands on exhibits to keep new generations interested while educating them!
MoreWorth checking out at least once. My daughter is into dinosaurs so we made the drive to check out the dinosaur exhibit. There was plenty to look at and we learned some things about Michigan while we were there. It wasnt overcrowded, but I wish the snack bar was open on weekends. It would have been a nice break to grab a refreshment and get off our feet for a moment.
MoreAwesome free museum with tons to explore. My husband and I enjoyed the paid planetarium experience. We went on a Saturday afternoon and it wasnt too crowded. Very nice museum for being completely free!
MoreWe went the museum and loved it! We went for the dinosaur exhibit (perfect for the young and old). Great collection. Plenty of interactive exhibits. Well worth a little extra effort to get to. The museum was free and there was a charge for some of the other things, like to planetarium. It is not the first time we have been here.
MoreThe planetarium display is extra but they have tons to do for free. Im not a big science or museum fan but I had a great time here
MoreSeeing Jims aquarium was so fun! My niece loved feeding the fish. We learned so much.
MoreHow awesome is this place and it’s free admission! Staff was great and so much hands on stuff!
MoreThe museum is free. Multiple hands on exhibits, demonstrations, and learning opportunities were great for kids of different ages.There is a fee for the planetarium but the shows are entertaining and worth the cost.
MoreMy daughter LOVES learning facts about dinosaurs and other prehistoric land and sea creatures at the natural museum. She really enjoyed summer camp first 2 weeks in July 2022!!!
MoreWhat a great museum! Fun kids activities for all ages, really cool info about history, genetics, cells, and Michigan wildlife. Had a blast with my 5 year old, will probably check back at least once a year with her and her younger brother as he grows.
MoreNice exhibits, interesting for three generations. Explanations are clear, the presentations are beautiful, scientific but accessible. The experience is pleasant instead of being overwhelming. Sometimes the scientists, working on the upper floors, share some of their research with visitors.
MoreWe very much enjoyed the exhibits on display, educational and free, both my 2 year n teenager enjoyed looking n learning, was a memory will always cherish. Its free to enter but its suggested to leave a donation before u leave.
MoreHad the best time here! I want to give a special shout out to Eve who was working the Michigan wildlife exhibit. She was so sweet and patient with my 6 year old and really took the time to listen and answer every question my daughter had. She made our time spent here extra special!
MoreSuch an amazing museum! It’s free (but you can donateand the planetarium shows are about $8. There is so much great information about the nature on Michigan. I learned so much and we spent the entire day looking at exhibits. I would recommend this museum for anyone of any age.
MoreLovely little museum with some great exhibits for kids and adults alike. Plus cant beat free. Donate, or buy something from the gift shop if you can though!
MoreThis is an awesome museum! It is not super big (3-4 exhibit areas I thinkwhich is perfect for adults (or kidswith somewhat short attention spans. The evolution area was my favorite. We spent 3ish hours there and saw everything except the planetarium show
MoreWe want to praise Austin who gave us a very interesting and engaging presentation about 4 replica dinosaur bones on June 22. We had fun guessing the answers to his questions about the bones - and mostly got them wrong! He really knew his stuff. He explained things clearly, and we learned a lot.
MoreThe planetarium was very fun. The narrator was fantastic. I watched Sky Tonight and would love to watch the other two: Sea Monsters and Tales of the Maya Skies.
MoreHad a fantastic experience here! It was astonishing how much they had here to look at, be hands on with and taught about! Everyone there was incredibly nice and informative. They had such an array of things to see, definatly reccommend coming here!
MoreSuch a fun museum! We loved all the interactive aspects.
Took the wife and kiddo here on a rainy day and was thoroughly impressed. Not only is it super kid friendly but was very interesting to my wife and I. Highly recommend for a great day activity for any young family. Did I mention its free! (Donation of $5 recommended)
MoreAbsolutely loved it! My 4 year old daughter had a great time as well, she loved all the dinosaur skeltons and the interesting exhibits. Highly recommend!
