Our kids had a ton of fun here, especially at the water table!…read more We thought that it was an actual, standalone museum, so we were confused when we were walking through the mall, and we accidentally walked right past it because we thought it was a gift shop. Lo and behold, it's actually very roomy and has multiple interactive stations! Besides the water table, they also loved the vet clinic, play structure, food truck, and collecting eggs. This would be a great place for grandparents to take their kids while parents go shopping at the mall.

Newer location, roomier than their last. Nice and modern play structures and activities for kids…read more Came for their NYE event and it was packed! Good for business but it was so hard to move around and enjoy it to its fullest potential. But I am sure that on regular days it will less chaotic. Nevertheless, friendly staff and fun activities that kept my toddler busy for 2 hours!

We all lived this place. My kids didn't know at first if they would like it but my teen and…read moreelementary aged kids ended up loving it as much as the adults did. It is only $5 a person to enter and we spent a good hour in here just looking at all the details. Definitely worth the price!

Wacky is right! So is weird, funky, funny, kitschy, and educational.... This small inexpensive…read moremuseum ($5) is a real hoot! I am glad I saw this on the Roadside America website. I had been to an all frog version of a place like this in Croatia for alot more money and there they didn't allow photography. This place has a totally different vibe from the friendly artist owners who greet you. Very creative dioramas of taxidermied mice in all types of activities along with many other wild animals in interesting scenarios. There are also many descriptions on the history of taxidermy and past artists. This is a must stop if you enjoy weird Americana.

The taxidermy museum here was small but well put together. There's a wide variety of animals and…read moreother objects to see. There's fur to touch things to read. I especially enjoyed the small task at each exhibit, such as the find the arrowhead or find the chipmunk. Very neat.

I've been coming to the Spirit of the Woods museum since I was a little kid, around 15 years, and…read moreit is one of the highlights when I come to Elk Rapids! The opportunity to learn and see taxidermy and how the animals would look in their natural habitat is unmatched. The owners are both knowledgeable and will take time to answer any questions you may have. I love the sounds that play as you walk throughout and the different readings you can look at. The gift shop, although not to my taste, has some great and interesting finds you won't see at any old gift shop in ER. I wish there were more Guntzviller's specific items, because I come for the museum and can't afford any of the taxidermy myself (yet).

If I could give this place 10 stars I would!…read more This is quite simply the most stimulating museum experience that I've ever had in my life! The theme of the museum is that it's basically a walk-through the history of the technology of the reproduction of music. It is a guided tour that takes about an hour and a half, and it consists mainly of hearing about the history and development of the technology. And all of the pristine musical instruments are played for you. It is just a delight ! Clean well kept informative, exciting stimulating I just can't think of enough words for this place and I just want more people to know about it. The highlights are a player piano that plays Rhapsody and blue exactly the way George Gershwin would've played it And then a completely operating organ that would've been used (and was used) during the silent movie era This place is just so fun ! I was so happy after I visited and can't wait to come back hopefully for a special event so I can see a silent movie with the appropriate accompaniment! Worth every dime of admission ! They also take donations, so please give generously!

My Detroit to Michigan tour brought me here. Had a nice personal tour where the lady gave us…read morehistory of the Museum and played handful of old time Musical instruments like the pianos and organs. One self playing instrument was a combo duet between a violin and piano in a juke box. Truly amazing! This Pianoforte website explains well, "What is a Self-Playing Piano? Also known as player pianos or Pianolas, older style self-playing pianos uses a pneumatic or electro-mechanical mechanism to play pre-programmed music on your piano using perforated paper or metallic rolls. The keys would move up and down as if the piano were playing by itself." So you can imagine how the piano player was eliminated as a job performer to these new type of jukeboxes and self playing pianos. This little Museum is quite a little hidden gem that you would just pass by on the main road on to your next destination. The state of Michigan, the land of cherries and historical unique musical instruments! Well worth the stop.

The volunteer that greeted us at the building interest was full of information. We learned quite a…read morebit about how the rescue boats worked with the staff members did each day how little they were paid and how victims of shipwrecks were rescued. She also shared photos of some birds that were nesting behind the building, which we later got to see Live. The house on the same property had exhibits full of memorabilia and facts about how this building operated. We especially appreciated the volunteers, knowledge and enthusiasm. As we're leaving the property walking back to our car a porcupine waddled across the path, causing us to pause. Nature at its finest.

