Driving and Parking
It took us less than one hour to go door-to-door. The OCM is in downtown Omaha near the Old Market. There is good signage to get you there. One of the best things about the Omaha Children's Museum? They have their own parking lot! And if the parking lot is full the streets all have paid parking surrounding the museum. The meters do not take credit cards so bring change if you are going on a busy day and concerned about not finding a spot in the parking lot.
Cost
The cost for OCM is Adults & Kids $9, Seniors $8, Under 24 months FREE. They take major credit cards (including AMEX) and cash. We used our Morrill Hall card and got into the museum for FREE. Morrill Hall and the Omaha Children's Museum belong to the ASTM reciprocity program. All we had to do was show them our card.
The Omaha Children's Museum has an extra charge of $2 per person (under 24 months of age it is FREE) to access their special exhibit on the second floor of the museum. UPDATE: this fee is now included in the ASTM reciprocity so the special exhibit is included!
Main Floor Exhibits
The main floor of the museum is comprised of four distinct spaces including the Creative Arts Center, Imagination Playground, the Dinosaurs and Science & Technology Center.
The "Creative Arts Center" has different art stations and is great for all ranges of kids. My two year old stayed at one table using stencils and my five year old worked through a couple stations. Also in this area is the "Maker Space." This area has a couple of areas for a child to use real materials and tools to tinker. There is a station that is manned with a volunteer to aid the kids in their building. This area is great for older kids.
The "Imagination Playground" includes some "my town" elements like a bank, a doctor's office, a grocery store, a firehouse and a life-size dollhouse. My youngest child could have stayed in this dollhouse the entire day. If you have younger children and they need a break you can use the Family Discovery Room. I was really impressed with this area. If you have a baby and you need to stop and nurse them or feed them, stop in here. They have high chairs set up for meals, rocking chairs to nurse or to calm down an overtired child.
The Dinosaur Area is a large room with dinosaurs that "dance" while music blasts away and lights flash. Kids can dig for dinosaur bones and dance to the tunes.
The final area on the main floor is the "Science & Technology Area" and it is awesome. It consists of a massive ball machine with all different kinds of ways to get the balls to move through the tubes. My older child adored this area and we visited it twice throughout the day. This area is great for older kids and even adults.
Second Floor Exhibits
The second floor of the museum has the Special Exhibit, a train, a carousel and Zooland.
Currently "Once Upon a Farm" is set up and it is incredibly interactive. Kids can hang out in the cab of a huge tractor, climb through a life size ant hill, learn all about milking a cow and more. The day we were visiting baby chicks were hatching. This exhibit costs extra at $2 per person (under 24 months is FREE). It is definitely worth the extra money. The traveling exhibit mixes it up a bit and I'm excited to come back this summer for their "Lego Travels" exhibit. If you have a kid that loves farms, head over there soon. This exhibit leaves after April 12th.
Beware, also on this floor are a train and a carousel. It is very hard to go up there and not ride one of those. You can buy tickets for cash at the food area or you can use your credit card at a kiosk which is located right next to the carousel and train. Tickets are $2 per child per ride. We ended up riding the train. It was a quick ride but they loved going around and around.
The last exhibit on the second floor is Zooland which is four zoo creatures that kids climb on. This was their favorite area on the second floor. They climbed and climbed and climbed.
Food and Drink
Children's Museums understand that kids need to eat and OCM is no exception. You can eat in an indoor dining area with an accessible microwave (yeah!), you can eat outside on picnic benches and you can eat upstairs near Zooland. There is a food cart on the second floor with sodas, fruit, pretzels, hot dogs, pizza, etc. Since you are very near the Old Market, you can also drive down and enjoy delicious food at charming restaurants.
Outside
Adjacent to the parking lot is a playset with a tire swing and slides. In the summer the museum opens up their small outdoor water play area. We enjoyed the play set after we left the museum. It is next to a busy road so watch your kiddos closely.
Overall
We had a great time at the Omaha Children's Museum, spending almost five hours there (I was exhausted). The staff were very friendly and upon hearing we had driven over from Lincoln, they thanked us for making the trip. Kids up to the age of 10 would enjoy it. Older kids can spend time in the Creative Arts Center, in the Science & Technology Room and in the Special Exhibit. Younger kids will love the Imagination Playland and the Special Exhibit. We ended up spending $15.42 on our visit: $6 for the Special Exhibit, $4 for the train ride and $5.42 for food (they ate all the food that I packed on the drive over). We plan on going 3-4 times a year, probably when the Special Exhibit changes and then we can enjoy a whole new area.
Want more Macaroni Kid Lincoln Road Trip Reviews? Below are a couple.
Denver (including the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, the Denver Zoo, the Denver Aquarium & Second Home Restaurant).
Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo
Kansas City Zoo
Strategic Air & Space Museum
