My inner 12 year old enjoyed visiting the museum. It is located in the Ronald Reagan Building…read more Metro is close by. The museum has a few play/learning areas outside of the building. It is one of the few museums that charges a fee (just like The Bible Museum, Spy Museum & Museum of Illusions). All are worth a visit for different reasons. There are interactive exhibits and fun displays.

Luckily the two times we have visited we haven't had to pay for tickets (free museum days). I'm…read morebaffled as to how this can be the children's museum of DC!! For starters this place is so unkept, it's so incredibly dirty and the bathrooms are gross. I truly wonder if they ever clean this place? We visited 2 years ago and again this weekend, and I can tell they haven't updated a single thing. Including the nasty pom poms that have clearly seen better days and cost 2 cents a piece. This is the weirdest children's museum I have ever been to. Not even sure what the target age group is. They have like half of an exhibition appropriate for each different age group. The exhibitions are not cool, barely entertaining, half of them are broke or barely work, they are all dirty as can be. And the museum overall is tiny! I feel bad for the people that pay to visit this place. This was definitely the last time we visited, even with free tickets. Every single Smithsonian museum is 100000x better than this, and they are all free. So save your time and money and visit any of them, I'm sure your kids will be more entertained there and at least they won't catch a nasty virus from playing in this dirty place.

This location was so accommodating and made everything easy and fun. There were tons of activities…read moreto enjoy, and my child had a great time exploring all of them. The whole experience was positive, and I would definitely go back again.

We visited on a Tuesday afternoon. I actually ended up getting a Groupon deal which was really…read moregreat so I saved some money. We were there for a two hour play block. There was lots of rooms and things to do. They also had cars you could ride on. My 4 and 1 year old had a good time. There definitely was a lot of various ages of kids visiting. I do think it's good for younger ages but you do have to have a watchful eye on younger kids due to kids ridging those cars everywhere throughout the place and can get wild. They had tons of workers cleaning up while we were there as well.

I cannot believe I've never been to Port Discovery before! We were invited by a friend who has a…read moremembership with guest passes and had the best time! Parking was super easy as there is a public garage just a 2 minute walk from the main entrance. It was easy to know where to go because of the crowd walking towards the museum. We just followed everyone and getting in was easy. They give you a wrist band to wear. (I do think they might want to consider having parents write their phone number on their child's wrist band just because the museum is so large!) If you have belongings, there are lockers to place your stuff in. It is located in their cafe which has tables, loads vending machines and microwaves as well. There is hand sanitizer stations scattered around. If you have small children, there is an in closed area for babies. The exhibitions, activities and engagement opportunities are endless. My child had such a good time. We barely scratched the surface and will need to go back to see more!

The activities seem good…read more Here's the beef: we tried to enter using an AARP coupon and were told by front desk that they are not honoring any entertainment coupons. They further informed us that "this happens all the time". I'm not sure if this is some coordinated bait and switch or if the front and back offices don't talk to eachother? but buyer beware. Also expensive for value, parking is also expensive

It was just ok for my littles…read more There was a groupon offer for $12.75 (regular $15 admission pp) so I took advantage. There's not a lot of guidance here so if your kids aren't self starters they may find themselves bored. Even when entering each room no one is guiding you on what the activity is and how to participate. Instead you're kid just does there on thing. Neither bad nor good just an observation. Outside of that there are 4 areas that are pretty intuitive. Making a beat - where kids can add layers to music to create new sounds. Circuit activity - create a pathway by connecting wrenches which turn on a light. - my son (8) thoroughly enjoyed this. Tipsy table - using 3 different pulleys you could guide balls into different outputs. This requires at least 2-3 people. Light play - using lasers to make imprints on moving disks. I could see myself coming back for more purposeful play but free play I wouldn't bother.

Fun place for kids and adults. Very clean and well maintained. My young companions (8 and 10)…read morecouldn't eat the pizza. And my sandwich was disappointing

I came back to host a birthday party. For any parent, looking for a party venue for their child I…read morehighly recommend this place. I booked the option two party about three months in advance. What's great is that you just select a theme from the pictures they have they send you a digital invite to send out and as you get close to the party date, they'll confirm the theme and give you an idea of what the schedule is. That's it that's literally all you have to do. Honestly, if you were to just walk in the door without anything in hand other than a child, your 90 minute birthday party would go off without a hitch. They had the cupcakes, the utensils, the balloons, the beautiful room set up and they had the goodie bags. Honestly, a lot of the parents gave us a compliment on organizing the party and how much fun they had and I felt weird taking any credit for it. We had an assigned party planner that was very invested in making sure everything was running on time and that the room was set up perfectly to our needs. And at the end of the party, they packed everything up for you. What's wild is they actually packed everything back in the original containers organized and ready to go. And then these poor people had to re-organize all the toys that our party had demolished and dragged a different corners of the room all within 30 minutes. I hate planning, and hosting events gives me a lot of anxiety, so to have a party go off successfully with my minimal involvement is amazing.

