This place is a lot of fun! It's a large museum where you can learn just about everything there is to know about New York State. We didn't expect to spend much time there, but we ended up staying for well over an hour because there was so much to explore. Admission is free, although donations are appreciated. If you're driving, keep in mind that the museum doesn't have its own parking lot, so you'll need to find street parking. Fortunately, it wasn't difficult to find a spot when we visited on a Sunday afternoon. Highly recommended! read more

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Hubby and I loved this museum. The layout could be better as it was like a maze but overall we think they did an excellent job with it. It is free to visit but they take donations. We spent about three hours in the area. They're certainly worth a visit. read more

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went there over winter break for the barbie exhibit with my cousins. Only bad part was the parking. But it's a city, so what can you expect? Very composed museum. Lovely. Educational, fun, and deeply powerful. read more

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I didn't want to write this review, as my December trip to the Capital District was a pleasant distraction from reality, so this final writeup symbolizes the "end of an era" (three days long but I stretched out the content). The museum does stellar work on the impossible task of capturing New York State. ("How dare they mention the NYC subway but completely ignore the one that used to be Syracuse?! ZERO STARS"). Sesame Street's here, along with clocks, fire engines and a discussion of Albany's rum trade. Not only you can you enter an old-timey train car in the subway exhibit, there's a newsstand with old Post and Daily News copies mentioning the (an?) A-Rod scandal. The best part of the museum, or at least the most photogenic, is the assortment of minerals. The greens and oranges were quite surprising, as was the information that many of the specimens are from downstate. The cartography-inclined will enjoy old depictions of areas like "Lange Eyland." read more

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So much to see, this is a well thought out museum about our state. I really enjoyed it. The old subway csts & turnstile, and the 9/11 memorial was well done. A donation is all they ask for instead of a set admission fee. Im a native, but I think people from other states will also like this museum. read more

New York State Museum - 9/11 memorial - Museums Near Me - Albany, New York

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A wonderful place to visit and experience! I stopped in for the first time to see the Barbie exhibit, and was pleasantly surprised by not only the rest of the facilities, but that it all came with free admission. The emphasis on NY state history was amazing to see, such a well curated collection of interesting and educational material. Including the Barbie exhibit, we spent almost 3 hours here and could have spent many more. I'm looking forward to my next trip back! read more

I highly recommend this museum for anyone who wants to learn about the history of New York State. From mastodons to antique fire trucks, this place has everything. No, it is not as interactive as some of the more modern museums, especially those intended for children, but the descriptions were thorough and informative if you have the patience and time to read them. Our favorite exhibits were those about the Adirondacks, including Timbuktu. We also enjoyed the Albany exhibits about the Dutch colonizers and the New York Seaport displays. We spent three hours there and definitely left more informed than when we arrived. read more

A big museum with literally everything. Besides the artifacts, the best part of the museum is the free admission. I love the NYC content and the first people content from this museum. Got my first carousel ride! Great staffs! And thank you Albany for making it public and free read more

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The New York State Museum in Downtown Albany explores the cultural and natural history of New York State. The Museum features a variety of history, science, and art exhibitions. Within the main exhibit halls are popular long-standing favorites, including Adirondack Wilderness, Birds of New York, Beneath the City: Albany Archeology, Black Capital: Harlem in the 20s, the Cohoes Mastodon, Fire Engine Hall, Minerals of New York, Native Peoples of New York, and The World Trade Center: Rescue, Recovery, Response. There's also a working full-sized carousel on the 4th floor of the Museum. The Museum is free; donations are accepted. read more

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Can't believe it's free. It's super fun and lots of random facts and the staff is sooooo helpful and invested in the learning. So cute.