This was so fun!! The worker who was so kind and gave us really good information! I loved visiting…read morewith my family!

If you like butter flies, this is your place. Check out the unique items in the gift shop. Food…read moretrucks in the parking lot.

This was absolutely amazing! From the woman who welcomed us at the front counter, to the amazing…read morestaff who clearly love sharing information to all, especially kids, to the amazing creatures they shared with so many! This was a highlight of our trip to the Torch Lake area! Just go and you won't be disappointed! Thank you for educating the youth to no fear what they don't understand and that bugs are necessary for us all!

It was a rainy cool day in Northern Michigan so we needed to find an alternative to all our outdoor…read moreplans. A friend suggested we check out Raven Hill Discovery Center, which was 30+ min from our hotel in Bay Harbor. I loaded up the car with my 3 kids ranging in ages 6-11 and figured we would give it a shot. When we got there we seemed to be in the middle of nowhere so I was a little skeptical, but figured after a long drive we had to check it out. We payed $10/person (adults have to pay too since "everyone is a kid at Raven Hill Discovery Center) and the lovely woman who works here gave my kids the rundown of the center. Within minutes the same woman announced it was time to learn about the animals and so we joined the other 10 or so people there to learn about and pet snakes, bearded dragons, etc. We have a bearded dragon back at home, but the kids were excited to see this one and learn about snakes. My 11 and 9 year olds stayed for the entire lesson, but the 6 year old got bored halfway thru and went back out to play in the center. And 20 or so min later his siblings and the rest of the gang joined him. The center itself is small, but packed with really fun and interesting activities such as building magnetic towers, creating a ball maze and more. After an hour or so I dragged my kids out of there, but they could have easily stayed for longer. There also seems to be a ton to do outdoors here, but we skipped that part due to the rain even though it was just drizzling when we left. I can't imagine not being outside when possible in Northern Michigan, but this really is the perfect activity on a cold and/or rainy day and great for kid (and even adults) of all ages!

Don't miss this gem of a place. We went in the Winter and Cheri accommodated us even though they…read moreare closed, we made an appointment and they opened their doors to us. For that we are grateful as the boys (4 & 2) enjoyed each and every aspect. There is so much to touch and play with and learn, we have pictures that will last a long long time. What made it even more amazing is we had the whole place to ourselves. The boys were able to touch snakes, lizards and turtles and Cheri did a great job explaining things and asking our 4 years old questions. The magnet table is such a cool thing, there is enough for all to enjoy. We have to go back when it's warm so we can experience all there is to do outside. My one critic is it's to bad there aren't walkways to get to the stuff outside when there is so on the ground and also thought it would be nice if there is a children's price as well. But we are still thankful for our time and would very much like to go again. Thanks for the family memories Raven Hill.

Many small cities don't have much to do in the cultural realm but traverse city is different and…read morethis museum is amazing. The Inuit art section is just so unique and good. Modern art section compelling with unique and diverse representation. Also excellent gift store.

The auditorium has great sound quality. Seating is functional. Come to a show and visit the museum.read more

A beautiful historic lighthouse with a hidden stunning beach off the beaten path! Learned a lot…read moreabout the lighthouse history and the importance of the area in guiding ships to land.

At the very tip of Leelanau Peninsula sits the Grand Traverse park/lighthouse/museum area! It's…read morequite small and a bit of a let down given the entire drive up and especially because I've been to the Old Mission lighthouse as well, but still has some nice surroundings. There were definitely a surprising amount of people here while we were here as well, which was interesting because we had seen no other cars on our drive all the way up the peninsula and hardly any people at Leelanau State Park either, so this must be the #1 tourist destination on this peninsula. Not much to do here, but there's a whole gift shop, you can walk around the lighthouse, the museum tours were closed because of COVID, which is understandable, and probably the best part was going to the shore, which is actually a small walk from the lighthouse building. It's a rocky shore, so you can walk around on top of the rocks and just enjoy this uninterrupted view of Lake Michigan. :)