As a farm-raised guy from WNY, I visited here on a solo road trip in 2018 and loved it. I couldn't help but think about wishing for the day to bring a son for a visit if I had one. Got married in 2021 and have a 2.5 year old son that my wife and I brought here for a visit on our way to Omaha. He was in his glory and so excited to look at every single tractor and get to climb up on a couple of them. If you have children that love tractors or big machinery, this place is perfect! read more

John Deere Pavilion - Historical Tours Near Me - Moline, Illinois

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Our family was heading to Des Moines, IA for a short road trip and this was a good stopping point for the kids to have a little fun before continuing the drive. There are small and huge machinery and vehicles for children to climb and pretend play. Our girls spent at least 30 minutes there. The staff was friendly and gave our girls a sheet of stickers per person to take home. read more

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Wishing there was a way to tour a John Deere factory but it appears you need to be a dealer or a customer so.... this is the next best thing. This free showroom in Moline has some pretty awesome machines that you can walk around and even climb into. The giant combine (supposedly $1.4 million!!!) is quite the sight as are many of the other tractors. They have antique tractors and machinery too. They also tell the story of the John Deere company but this snazzy place could use a video on the history. Next door is a huge gift shop with everything green and yellow. Free parking behind the building. Definitely worth a stop. read more

John Deere Pavilion - Inside - Historical Tours Near Me - Moline, Illinois

I can't add much more than other Yelpers have already said. The Pavillion is a physically large building but there is not a ton of things to see. It's good for kids, they won't get bored. They seem to generally have several huge pieces of equipment there on display, but I get the sense that it rotates, so the equipment I saw may not be what you see when you go. The main hall had a mix of huge (combines, construction equipment) and smaller (lawnmowers, tractors) equipment on display, as well as some interesting old restored pieces and a cutaway display. Some could be climbed on/in and other's couldn't (there were signs to indicate this). There was a neat older snowmobile that Deere produced for about a decade from the 70's-80's. There was an exhibit in the back (behind a wall, to keep it a little darker so you can easily see the projected graphics) that explained how their larger commercial equipment servicing scheme works. I took it as a thinly-veiled attempt at propaganda designed to advocate for Deere's stance on Right To Repair, but whatever... If you go out the right side of the building, under the awning, there's a Deere gift shop next door. They had different hours and address (1300 River drive) than the Pavillion, so I ended up having to go back after taking a side trip to check that out. Pro tip: free parking behind the main pavilion building. read more

John Deere Pavilion - When I was there, some huge equipment was also outside - Historical Tours Near Me - Moline, Illinois

Great place to visit with kids or adults. You can climb on the machinery. Our granddaughter enjoyed it! Highly recommend stopping here, especially if you have kids. read more

Enjoyed the pavilion. Had some history about JD, had some equipment the kids and big kids could sit in. Pretty cool display for those that don't get to see this kind of equipment everyday. The gift shop has a nice amount of different JD items for sale from toys, apparel to golfing. Spent about an hour and half there. read more

While vacationing in the area this year, we made a stop at the Pavilion. It was one of my favorite parts of our trip. They have lots of different John Deere farm machinery, and if you've never seen one of these massive machines up close, it's pretty shocking just how big some of them are. The machines are very hands-on and accessible, some of which you're even allowed to climb into. They also have displays of antique John Deere toys that are really cool, and they have a really nice gift shop where I picked up John Deere hats for my niece and nephew for Christmas. I wish we had visited when my kids were little, because they would have loved it. It's free, and it doesn't take a long time to see everything, but it is definitely worth a stop, if you're in the area. read more

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I cannot find a way to provide feedback about my visit to the John Deere Pavilion on July 16 - the "email us" on the Pavilion, Museum or Historic sites do not work. I was underwhelmed with the visit. I had expected something similar to the Kinze Innovation Center, the Coca-Cola Museum or the Walmart Museum. Yes, the equipment is impressive, but it would have been nice to have an audio/visual explanation of what I was seeing when I sat in the cabs. The Building for Generations was meh and really only for sighted visitors. I learned the most from the VERY short overview display about John Deere and the Kid's film. A company of this size and impact should be able to do better. Gift shop was impressively large and varied. read more