I loved this little museum. That had so much packed into one place and some kid friendly activities around. The 9/11 Memorial exhibit was beautifully done. I was hoping to ride the carousel but we got to it as the last ride for the day was ending. read more

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A great resource for the community! We loved our time here. We parked next to the building in their lot ($10 parking can pay with card) and they have the carousel every 15 mins on the 4th floor which is always a great treat for the kids! Once we finished with the museum we went down and under the street to check out the art in the concourse which was really cool! Great place for bad weather :) read more

This was an amazing find while in Albany. The weekend parking was free as was the admission. The museum had such a beautiful array of various exhibits. It was beyond clean and staff were wonderfully friendly. Each experience packed a wealth of knowledge as well as beautifully architectural displays. This was one of the best museum I have been to recently. read more

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Amazing walk, nice and cool inside great facts and history about NY. Would definitely recommend for anyone looking for something to do for free as well! Parking available, great time visiting. Friendly staff and great spots for kids to explore and enjoy. read more

New York State Museum - Museums Near Me - Albany, New York

Museum it's self was a great experience. The website says $10.00 parking what a joke bc the ten dollar parking attendant was rude for no reason! Today the 10.00 parking was reserved parking only!!! The gentleman running the parking wouldn't open his window and when he did he was rude and nasty! As a state employee he should have some common courtesy considering we the tax payers of New York pay his wages!! THE PARKING IS A DAMN JOKE not having parking for a state museum is just ridiculous! read more

Large, clean, very nice museum. Covers the history of New York State including growth of NY City, fire trucks, minerals of New York, forests, an exhibit devoted to 9/11, and much more. Cost: no fee, donations accepted Time budget: 2 hours for a quick viewing of all exhibits, 3-4 for a thorough viewing Gems of the museum: (1) 9/11 exhibit, (2) black and white photos of steelworkers on skyscrapers and of transitioning City Overall cleanliness: above average Staff: helpful and polite read more

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This is a nice free museum in downtown Albany within walking distance of the Capitol. The area is absolutely full of wonderful architecture. The building itself is quite lovely. The day we went only the main floor was open. This is a museum full of the history of NY. There is alot to see and it is all jammed in together. Look at the map so that you follow the course in the right way. There are so many neat and cool things for the kids to see... stuffed wildlife of NY. Fire trucks and other cool things to see and learn about NY history. The highlight was the World Trade Center exhibit. It was a horrible day in US and NY history, but this exhibit really honors those that gave them all that day and the years afterwards. I moved to NY and had to no idea what happened after that horrible day. Come to learn. It was very moving, touching, and heartwarming. Bathrooms: by the lobby and very clean and spacious and plenty of stalls. I could not find another bathroom within the museum. read more

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Free museum with free parking (on weekends) is already incentivizing to me but the fact that there are a lot of exhibits here and a lot of things to look at and learn really makes this worth the visit. Exhibits cover a wide range of topics, so plan for at least a couple of hours here. A lot of natural history, early American history, history of NY immigration, and an exhibit on 9/11. Some of the displays are really beautiful and the visual aspects make the content really engaging. The mastadon skeleton is a unique feature and even the signage on its history within the museum. When I went on a Sunday, it was not at all crowded so it was nice to read signs without too many people nearby. Gift shop was still closed and I think some exhibits on a different floor were currently closed, but there was still a lot to see. I think no matter what your interests you can stroll around and find something you like and learn something. read more

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This is a great way to spend 2 to 3 hours in Albany with the family. It's free to attend with recommended donation of $5 person or $10 for family. There is a mix of different exhibits to include the Ice Age, Harlem Renaissance, World Trade Center and more. Starting at 11 am on the fourth floor there is a carousel that runs as well. read more

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I was catfished by this museum. The website made it look sleek, modern, and full of topics I was interested in. It advertised an exhibit on Harlem as well as multiple other exhibits centering on the black experience. I was disappointed to find two of those three exhibits in dark, remote corners, and sadly they consisted of a ton of print on the wall. No interaction, very few artifacts, and it was a basically like an internet search had been hung up to read. The Harlem exhibit was a little better, with some artifacts and photos, but it glossed over a HUGE period of black history. The rest of this museum is the run of the mill stuff, such as fossils, minerals, local wildlife specimens, local geology. A little history of NYC, but you'd be better off driving a couple hours down to the city, where there are tons of museums that do it better. They had a 9/11 section, which was solemn and appreciated. Because most places are trying their best, I would have even pushed this to four stars, but I can't forgive the fact I was so excited to see three exhibits on black America and found this museum treated them as an after thought. On the bright side, it's free and donation as you wish. read more