MoreMuseum of Natural history is one of the interesting places in Ann Arbor. There is a history of natural sciences from different countries of the world showing animals and their living in last thousands of years. I enjoyed going through all the places inside the museum and good knowledge about many animals which have got extinct. A nice place for those who love natural sciences.
MoreWe had a wonderful time. It is a great place to walk around and learn for an hour or so. My 5 YO and 3 YO enjoyed walking around and looking at all the dino history. We were also lucky enough to be there when scientists had tables out explaining what they were researching. My kids really enjoyed the snake and fish people. Highly enjoyable.
MoreGreat museum!!!! Fun interactive displays & planetarium shows! Highly recommend!Who doesnt love microbial glass artwork?!?
MoreAmazing! We couldnt find anyone doing the actual tours and the planetarium was sold out for the whole day, which was disappointing. Other than that it was wonderful.
MoreThis is a great museum to visit. My three children loved that they could touch things at almost every display. We will be making a return visit here in the future!
MoreThis is a relatively smaller museum. Its a natural history museum and they also have a planetarium where they show a variety of different shows (dinosaurs, space and stars, etc.Would recommend if youre looking for a quick day trip somewhere. Also the museum itself is donation based, but they charge for tickets to the planetarium.
MoreVery educational and fun place for any age group. Great for family visit! Its free to enter but well worth the $10 donation!
MoreQuite an interesting place to visit for all ages. It is not huge as compared to some other Natural History museums but it had high quality exhibits and lots of information. Wonderful place to visit with kids. Keeping it free is a really good step in making science accessible to all.
MoreWe took our 19 month son here on the weekend. He had an amazing time despite being very young. They have wonderful hands on exhibits in addition to more observational ones. Highly recommended.
MoreIt is very nice, but I believe I prefer the old set up in the old building. It was very hard to figure out how to get there due to so much construction. It’s a lot bigger space with what it seems like less displays. For smaller children it is not engaging by have a lot of visuals. They have more brighter/newer displays with a lot of reading. It’s many levels but there is actual workspace for researchers to do their work. There was nobody in lab when we walked through. Cafe was closed which was a bummer
MoreMy kids, age 7 and 4, really enjoyed the museum on a rainy afternoon. The museum is currently only open Friday and Sunday from 10am to 4pm and does require reservations. I did ask and was informed that you can also walk-in and register at the door. It was not crowded at all on a Friday at 2pm.
MoreThis museum is great!! It is free (they ask for donationsand it has so much to offer. We went once when they first opened after construction and we thoroughly enjoyed it. We went again recently with our niece and it has even more amazing exhibits! We definitely will be back.
MoreThis is a fantastic natural history museum with a really well-thought layout. While it’s slightly geared towards younger scholars, there are plenty of displays that everyone can appreciate. This place does a great job with several hands-on displays and labs that allow children to garner a better understanding of the exhibits. One of my favorite areas was one showcasing native Michigan plants and animals. They also have a planetarium show for an additional charge.Museum designers struck a good balance between amount of content and visual appeal. This is a perfect rainy-day place especially if you have the kids on a day off school. It is also budget-friendly as admission is on a donation basis.
MoreThis place is good for kids above 10yrs I guess. I took my toddler there and he was not much into it. Very good for kids to learn about nature, evolution of plants , animals, rocks etc. All of this is free, while you can watch a movie for $8 per head (it was a 40 min movie on sea monsters when we visited)
MoreA unique place ideal for kids and adults alike to spend time while learning our past. The fossils kept on display vary from minerals, animals, fishes, mammoths, meteorites, footprints, and much more. The best part is you are encouraged to touch them, thus making it a holistic learning experience for the kids of any age.
MoreGood reorganization and updating of exhibits migrated from the old site. Nice view of and interaction with active research labs. Not huge, probably an hour or so with 7 and 9 year old kids. As of April 2019 they continue to complete exhibits/models upstairs.
MoreGreat place for families with kids. Refreshing, educational and will take you to Jurassic era. There is a food place called Darwin if you want some snacks in the museum building. They have some sample rocks and dinosaur models, you can actually touch. The museum is beautiful and well organized. The staff is very friendly and knowledgeable.
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