Extremely cool and it's free! You get to indulge your inner child (or treat your actual child) and sit on or in various John Deere equipment. The highlight for me was the massive combine. There is also a gift store which has just about any item that you can imagine with a John Deere logo on it. There is lots of free parking close by and a great restaurant- Johnny's Italian Steakhouse next door. read more

Super fun, hands on / climb on experience for all ages. Easy to park and just walk in

We came over to the Pavillion after hearing about it from some friends. We were joined by some friends who also had a little dude. This place is a gem for anyone who's a fan of John Deere and even better for anyone with little kiddos! Upon entering you're greeted by some friendly volunteers who introduce you to the place - Then you start to explore. The various farm machines that are on display and available to crawl on and in are incredible. The combine is absolutely massive! It's how I imagine a transformer (the good ones) looks when incongito. In addition, the tractors are fun to climb around on and provided a couple hours of fun for the little ones. There's also a play area with toy tractors and farm set - a lot like the ones you probably have a home, however, it's in a new environment so they're more fun that what's normally available. The historical exhibit is surprisingly cool too! Never knew JD was from the east coast. There are also some simulators where you could test your prowess at driving a crane and backhoe. Great place to go kill a few hours and let the city kids run around on machines they normally don't get to be around. read more

John Deere Pavilion - Historical Tours Near Me - Moline, Illinois

Just awesome. Our kids had a great time exploring these massive machines and had a great time!! Thanks for this great experience!

We drove 6 hours on our way home from Louisville Kentucky. Today was duck hatching day. If you have little kids and they like tractors this is a perfect stop as they took over the place. My son would have enjoyed this 10 years ago. He picked a winning duck and got a John Deere stuffed duck which is cute. The place is free. A John Deere gift shop is next door. read more

John Deere Pavilion - Historical Tours Near Me - Moline, Illinois

Awesome place to take the family! This is a shrine to modern agriculture, complete with massive combines you can sit in, software games controlling machinery, and frameless foam bridges to build. Just stunning to see the size & ingenuity behind this equipment. Great to have the gift store next door too. read more

7/1 The grounds and the facility are just gorgeous, not at all what I was expecting at all for a display of farm machinery. There are five or six machines in front of the pavilion as well as a sculpture of the signature jumping deer. The first thing I saw when I walked into the Pavilion was a Walking Harvester. I'm ready to trade in our car for this thing. It's like a spider-tractor hybrid and it's so cool! The other cool thing was Tango, the Roomba of lawn mowers. Unfortunately, they're only available in Europe at the moment. My son found the Discovery Zone right away where he was able to set up a wall of gears, take his height measurement to see which tire he would be, use some mini-logging equipment, and more. There were also computer simulators but he thought those were a little too tough. My husband came over with a scavenger hunt, which we worked on together - it was a lot of fun! Kids can sit in almost all of the equipment and try it out. It's probably geared a little more towards families but I found it fascinating. All of the information was presented in interesting ways so it was never panel upon panel of reading John Deere history. We brought our scavenger hunt over to the store and got to spin the wheel for a prize. We got 10% off of our purchase! Not a bad thing to win for a souvenir fanatic like me. When we left, my husband said he wanted to take a drive over to the world headquarters. He had been talking to one of the docents about the forestry equipment (he ran a chainsaw in the woods of Wisconsin many moons ago). We were given the recommendation to visit the HQ. If you've got the time, drive out there. It's roughly seven miles from the pavilion and store. I made the mistake of staying behind in the car thinking he was going to see one machine and come back. It was another full display of equipment and machines. The grounds are gorgeous. There are fountain filled ponds with swans and geese and it's another beautiful facility. The best part is that it's all free and it was a great way to spend a few hours in Moline. read more

John Deere Pavilion - The Roomba of Mowers - Historical Tours Near Me - Moline, Illinois

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Sad there are 4 reviews and no one has yet to praise or even mention the mind blowing prairie architecture with a twist and the site layout and flow. there is much more to this place than the museum! Worth the drive from chicago. just like you may drive a couple of hours to see Taliesin East, or house on the rock, or Johnson Wax, this is worth a couple hour drive to check out if you are nearby! read more