New York State Museum - Museums Near Me - Albany, New York

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Went to the museum with six kids yesterday for dinosaur exhibit. Terrible! No organization, no signs, and no parking They missed an opportunity to make money having everyone park across the street but instead the closed it and said permit parking. One day!@ they could have charged and everyone would have paid. It was 18 degrees and lots of wind. People with lots of children and no parking. I was there at 10:00 and found parking on Green Street they put temporary signs in the park stating no parking. What a shame that in a big city as Albany there was chaos in and out of the museum. And what happened to the millions of dollars to update. SHAME read more

Free parking on weekends at this museum. They offer a lot of history and exhibits specific to be York state. Great way to spend a couple hours when it was too windy to skate outdoors. read more

A total blast from my childhood! It's weird coming back to a place where I had so many childhood field trips. It looks and smells exactly the same. Great eclectic collection. It's also free to entree which is hard to beat. Could use some updating a little. Came on a Sunday and the crowds were sparse. Good place to kill a couple of hours. We saw the a good majority of the museum including the 9/11 display. Make sure to leave a little donation at the end. read more

Ah, the good old NYS Museum! Being a native of this area for 30+ years, my hometown friends and I still like to joke around about how this place hasn't changed much since we had elementary school field trips here. I hadn't really been in here in probably 7 years, other than shooting some engagement pics for my friends up by the carousel last year. Yes, you can even rent out the area up by the carousel for your wedding reception! Back to the carousel, yes, it is here and you can ride it for free! I'd recommend heading up there regardless because you can get some nice views of the Empire State Plaza from up that way. I think locals don't give this museum the credit that it's due. When I lived in Albany, this was a great place to take out of town visitors. Heck, it's free, so you can make the visit here as long or short as you'd like. This is also a great activity for inclement weather days! My favorite part of the exam is the 9/11/01 exhibit, I think this appropriately honors the victims and explains the events of the day to younger generations. Of course, the museum in lower Manhattan is a better place to be immersed in the history of the day. Kids will enjoy the subway and Sesame Street exhibits. If you happen to be here on a weekday, I'd recommend also visiting the nearby Corning Tower observation deck. That's another FREE activity. Also be sure to wander the Empire State Plaza to check out it's architectural awkwardness. If you are looking for something to eat after your visit, wander up to Lark Street if the weather is mild enough. Some of the exhibits here are kind of corny and dated, for that reason, I'm going to give 4 stars overall. read more

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I am thrilled that friends from the Schenetady area told me about this hidden treasure of a museum. I was totally in Awe of this place! For starters the price is right, free admission! Even though it's free there is a recommended donation of $5.00 dollars for each adult and $10.00 for the whole family which is more than reasonable and the right thing to do! The exhibits are housed on the 1st and 4th floors. I was told the exhibits rotate and change every few months so there is always something new and refreshing when you come back. When I was there the exhibit was on womans suffrage in New York from the 1800's to early 1900's. I was blown away by the stories, clothing and artifacts on display during this period. Other exhibits on the 1st floor that were on permanent display of New York State are the Adirondacks, Harlem NYC, World trade center and fire engines from different time periods, The New York City "A" train on display, minerals, wildlife, Albany's Rum distillery from the 1750's with fermentation vats on display, WW1 and the Cohoes Mastodon. The 4th floor housed classic cars and an airplane suspended on the ceiling. There is a carousel on this floor and the rides are free, but donations are welcomed. They also had a display of different structures assembled by kids in the local area composed of cans in a competition they call "Canstruction" I saw can goods made to resemble a car, hot air balloon and etc. I was told there is a different theme each year and when the competition is over, the cans are donated to feed the hungry in the local Area. Parking here when I went was easy in April, I parked at a meter on the street, but I heard it gets crowded in the summer months. There are two parking lots across the street which I heard is reasonable but you should call since the prices vary by weekday vs weekend and certain times during the day I heard it's free too. There is so much to see and do here. I know I didn't cover everything so do yourself a favor. Go early, look and read the rich history of New York. It made me a more knowledgeable New Yorker. read more

