The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University

I’m sad. Super, super nice staff of young people, but there is extreme decrepitude here. Exhibits are unchanged for decades, nothing new. Looking for butterflies? Better look at the picture on the butterfly elevator because the exhibit is long gone. Looking for the amazing bees on display upstairs? Long gone and a sad sign on the exhibit. The room where fossils in plaster used to be explored by paleontologists? No more of that going on. The opportunity for kids to unearth fossils with brushes is as active as ever and the woman working there was so, so, so nice to me and my kids! As a parent of four who has been coming for 20 years I can state that things have really declined. Dinosaurs are still cool (and always will be). Live animal exhibits limited to two kinds of beetles and a viynaigaroon. Sigh. I want to love this place but it needs a major donor or four to breathe new life into this seemingly dying museum. Again - staff so, so nice. Two staff members are taking about tortoises with my 9yo as we speak and they are just being so, so kind and adding magic to his experience which I’m so grateful for…. Five stars for them!! I will repeat! Philadelphia area millionaires and billionaires: Can’t one of you take this museum under your wing and bring the magic back?! I can’t think of a more worthy beneficiary than this museum that tries to teach children the sense of wonder. Dare I say? I put this on their Board of Trustees… donor cultivation needs to be the number one task of this body. I was disappointed to see that the donor board right inside the main entrance reflects 2019-20!

Visited on June 20 for Free Museum Day and had a great experience! There’s so much to see—from dinosaur skeletons to fascinating exhibits on wildlife and the environment. It’s a fun and educational place for all ages. The only disappointment was finding out they no longer have the butterfly exhibit, which I was really looking forward to. Still, definitely worth the visit!

Neat place to visit. Educational and hands on. Dinosoar museum, live animals (smart tortoise, beehive, reptiles, huge frog, and more!), sew your own bag, dig for dinosaur bones, etc. Promotes recycling, saving the bees, learning, and planting trees. Great place to take your kids and to learn something new yourself, and for good price too!

Get there Summer 2025 for the Fashion Exhibit! Dino digs, dioramas of animals from around the world, and step into the outback bug exhibit for kids to interact and be in nature while staying cool because it is all on the inside of the ANSM. A must-see adventure for the new explorers of our world. Have fun!

My 3 yr old LOVED this museum, he's a dinosaur fanatic. There was so much to look at I would definitely recommend and come back.

A great weekend family trip if you have small kids it’s best to to early I loved it here and so did my toddler we all learned a lot and the staff is very friendly I love this place and we f you have EBT it’s $3 per person

It was my grandson first time going there an I haven't been there for years an he loved it we saw a live animal show an he dig for fossils an lovely beautiful place to enjoy.

Took my 1 and 3 year old. They enjoyed going around in the wagon and looking at the dioramas. 3 y.o. especially loved the dinosaurs. The fossil dig was a big hit. Was a little disappointed in the top floor kids area (Outside In I think it was called?) The elevators are a little confusing at first. We also went during the summer and there were a lot of summer camp groups there which made the kids areas especially crowded. Overall a nice trip with toddlers!

This museum was a letdown. I'm being generous with three stars here. First...I've lived in Philly for about 5 years now as a transplant from Pittsburgh (a much smaller city). In comparison the natural history museum in Pittsburgh is much better.. a fact that surprised me. Maybe I'm spoiled but I thought Philadelphia would be even better due to the size of the city. It was NOT. Minimal dinosaur displays. Very small cramped space. No long necked dinosaurs.. (couldn't fit) and the overall vibe was basically that it's a place for kids. Looking around there were zero prehistoric mammals.. no mammoths (which apparently you're basically tripping over these days with the melting permafrost) and no saber tooth cats... there were some other prehistoric fossils but again nothing related to prehistoric humans/neanderthals/hominids. Zero. There were a bunch of dusty displays with poor quality taxidermy. (Go to any Cabelas to see better quality) and just general sad and old feel inside 3 very cramped floors. If you're looking for somewhere to go with a very young child this place would be ok... but it's not for adults interested in paleontology at any level. I almost felt patronized. There was a display that had some Stanley brand concrete tools on a wallpaper background of some rocks talking about "this is what archeologists use". This room was surrounded by cases of very old books that I'm sure science had certainly disproven by this time. There was a floor that had some live animal exhibits that ALMOST compared to a decent exotic pet shop. Why I wasn't looking at fossils of some type in that space I'm still not sure but the animals seemed well looked after if not slightly more bored than me. It was 50ish for the two of us and that's money that would have been better spent somewhere else as I didn't take a kid with me.

The Academy was my first job in high school so I'll always be a little nostalgic and fond! Now that I bring my own kid, I think your mileage at this museum really depends on your kid. Highly recommend if your kid likes dinosaurs! The Dino area isn't the biggest Dino exhibit in the world, but it's a nice size for little kids. The fossil "dig" is fun and interactive. My 2 yo niece also thinks the animal dioramas are great. On the other hand, my 4 yo was mostly sad about all the dead animals. Outside In was pretty empty as well, not really worth the trip upstairs. Overall, worth going if you have a friend with a pass, or trying to keep a very little kid busy indoors.

My kid is obsessed with dinosaurs, so being the doting parent I am I figured that I'd bring him here to see them in person. He was astonished by a real life skeleton of an Icthyosaurus, which happens to be his favorite dinosaur. That's right, I'm raising a little nerd! Anyway, I digress, but this place is a must see if you have a little aspiring paleontologist in tow. The dinosaur hall is their most interesting display, but be warned a lot of the skeletons are just replicas and not real fossils. However, there is still more here to see -They have a bunch of wildlife dioramas and a bug hall, plus traveling exhibitions. Little kids will love this place. Overall not a bad place to spend an afternoon.