John Deere Pavilion - off the main entrance - Historical Tours Near Me - Moline, Illinois

The John Deere Pavilion provides a chance to get up close and personal with John Deere equipment that one usually sees from the car window. It is also Deere's showcase for prototype and unusual equipment. The display does rotate (contrary to others' reviews) and currently there is a rice combine, sold only in Asia, on display. A new exhibit highlights the John Deere Tango E5. Highlighted as an "autonomous mower" the Tango E5 is a robotic lawn mower that operates any time, in any weather. It's an impressive demo, the Tango wakes up, "mows" a small lawn of artificial grass, then parks itself in its station, while virtual people watch from their virtual front door. It's currently only sold in Europe, but I'd sure be interested in one if they start to market it here in the States! I try to make a visit to the Pavilion whenever I get to Moline because you never know what you might find here! read more

John Deere Pavilion - John Deere Tango E5 Autonomous Mower in operation - Historical Tours Near Me - Moline, Illinois

It is a small but fun place. They had a mix of the newest large tractors, combines, etc. They also contrasted them with older versions. The docents were awesome. They were very friendly and helpful. It doesn't take very long to tour through. Worth the 30 to 45 minutes that you will spend. read more

Didn't expect to have this much fun and i had a blast! I was originally just gonna stop by the gift shop and decided to stick my head in there and Wow!! I was amazed!! I ended up staying there for over an hour. Everyone was so friendly and helpful! Dwight definitely made my visit very pleasurable! Also, ladies at the gift shop were super sweet and friendly! :) Im from the South. When i say they were nice and friendly, they are like sweet Southern grandma friendly. It is kids friendly and FREE! :) read more

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The John Deere Pavilion is a free educational museum that has an array of farming equipment that you can climb around on. The size of some of these machines are just amazing to see. This place is a nice diversion from the tedious drive from Iowa City to Chicago. The Italian restaurant on the grounds has really good food too so it is definitely worthwhile to stop here for lunch. read more

It's all John Deere, enough said. Fun for kids and adults alike. Plus, who doesn't dream of driving a half-million dollar combine!? Shop the store, get your pics taken, have your kids stack lumber pieces. read more

John Deere Pavilion - Historical Tours Near Me - Moline, Illinois

Its nice to climb the tractors and equipment. The building is beautiful with great detail on the truss system. Recommend. I wish there were more stylish T-shirts in the gift shop with the JD logo. read more

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Honestly I really have no major complaints about this place. I'd rate it '4.5 stars' if I could- but for the sake of Yelp's 'whole number system' I'm giving it 4. I visited this place a very long time ago when I was just an elementary aged kiddo living in the small town of New Windsor, IL. I hadn't been here for over 15 years, but visited on a whim while I was back in the area for a couple months. Immediately upon walking into the door I was greeted by a very kind middle-aged woman with black hair who asked where I was from, welcomed me, and explained the different areas of the 'museum' to me. She did this to Every. Single. Person who walked in and was more than kind to each and every one. 5 stars for customer service! Admission is totally free- so bring all of the kiddos and all of their friends. It's a museum that could easily charge admission- but chooses not to, and that is awesome. The 'museum' is actually just a large, clean, well-designed warehouse that showcases everything John Deere does. There's an area about the history of John Deere, they're current projects, their farming equipment, and their construction equipment. There is a simulator and PLENTY of things for children. In fact, if you have a child and are visiting the area I would recommend this specific pavilion as one of the top 3 things to see in the Quad Cities. There are a lot of big tractors with stairs leading to the top. You can go and sit in each tractor, play around with all of the buttons and levers, and get fun pictures. There were kids all over this place, having an utter blast pretending to drive the huge equipment. You could just see the little 'career-inspiring wheels' turning in their heads! There is an area in the center back of the pavilion that has a ton of hands-on activities for kids. Activities involving gears, pullies, levers, grabbers, everything you could imagine. It's a little future physicists dream. Everything was VERY clean. The woman's bathroom was spacious and well-kept. All of the equipment was clean and IS hands on. You get to touch pretty much everything making this such a perfect place for little ones who may not be welcome in other museums. It's very well-lit with large windows to provide natural lighting. My only complaint is one of the most popular features of this pavilion is their 'simulators' which essentially allow children (and adults) to sit down and 'run equipment' on a large computer screen. There were three and one was out of order. This was on a Saturday, a day when a lot of families were present, and a lot of kiddos wanted to "try". I feel like they should have prioritized keeping that specific exhibit in good running condition. There was also a 'grabber' exhibit where the kids could grab and carry items with this crane-like toy that didn't work. Again, one of the more popular things for little ones that wasn't as well-maintained as I wished it was. Overall though, aside from those two small things being down- the rest of the place was awesome. So much history and insight into the John Deere industry. And unbelievably kid-friendly. Kudos to John Deere for providing such an awesome family-friendly environment. I absolutely recommend this place to families, couples, and single 20-somethings like myself alike. read more