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This museum is huge and has so much potential! Present exhibits are informative, but not reflective of all the diverse areas in NYS. I was very disappointed in the Discovery area for children. The activities are in need of updating and more interaction. Definitely too much reading for young kids. There is so much unused space that could have some amazing exhibits. I wonder if corporate sponsorship has been considered. Overall the museum provided us with a rainy day activity for our grandchildren. A donation of $2.50 per person is suggested. Not sure where the money goes, since the state funds the museum. Also, security is limited. Saw a number of older men near children's area just sitting on benches. Creepy. read more

I spent a few hours at this museum and thoroughly enjoyed myself. There is also a lovely park next to it and the Empire State Plaza across the street is stunning. Exhibits range from natural history to various parts of New York state history throughout the years. I think it is well worth the trip. Everything is nicely done. Very interesting. read more

What can anyone say about receiving free things? It's just AWESOME! It's free admission and you can donate money at the donation box by the exhibit entrance. The suggested donation is $5 for individuals and $10 for family. The customer service is very friendly. If you're here for the first time, I encourage you to stop by the customer service area to get the map of the museum. The place is big. There's many science, art and natural habitat exhibitions. Other displays include the world trade tower victims of 9/11. I got a bit emotional just seeing pictures and notes left behind for others loved ones. It really brings back memories of the terrible event. Other displays of the metropolitan train station and the infamous pbs show sesame place. On the 4th floor, there's a carousel ride for free. The donation box is at the entrance also. The suggested donation is $1. Overall, our family enjoyed coming here. I highly recommend this place as a must visit for NY tourists. Parking is available for visitors for a fee. After 2pm, it's free but I don't suggest coming too late because the place closes early. read more

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Free! Donations accepted. Something fun to do especially on a rainy day or really any day. Older displays but fun to see with the history of New York! read more

I have visited my share of museums around the country... with my son... science museums, children's museums, human/natural history museums, art museums ... you name it. Obviously, I've visited some of the country's best, like MoMA or Natural History Museum in NYC. Supposedly bigger and better, (and clearly more pricey, too). But to me, no other museums have pulled at my heartstrings like this relatively small, and yet absolutely wonderful, New York State Museum. This supreme gem of all the museums (to me anyway) offer free admission. One of the best uses of our tax dollars! Every exhibit had something special that drew me in ... I wished I could have stayed there for a day to take everything in. I had only 2 hours to spend here and was able to look only at the natural history side of the museum in detail. I regret that I didn't get to see carousel on the 4th floor. I have sworn I will make a return visit. Most people rave about the human history side of the museum focusing on New York City, for which I didn't have much time to spend, but I want to let you know that natural history side of the museum is really excellent, too - I felt the exhibits on the Adirondacks, for example, honestly beat some of the museums in the Adirondack itself! Really fascinating stuff! I disagree with the Yelp elite reviewer who left a negative review of this museum below. I did not feel the museum was outdated. I felt exhibits were layed out very well, put out beautifully, and also what I loved the most is that they were thoughtfully worded for the purpose of public education and understanding in clear, concise, and straightforward English. You'll be surprised how many museums fail in this basic mission with a bunch of gibberish hardly anybody can understand but those in the specialty. In my mind, if your aim for this visit is entertainment rather than learning, this museum would be considered understandably "lacking" - in particular, with interactive computer displays. But I've witnessed eye-candy "interactive" exhibits at other larger museums that are often broken, useless, time-consuming, and hardly informative. Why would I want to spend my time in front of another screen when that kind of interactivity can be readily available on your web browser in the comfort of your home? I also loved that there were spaces in the museum - unlike some of the museums over-packed with crowds like a zoo, there were rooms to move about and appreciate each exhibit. There were many of children running about - apparently this is a hangout place for families of Albany, and for good reasons. I felt a little sorry for many younger parents, as I'm sure they didn't have mental and physical room to read and take in all the interesting exhibits. A tip: As of January, 2019, at the time of my visit, Google Map GPS took me to the back door of the museum, so be aware - it's in a weird place and it made me feel like I was tresspassing, though staff members were aware of the problem. Parking is on the front side of the building, not in the rear. So you should go around the big block around the building if you are not sure. read more

