With our variety of museums, there's never "nothing to do" in the Puget Sound area. There's also nothing stuffy about the museums listed below, whether your child's interest is art, nature, science, history or just plain playing, building and imagining. Here are some great choices for a summer's day in the Puget Sound region.
CHILDREN'S MUSEUMS
The Children's Museum, Seattle
Children are enticed into this museum when they look down from the main floor of the Seattle Center House/Armory and see a "mountain forest" they can walk through and explore. Once inside, they find a huge space – the size of three NBA basketball courts – of make-believe and manipulation. Most popular exhibits: "Imagination Studio," a kid-size art space with paint, clay and craft stations and a monthly community art project and the LEGO and DUPLO bricks space. Summer special: Scientists, pizza dough tossers, jugglers, dancers and others entertain and educate day camp participants and daily visitors.
Where: Lower Level of the Center House/Armory at Seattle Center, 305 Harrison St.
When: Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Age range: 10 months to 10 years; separate Discovery Bay toddler area; programs are geared to kids from birth-5 and 6-10.
Admission: $6-$7.50.
Contact: 206-441-1768; www.thechildrensmuseum.org.
Children's Museum of Tacoma
A move into brand new quarters in January allowed this museum to expand the range of its Playscapes. The most dominant feature is "Voyager." At first glance, it's a pirate ship … or a giant bird … or a space ship. Kids can climb all over and through it and imagine it's anything they like. It has electronic rockets off the back that kids can power by riding a stationary recumbent bike on the top deck. Also popular: Becka's Art Studio; "The Woods," where kids can build forts and toddlers/crawlers can play in their own area, and the water play area with a floor-to-ceiling waterfall.
Where: 1501 Pacific Ave., Tacoma.
When: Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; open until 7 p.m. the third Thursday of the month.
Age range: Birth-age 8; (staff says 9- 13-year-olds love it, too).
Admission: Pay As You Will (families that can afford it generally pay $5-$20).
Contact: 253-627-6031; www.playtacoma.org.
KidsQuest Children's Museum, Bellevue
The first thing you notice when you walk into KidsQuest is children playing with water – diverting it through pipes and locks and channels, scooping it, splashing it and even painting rocks with it. "Waterways" is the most popular exhibit in this hands-on space, along with the Peterbilt semi-truck cab you can climb into and pretend to drive and "Whoosh," a hands-on sculpture that allows kids to shoot scarves through tubes, balance beach balls in mid-air and make music by controlling the flow of air into and out of pipes. This summer: Summer concert series, Eats & Beats, featuring Caspar Babypants, Recess Monkey and Steve Weeks.
Where: 4091 Factoria Mall S.E. (inside the mall, near PETCO), Bellevue.
When: Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursday and Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 5 p.m.
Age range: Infants-age 8; separate "Backyard" for toddlers.
Admission: $8-$9; third Thursday evenings 5 to 8 p.m. free.
Contact: 425-637-8100; www.kidsquestmuseum.org.
ART
Seattle Art Museum
The downtown Seattle Art Museum, with the flying cars on the ceiling of the entrance forum, is a great place to introduce children to art because it covers works from Europe, Asia, Africa and America all in one place. Most accessible to children are the African Art exhibit with its life size figures, huge masks and video installation and the Contemporary Art section that lets children see the huge range of work that can be artistic. Kids can create their own masterpieces in the Chase Open Studio (in the free zone on the lower floors) or play with dress-up clothes, build with blocks or make music in the Knudsen Family Room in the galleries. New this summer (opening May 31): the kid-friendly "Ancestral Modern: Australian Aboriginal Art."
Where: 1300 First Ave., Seattle.
When: Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursday and Friday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Age range: None specified; most exhibits best for ages 6 and older.
Admission: $9-$15; children 12 and younger free; free to all first Thursdays; free to teens (ages 13-19) second Fridays, 5 to 9 p.m. Always free on the lower two floors, including use of the art studio.
Contact: 206-654-3100; www.seattleartmuseum.org.
HISTORY
Fort Nisqually Living History Museum, Tacoma
Walk into history in this re-created former Hudson Bay Company fort, with all of the buildings intact. Volunteers and staff in period costumes often demonstrate the crafts and lifestyles of the 19th century. Most popular with children: "Kids Outstation," a hands-on area where you can play old-fashioned games and handle toys. Coming this summer: Family Fun Night (they fire the cannon and serve lemonade and ice cream) July 20, Brigade Encampment Aug. 11-12 and "Punch and Judy: 350 Years of Laughter" with classic puppet shows beginning Aug. 11.
Where: Inside Point Defiance Park, 5400 N. Pearl St., Tacoma.
When: Wednesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. May 1-24; daily, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. May 25-Sept. 5.
Age range: Best for ages 4 and older.
Admission: $4-$6.50; children 3 and younger free.
Contact: 253-591-5339; www.metroparkstacoma.org.
