What stood out to me most is the intentionality behind each exhibit. This isn't just a place to let…read morekids run around, every space is designed with a purpose. The Dream Machine climber builds problem-solving, risk assessment, and gross motor skills. Little Dreamers is perfect for the littlest ones, encouraging sensory exploration and fine motor development. Data Science Alley turns data collection into a hands-on game with pom-poms and wind tubes. And of course, Curious George: Let's Get Curious was a huge hit, blending STEM learning with a character they already love. There's also Engineering Games and Play, Art + Tech featuring Nickelodeon characters, and Placita Mágica, a special exhibit celebrating 50 years of the Capital Children's Museum. As a homeschool family, we're always looking for places that make learning feel like play, and this museum delivers on that in every corner. Highly recommend if you're local to DC or visiting with kids, plan for at least two hours, and go early if you can beat the crowd!

So took my grandson to the National Children's Museum and he LOVED it!…read more The space is definitely a kid paradise. Plenty of colors, sounds, interactive installations, so definitely kid-approved. The place was clean and bright. Not many cons as an adult we are overly excited about children's museums typically lol! I did feel like the slides and tubes are a bit unsafe because once your kid goes up to the tubes you can no longer see them so that feels a little sketchy to me! Overall, my grandson had a great time and that's all that mattered! Would I go back? Sure but not my first choice

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

this is legitimately the best childrens museum we have ever been to. the giant climbing thing up to…read morea third level slide is so cool! my daughter was too nervous to do it and I was shocked. hopefully we can go back and shell try next time. the staff was very nice. the room where there was an area to make tents was our favorite. I don't know if it is temporary, but the Egypt part was cool and scared my kids. so, be a little wary going in there depending on your kids age and readiness. this was so fun!

Like every children's museum it's basically a giant play area with a few semi educational things…read morefor adults. That being said it is gigantic, and you can practically spend the entire day there with a little kid. Their slides looked so fun. My son loved the water area. And the Lego section was also inviting.

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!

What a cool place to play for kids! Came here for a kid's birthday party, and my son had such an…read moreawesome time! This is one of the coolest children's museum play spot that I've ever been to. The details inside are so cool!

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.

Overall: Okay place to spend an hour or two with young kids, but it is very dirty and most exhibits…read morefeel like safety hazards and are close to breaking. They have multi-stall gendered restrooms. We went right when they opened on a Saturday morning and had the place pretty much to ourselves. We used a Groupon deal. My son just turned 3. His favorite exhibits were the mail station, the space station, and the room with the ukuleles and guitars. The mail station was really cute. It had instructions to write a letter to your younger self and you could put it in the mail box and organize the mail by year you wanted to send it back to. It really didn't look like this place had a cleaning regimen. I can't imagine who thought it was a good idea to put that many (very used) plush toys in a place where this many children visit. You sign a waiver saying you're liable for anything your kid breaks, but so much of this place is about to break and I'd be worried about my kid being hurt as much as I'd be worried about parts of these installments breaking.

Spot is pretty cute and not "huge". Overall very…read moreentertaining for toddlers and kids but can't say it's anything amazing but worth the money 100%. The lady at the front desk made me want to drop a star but can't say it's the owners fault. Reason being is she was very dry and quick with the rules I couldn't catch anything she was saying because she was so dry. Didn't seem like she wanted to be there but whatever that interactions like a second. It's basically a bunch of stations like shopping , doctors office, a slide, and so on. Like I said pretty cute.

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.

Wow! Finally came here and can't wait to take our little one back…read more Upstairs is a large open area. There is a great up station, climbing wall, nugget couch pieces, small ball pit, stage, large animals, tumbling mat (I think?), and lava tiles. Tons to do and lots of space to burn off energy. Downstairs there is a town area with a pizza place, school, fire station, etc. each small room is set up accordingly with everything the imagination needs. There is a kitchen area (with sink) for folks to eat in with lots of little chairs. My daughter's favorite room was not far from here--little grocery store area, ice cream cart, taco truck, and garden with little flowers to plant and a hose to pretend with! Parking was ample. Definitely recommend checking by our Believe if you haven't already. I look forward to many play dates and parties here!

Misty the owner is amazing - so friendly and she plans fun events each month! My kids could spend…read morehours here - they cry when we leave. There are 2 levels and it is very clean. The price is fair and there is so much to do - imagination play, dress ups, crafts, etc. Make sure you check the website before your visit to double check the hours for the week. Also follow them on social media to see busy days where you'll have to pre-buy a ticket online. I'm so glad to have this gem of a play place nearby for our kiddos!

The explanation of where the activities were and the "path" to find them was great! The lower rooms…read morewere cold but the kids enjoyed the displays and activities anyway. The use of space was well thought out. My grandson was thrilled to see the passenger train disembarking and rebounding! A lot to see. We will be returning, even without grandchildren.

Super fun place, everyone is friendly and knowledgeable. The kids love this place and always ask to…read morego back. Admission is reasonable and there is a ton of interactive areas for little ones.