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This is a really nice museum. Its free, but you can choose to make a donation. It's got everything New York from mammoths to Sesame Street. I really liked the halls filled with flora and fauna. The exhibit on 9/11 choked me up. We went on a Saturday morning, it wasn't busy-it's something nice to check out. read more

Absolutely make this a stop if you are in Albany. There is a large space dedicated to NYC, a large space dedicated to the Adirondacks, and then a little bit of everything else about NY state thrown in there too. It is very large, and will take you some time to see everything. There is no admission charge, but donations are welcome. I wish every state had a museum as awesome as this in their state capital. read more

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Absolutely beautiful. If you're visiting Albany, I think this is a must see, especially if you're a museum lover, like me. It's large (much, much larger than I initially thought) and there's guaranteed to be an exhibit for everyone. My favorite exhibit was probably the Native American one because of how they had a longhouse the museum staff actually built, artifacts, and showcases showing their daily lives. They even had a little screen where you could click on certain things and a voice would explain to you what's happening in the scene in further detail. I also really enjoyed seeing the Mastodon and whale skeleton. My sister loved the mineral exhibit and my dad really liked the birds exhibit. It's super clean inside and the lady at the front was really nice and explained how the museum looks inside too. (It's easy to get confused about where to go, so definitely grab a map!) It is a donation only museum. It's a $5 suggested donation for an adult and $10 for the family. There's also a museum store in here and I believe the prices were fair. It's definitely a great way to spend time with the family and it's very kid-friendly too. There's a discovery section just for kids. You can definitely spend a few hours in here. There's a bus that stops right in front if you want to travel that way. There's also parking available for a fee that's a different fee depending on the time. It's free on Sundays though. Also, there's a bunch of metered parking around by the park adjacent to the museum. read more

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I would love to give this place 5 stars, but an hour of trying to find a parking spot and a 1/2 mile walk to get there once I did takes it down to 4 stars. With that said, that is my only complaint. First of all I must say this is a free museum that works off of donations, so please put a little something in the donation box. This museum is Huge and has a little something for everyone. I was interested in the World Trade Center exhibit. I cried when I saw the victims tribute trailer. So sad, all the lives that were lost. There was so much to see on the first floor, fire trucks, dinosaurs, native Americans stuff. On the second floor there is a little cafe and third floor is the carousel. This was a great way to spend an afternoon. read more

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Admission is free. Good thing, too, as I didn't stay too long there. The New York State Museum is in Albany, NY, and it is part of the Empire State Plaza Concourse. A group of us (six including myself) were trying to get to the museum, but finding an entrance the Saturday before Christmas was a bit tough. A myriad of openings were closed - case closed. I'm not too sure how we ultimately got in, given the variety of entrances, but when we got to the museum, the bathrooms were open. The museum fortunately was, too! We walked around and only focused on one exhibit, the one about the women voters. For those into history, and more so women's history, this exhibition is a must. There are artifacts, information, and photos pertaining to the right to vote. Interestingly enough, they made the exhibit like a timeline. Specifically what I am referring to is that you don't just get what happened a hundred years ago, but you get what is happening now. I really enjoyed the fact that there was a women's march earlier this year and they had souvenirs from that. It really shows how far the women's right movement has come. I do wish I had gotten to see more of it, but that's the thing with vacation. You need to pick and choose where to go. read more

What an amazing collection of NY state themed art! For a city the size of Albany, I was impressed with the collection and variety of works they have. The kid in me particularly loved the carousel & small section dedicated to Sesame Street. The place has wonderful views across the plaza towards the state capitol building. There is a cafe to grab a bite to eat and the employees I encountered were all friendly. You can easily kill an hour or two visiting this museum. read more

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Amazing place to learn self paced so you could do it all pretty quick otherwise you can take your time.