I had a day to kill on the Iowa & Illinois state line, and when I asked my Uber driver where I should go, he recommended that I check out the John Deere Pavilion! The headquarters is nearby as well, but if you only have time for one place on yourself this is it. I originally thought about going to the headquarters in stead, because a lot of the advertisement for the pavilion made it seem like it was a place for just kids. Let me tell you something, it is fun for adults and for everyone! I'm not even a huge John Deere fan, I don't even own a small lawnmower, but being able to see these huge trucks, trailers, and machinery was quite impressive. The staff at the pavilion are unlike any that I have seen. They are all incredibly friendly, outgoing, and passionate about the history of John Deere. I could honestly get lost there for a couple of hours, but didn't feel gypped when I only had two. That's because this Pavilion is free. Right across the way is a large gift shop with gifts ranging from magnets to full out kid size tractors. If you enjoy trailers, American history, or know someone that does, the John Deere Pavilion needs to be somewhere you visit. read more

What's more American than a John Deere tractor? That's rhetorical...save your George Washington comments for your own review. The John Deere Pavilion is a great visit for the family, kids, tractor enthusiast (yes...there are tractor enthusiasts), collectors, the curious, and fans of all things American. The Pavilion will give you a history lesson on American farming innovation. A blacksmith with some vision and presto...farming forever changes. Tour the pavilion to see engines, tractors...sit in a ginormous combine. Play with some toys...and learn a few things. Best of all...this is free! Now head over to the store and pick up some souvenirs. To do: Get some pictures of the kids in the combine. You will need to go up with them if you want to avoid the glare of the windshield To don't: Let your kid chew on the fake logs in the hands-on area read more

What a fabulous destination for people of all ages! To set the scene, envision three huge John Deere tractors outside in a lovely entrance paved in brick. A beautiful prairie garden with a bronze sculpture of a deer is nearby. After exploring the machines outside, be prepared to be wowed inside. There are about a dozen (plus?) tractors, combines, etc in the exhibit - many of which visitors are welcome to climb. And the vintage JD tractors are so cool! The light-filled atrium features numerous informative posters and educational videos. there are even some elements of the exhibit dedicated to the future of farming/landscaping equipment. Our toddler was OBSESSED with the entire space. There were a couple docents offering on-the-fly overviews of the machines. And one of them also helped us learn how to work one of the lifts with a virtual reality game. There is an area for kids to play with pint-sized tractors. And the entire space is exceptionally clean! And did I mention that it's FREE!?! Yep, no charge, no time limits, no appointments - just enter and enjoy. There is an adjacent gift shop with lots of cool model tractors, gifts, shirts, hats, and other JD paraphernalia - perfect presents for anyone who has a piece of their heart in the Midwest. I certainly recommend the John Deere Pavilion. Make a stop there whenever in the Quad Cities! read more

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Love it here. Every time we are in the Quad Cities we bring our family here. We can spend hours here. The kids love climbing in the tractors and combines. Very clean. This facility is kept up. Love the gift shop also. read more

What a fantastic place. So many fantastic examples of equipment and history. This was an entertaining experience that was free and fun for big and little kids a like. read more

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Love this place! My son had a blast playing and checking out the tractors. I'm amazed with the history of John Deere started and where it is right now. You'll be amazed how huge and massive the equipments are such as the combine..plus it has a shocker price tag at half a million. The gift shop is a gem. I bought my son lots of toys to play with. read more

Ok, it's free, a few brand new big tractors and farming equipment on display and a few antique ones. With kids in tow, you'll probably manage to entertain the family for 30 min to an hour or so. Not a must do but a nice to if you happen to be in the area and want to learn a bit more about new farming technologies. The interactive displays are well done. read more

Great place to visit as an adult or child. History of an American iconic brand. Always good to stop and take in local history.