I'm at a stage in my life where I'm going to kids birthday parties every other weekend. Out of all…read morethe places I've been to, I think Play Street is probably ranked first. First of all, the concept of a pretend Main Street USA with shops with all kinds of props and working cash registers with play money inside is brilliant. I remember playing pretend shop keeper with my brother and cousins as kids and we would have loved this place. Secondly, the place is very well maintained and has plenty of space for the more active kids to just run around from shop to shop. My wife loved it so much she booked one of their other locations for our son's birthday which is many months away.

Thank you so much, Dinos Alive and Sydney, for offering this Badge Month Giveaway! I was so…read moreexcited to be picked as one of the winners from their IG contest, as I never win anything! This exhibit is described as a dinosaur exhibition featuring life-sized animated replicas during the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods. They offer various tiers of tickets (general, VIP, family, and group bundles), with a variety of time slots that can easily fit into one's schedule. Obtaining tickets through their platform was super easy, and the staff who had reached out provided clear and helpful instructions!

Super expensive for a not so high quality adventure. Then you pay for little boring rides at the…read moreend. Pretty underwhelming. My 3 year old thought it was interesting at first but got bored fast. Maybe it's better for 5 year olds?

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.

We had an amazing time at Play Street Museum for our triple play date! We reserved our spot online…read morethe night before for a 10:30 AM to 12 PM session. When we arrived, we were greeted with an easy check-in process. If you haven't signed the waiver online, you can quickly scan and sign it on-site. The staff was friendly and explained how everything worked. The space itself is fantastic! It's an open playground where kids can freely explore and play to their hearts' content. There are fun zones for every interest--a craft area near the cubbies, a science section by the check-in counter, and a little shop filled with books and small activities at the entrance. There's even a food token system: you drop the token off when you leave, and each kid gets a free snack, which is such a thoughtful touch. The restrooms are conveniently located at the back near the slide area, so everything you need is nearby. Overall, this is a well-organized, kid-friendly spot that offers so much for little ones to enjoy. We'll definitely be back!

Came to check out this amazing spot for families and the kids loved it! Large space with plenty of…read moreareas for kids to explore. Entire space was very clean and staff were attentive . Cute front room with great toys to purchase. Also another private room area for parties. Plenty of parking available in the shopping center. Will be back for more fun!

Pros: play street, I think one of the only ones in the area. (Although there is a cute one in WV…read morethat has a cafe with food too). It's clean, bright. I love that there are also crafting options, some tables with puzzles as well. In a shopping area so plenty of easy parking. Your child gets to pick a snack at the end which helps with the "I don't want to leave" tantrums Cons: The price is hefty $16 for 1.5 hours. It's hard to get behind this when I can go to a place like me land in chantilly for $10 and unlimited play time with a much bigger space and a lot more to do. The snack helps with that but still, at this price I'll come maybe every other month. At $10, I go every week sometimes multiple times a week. The space is small and they are cleaning while you're playing, in such a small space this feels rude/ puts unneeded pressure on the customer. Especially since they have a gap to clean before the next time slot. Overall: I would come again but not often due to the price. If you have a really crafty kid and only one younger kid I feel the price might become worth it. If you have kids in a spread out age range, or who don't like crafts, or you don't want to deal with the stress of having to be there at a certain time, and leave after just 1.5 hour. There are certainly better options both from an affordability standpoint as well as quality.

It's truly magical for kids to use their imagination. Giants Big bed to jump on, space station,…read more and so much more. Go with an open mind to explore this imaginative space

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.

This museum is so magical!…read more Our group of nine had a blast weaving our way from room to room. The museum is equally fun for kids and adults with topics like language, reading, translation and karaoke to make a few. Everything was so well thought out and interactive. I couldn't get enough of the library room where books come to life with video-like illustrations building off the pages. It felt like we were transported into Belle's massive and dreamy library from Beauty and the Beast complete with a secret hidden room off the side (tucked behind a bookcase door). We had kids ages 2-5 and it was perfect for them. Note that you'll need to park strollers in the basement level. To top it all off, we had a fabulous lunch at Immigrant Food located on the lower level. Oh, how could I forget to mention that the museum is free? Amazing!

Funny story - I was looking for kid-friendly ideas of things to do in DC and asked ChatGPT for…read moreideas. One of the responses was the Planet Word museum, which I never heard of. I looked it up and decided to try it! They recommend you get timed passes online ahead of time; it's free but they do recommend a donation. This museum is SO COOL! As someone who loves different languages and words I loved everything about this place! My kids loved all of the interactivity. There is a room with an interactive word wall and you can interact and answer and request more info on the history of certain words. For example, I learned that "ketchup" was named after a Chinese sauce even though they are not similar. There is also a magical library room where you can pick a book off the shelf and place it on a book holder and the book is read to you. There are also mirror shadow boxes that come to life if you read the inscription. Finally, the kids loved the karaoke room - you select a song and as you sing along you see the types of parts of speech at play in the song. Great experience, would for sure recommend and go back!