Meh is about right for this place. The outside building is pretty cool looking, typical of mid-century brutalist architecture. Something that would be in an old SciFi movie or something. Inside, the exhibits were very dated. Like very old types of exhibits and hardly anything was interactive. You could tell they put a lot of money in this place, once upon a time. Now it just looks weird and not very attractive. Don't get me wrong, they had a lot of exhibits. It was all very detailed in exploring NY history from prehistoric times to the present. But it's all dated now mostly. The best parts of the museum were the 9/11 exhibits and the NY City exhibits. Great tidbits of history that was easy to read and did not feel dated. The 9/11 exhibit was great and very powerful to read. They had an old 1940s subway car to explore, which was great! One of the other terrible things about this museum was that there was no particular order to it. It was hard to make sure I had seen everything without walking around to places that I had already been. It really was a maze. One of the maps said the museum was also on the 2nd and 4th floors. The 2nd floor was the cafe and the 4th floor is a carousel. I ventured up trying to find the carousel and without any signage, ended up in an area that looked like it was for banquets. A security guard scolded me for being in an area that was off-limits. I mentioned to him there were no signs indicating that and they would be helpful. He just shook his head at me and took me back to the elevator bay which was near the carousel. Well I came up the escalators on the other side and didn't know where the carosel was... Anyway I digress. Before you get caught by security, make sure to catch the view on the 4th floor of the Empire State Plaza. Totally worth it! I look forward to other reviews in hoping that I'm not being too hard on this place. read more

Free, free, free... Did I say free! Well you can donate upon entering and they recommend $5 per person or $10 per family. You can definitely spend a good 2-3 hours here. They have many different exhibits ranging from live classical music and historical information about New York. This place is great for families and kids. All the exhibits were informative and educational. My favorite was the mastodon skeleton on display. The saddest part of the Museum was the featuring of 9-11. Reading and seeing the artifacts from the event really hit me hard. The Museum also had a nice gift shop which I visitors for some small souvenirs. Prices were reasonable. There are two parking lots located near the museum and are free on weekends and after 2pm. Street parking is also free on the weekends. The museum closed at 5pm. Overall a nice place to hang out. read more

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A hidden gem in the NY state Capitol District! There is a TON to see in here so plan a full morning if not full day. Entry is FREE! (who doesn't love FREE?) This place covers the natural history, human history and geology of the state. Land, Air and Sea are all covered in here. Ride on a carousel in full function - sans the actual full on music or it would bust the glass panes in the museum (yes the carousel folks have told us that). All aspects of how the state has changed over the centuries can be seen. Even today archeologists are finding more areas that were previously unknown, and even how the Hudson River has changed over the past couple hundred years. So if archeology is your thing, come check this place out! Of course much of our country wouldn't be the way it is today without the development of NYC, and there is a TON to show how the landscape dramatically changed to what we see today going down to the 5 Burroughs. A most touching and quite personal feature for this place is a huge section dedicated to those who perished in the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks. They have one of the fire engines on display whose crew was lost. They have the makeshift waiting construction box - which was used to allow families to watch the search in hopes, and has now become a shrine of memory. Please please be respectful to those who have been affected - and still come to pay their respects to these very sacred walls - keep your theories, opinions, comments to yourself only OUT of earshot to those around you. While looking firsthand at these items, a very rude man - stated very loudly how the whole attack was an inside job done by our own government, and not a terroristic attack. I could hear people gasp air in around me as his words uttered forth. And I happened to watch a woman silently pull a tissue, walk off to a corner, and sob a little. My heart goes to that lady - and I pray we can only be more aware of how deep the wounds still are from this day. My kids went bonkers over the geology section - oohing and ahhhing over every shiny rock they could find. And for the ones they could pick up and touch - why yes they went bonkers doing just that! (future geologists perhaps? who knows!) Visit the Adirondack exhibits and see everything to do with the logging, and beauty of the Adirondack State Park! There's a museum shop to buy some local stuff - and of course they carry all the current craze items the museums like to sell. Wish they had a cafe though! That's my only small ding - a nice cafe would be awesome to have. read more

New York State Museum - Museums Near Me - Albany, New York

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