The pavilion is a unique collection of different John Deer machines and you can climb on most of the equipment. You can see the whole thing in 15-20 minutes so it's not worth driving out of the way unless you have small children. Those with small kids seemed to love it. read more

John Deere Pavilion - Historical Tours Near Me - Moline, Illinois

The John Deere Pavillion anchors a modest downtown development in Moline, IL. The Pavillion is home to a small collection of old and new Deere equipment and a host of informative displays. The pavillion is very striking and easy to access. It's like a very modern version of an old barn. They have a dozen or so pieces of equipment to read about and climb in/on. The displays are really nicely done and everything is spotless. Kids will find it entertaining for a while. I spent about 40 minutes there. If you did EVERYTHING, you could maybe spend two hours. The store next door offers an impressive assortment of merchandise. The toy selection is staggering. 2 hours for both the pavillion and store is a generous allowance, even with kids. This is a must-visit in the area. I would like to commend John Deere for the pavilion and the other displays they offer in the area. Few companies seem to be willing to commit resources to educating legions of people who will probably never buy a $500,000 chopper (no BS or math errors - it's half a mil). read more

It's free! If you are in the neighborhood and have kids you must stop by - fun place to check out for an hour or two... There are few stations for hands on activities with kids and you can climb in and check out some of the machinery as well read more

John Deere Pavilion - Entrance and one excited 3year old - Historical Tours Near Me - Moline, Illinois

Informative, clean, modern, historic, interactive, educational, bright, easy to find, free... Interesting for all ages. Self guided so you could spend 10 minutes or a couple hours. We were a bit rushed and couldn't stay long, but there's a strong possibility we'll try to get back there before we leave the area. We did not go to the gift shop and missed a few displays, but we did catch the nice ceiling beams. read more

John Deere Pavilion - Historical Tours Near Me - Moline, Illinois

Let me start by saying the employees here are very friendly and knowledgeable. Admission is free and you get a chance to let your inner child out for a couple of hours. Let me explain - you can sit in the cab of most of the modern equipment and push buttons and move levers. You can also walk up to the outside of the equipment and explore. They also have a tractor and other exhibits with cut away sections. Wayyyy Coooooollll :). The wife, my son and I had a great day on this impromptu road trip. Added bonus free parking lot just east with a coffee shop and to the west of the Pavilion a large John Deere store. Also check out the world headquarters building down the road which also has machines on exhibit. read more

What fun! We expected to be regaled with the history of John Deere but didn't realize we'd have the opportunity to climb into the operator's seat of so many mammoth machines! Loved the explanation of the technology of the forestry machines and the film about the future of agribusiness. It may be a fun place for kids but at least as interesting for adults! read more

We visit this place probably at least 2 times a year when we visit from Des Moines. This place is great for kids as they can climb on all the farm and construction equipment. Great gift shop with lots of John Deere toys as well! Love the downtown Moline area and there is a lot to do around there. Even better, the John Deere World Headquarters is only a few miles away which also boasts of a very large product display where kids can climb up into the machines too! The actual HQ building is an architectural delight. Love the HQ grounds! It is a must visit to both places. read more

Everything you ever needed to know about farm equipment, all in one place. My wife and I checked this out since we were staying across the street at the Radisson. I must admit it was pretty cool to see how huge these machines are. The store was cool too and I made sure to pick up a shirt to remember my visit to Moline. read more

Lots of tractors, from the oldest to the newest, from the smallest to the largest. Huge John Deere gift shop, you can find just about everything you ever wanted there. read more