MUSIC
EMP (Experience Music Project) and Science Fiction Hall of Fame
The funky museum in the "smashed guitar" building is 10 years old, and still one of the top spots to take older kids and teens. Most popular with kids: Sound Lab, where they can play instruments and master vocals no matter what their skill level using computerized instrument stations, and On Stage, where they can form a band and perform in a virtual stadium. Also popular: "AVATAR: The Exhibition" (through Sept. 3), letting kids go inside the world of Pandora and see how it was created. Newest exhibit: "Can't Look Away, the Lure of Horror Film" (for ages 13 and older) with iconic artifacts, a scream booth, horror soundscapes and monster timeline. The adjoining Science Fiction Hall of Fame has been temporarily closed for renovation and reopens June 9 with a new "Icons of Science Fiction Exhibition" (for ages 13 and older) with sci-fi artifacts from film, television and literature.
Where: 325 Fifth Ave. N. at the Seattle Center, Seattle.
Hours: Daily, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. May 25-Sept. 3.
Age range: 8 and older; some exhibits limited to 13 and older.
Admission: $12-$20 in person; $12-$15 online; children 4 and younger, free.
Contact: 206-770-2700; www.empmuseum.org.
SCIENCE AND NATURAL HISTORY
The Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, Seattle
This museum on the University of Washington campus is more a look-at-all-this-cool stuff experience than a hands-on outing. Most popular exhibit for children: "The Life and Times of Washington State" with real dinosaur fossils, beautiful minerals and skeletons or casts of giant dinosaurs, a baleen whale and prehistoric mammals. Where: 17th Avenue N.E. and N.E. 45th Street, University of Washington campus, Seattle.
When: Daily, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; until 8 p.m. the first Thursday of the month.
Age range: Best for kids 6 and older.
Admission: $7.50-$10; ages 4 and younger free; free on first Thursdays.
Contact: 206-543-7907; www.burkemuseum.org.
Pacific Science Center, Seattle
Science is something you do at this museum, with all of the interactive, hands-on ways to discover new things. The great thing about the Science Center is that toddlers can dabble in water and gape at the seven moving, roaring, robotic dinosaurs, while school age kids and teens can solve complex puzzles, get involved with cutting-edge scientific research and use the machines to see how their bodies work. Most popular with kids: Tropical Butterfly House and "Dinosaurs: A Journey through Time." Newest exhibit: "Puzzle Palooza" featuring Groovik's Cube, a 26-foot high, fully playable interactive puzzle and other brain teasers. Coming this summer: "Tutankhamun: The Golden King and The Great Pharaohs" (May 24-Jan. 6, 2013), Science Expo Day June 2 and Science Festival Week June 3-10.
Where: Seattle Center, 200 2nd Ave. N., Seattle.
When: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. through May 23. Daily 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. May 24 through Labor Day.
Age range: 3 and older; special toddler area; lots for teens.
Admission: $7-$14; children 2 and younger free; additional cost for IMAX films and planetarium shows; King Tut tickets $24.50-$32.50.
Contact: 1-800-664-8775 for tickets, 206-443-2001 for information; www.pacificsciencecenter.org.
TRANSPORTATION
Future of Flight Aviation Center and Boeing Tour, Everett
The Boeing Tour is the only opportunity to tour a commercial jet assembly plant in North America, where you can see 747s, 777s and 787s being assembled (minimum 4-foot height requirement for admittance strictly enforced). Before the 90-minute tour, explore the interactive exhibits and displays in the Aviation Center Gallery. Older kids can digitally design their own commercial jet and modify, test and finalize their design at touch-screen computers. Younger kids and toddlers can play with aviation-related toys in the Children's Play Area.
Where: Highway 526, where it intersects with 84th Street S.W. and Paine Field Boulevard, just past the Boeing Assembly Building, Everett
When: Daily, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Age range: Best for school age and teens; must be at least 4 feet tall for Boeing tour; separate play area for younger kids.
Admission: $14-$20 walk-up; $12-$18 reserved tickets
Contact: 1-800-464-1476; www.futureofflight.org.
LeMay – America's Car Museum, Tacoma
Opening June 2: Spacious, futuristic facility and grounds will house 500 cars, trucks and motorcycles, from a 1906 Cadillac Model M to a 1994 Flintmobile George Barris Kustom and encompassing Ford Model T's, Duesenbergs, Citroens and rare and gorgeous luxury cars. Exhibits exploring the automobile as a prime mover in American culture will rotate through the galleries.
Where: 2702 E. D St., Tacoma.
When: Daily, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 2 through Labor Day.
Age range: All ages with interest in vehicles.
Admission: $8-$14; children 5 and younger, free.
Contact: 253-779-8490; www.lemaymuseum.org.
Museum of Flight, Seattle
Since we live in the "Jet City" area, this museum is a must see. You'll find 150 historic historic air and space craft, including a colorful new Montgolfier Brothers balloon in the lobby, the Concorde and Air Force One. Kids can climb into an air traffic control tower, enter the full-sized replica of the International Space Station research lab, try out the flight simulators or guide the space shuttle to a safe landing.
Where: 9404 East Marginal Way S., Seattle.
When: Daily, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., until 9 p.m. first Thursday.
Age range: Best for kids 6 and older.
Admission: $9-$17; children 4 and younger, free; first Thursdays, 5 to 9 p.m. free.
Contact: 206-764-5720; www.museumofflight.org.