The last time I had visited the Academy of Natural Sciences was in an elementary school field trip--but let me tell you it was even more fun as an adult! The exhibits are really interesting and educational, including preserved and live animals and a really cool view of natural science over time. The staff are SO knowledgeable and helpful and we learned so much. Of course, they have an amazing and hands on experience for the kiddos too, but worth going as an adult as well. Convenient location on the parkway with plenty of restaurants nearby!

We have been coming here since our son was 2 and years later he still enjoys it. I think it's a perfect place for smaller kids (ages 10 and under) because it is basically like a mini version of the NYC one (with MANY cool animal scenes). They have cool dinosaur skeletons, a few touch exhibits, some live insects and even a sloth! The museum itself also isn't too large so you do not get overwhelmed with too much walking if you are with small kids or older adults. On the weekends they also have interesting talks in their auditorium. The only downfall of this area is the pricey parking, but otherwise it is perfect for a beautiful day at the museum with plenty of fun areas to walk around or even have a picnic across the street. The only star I'm taking off is because they don't seem to update the exhibits at all, so it's a place we come to once a year and that's usually it. If you live in the Bucks county area, our libraries also have free passes for families to come check out the museum.

Was looking for something to do on a recent trip to Philly and decided to check out this museum. It was interesting. The dinosaur portion was pretty cool and was probably my favorite part. The majority of the museum was taxidermy which can be interesting but it did feel like that's all there was. It was bigger than I expected though and feel like it's with the visit !

Pretty entertaining, the taxidermy here is interesting. Some pretty exotic animals. Kinda sad to think they were alive at one point and now they're on display, but great sightseeing nonetheless. They have a room with a bunch of exotic critters which was cool to look at. Huge fat toads, tarantulas, skinks, snakes, etc. that was the highlight imo. The butterfly exhibit closed which was sad tbh. They replaced it with some weird aquatic noise room. What were they thinking lol

Very little inside to do. Super warm inside. The cafe was not opened today and the gift shop closed very early. I used the Museum passes through my library to get free tickets but had i paid for this experience i would have been more unhappy. Skip this and go to the Franklin institute instead! This place needs some love.

Smaller natural history museum but if you're looking for a chill place to take your kids who loves dinosaurs this isn't a bad place to make a visit. I took my sons at separate times when my oldest when he was two and now with my youngest two year old. And yes, there were some differences with Covid as the touch and play area was closed. There wasn't any places to eat when we visited. Overall, we had a positive experience, the eyes that light up when they see a huge dinosaur skeleton, there's nothing that beats that. And they also have other animal exhibits.

A few friends and I took our kids to the "Dinos After Dark" exhibition (I think it was called that lol) a few weeks ago and I didn't know what to expect. I hadn't been here since I was a kid myself and to my suprise not much changed which is not a bad thing! I remember it feeling like a way bigger space, but clearly everything looks huge when your 4 lol The kids enjoyed themselves, especially the butterfly exhibit! I was afraid for those poor butterflies on the floor minding their business, but all the children were very careful with them! lol The coolest thing to see was all the people there for date night or just out with their friends. I was sitting there thinking "Why didn't me and my friends do stuff like this?" They even had a little bar with beer and wine. Okay, Academy, I see you.

We took our 2 teenagers and 2 toddlers here. Everyone had a great time. The museum is filled with tons of informative information and we learned a lot. Pros: Educational and interesting for a large age range. Free craft bags for the kids. Cons: Full price entry but multiple exhibits are closed. I counted at least 4 major exhibits. We paid a discounted rate because we came in after 3pm but had we paid full price, I would have felt like we didn't get our money's worth. I think there is a great opportunity to add more interactive options. Not all kids learn the same way and we had to read almost everything to the younger ones. (5 and 3) These days, most museums offer more interaction in their exhibits which increase learning capabilities. Overall it was money with spent and our kids had a blast. The staff was super nice. The museum was clean. One of the 2 bathroom stalls were out of order. Nearby street parking and when you leave, you can cross the street and cool down in the fountain.

This museum is located in the museum district. Very educational. If you are science lover, definitely check out this museum. There are many other museums in the area. At least plan a whole day in this city!

Great museum located centrally in the city. My brother and I were visiting Philly for the hell of it, and walked by this place a few times. The last time we saw they were doing some kind of food and drinks event, so we decided to check it out. There was a very nice mythical animals exhibit going on, in addition to the normal stuffed animals and dinosaurs. I am used to the American Museum of Natural History in NY and hate how they hide their dinosaurs in the back, so having the dinos readily accessible in the front was a great change of pace. Wish it was a bit bigger with more interactive stuff (like the mythical beasts exhibit), however this was well worth a visit. Would definitely come again next time I'm in town!

Okay for realzies, geared more for kids. But who doesn't wanna see some motherf*ckin' dinosaurs, honestly! Well the fossils. But it's awesome seeing a full skeleton of a Tyrannasoarus Rex! Fun date activity if you enjoy learning and seeing specimens. Of course a lot of kids and with kids, come the yelling. So be prepared. The butterfly exhibit is great to visit. There were multiple diorama of taxiderm animals, it was intriguing to observe and information posted regarding each diorama. Another favorite was a mummy. Yes, a real, legit mummy. I think it's on the third floor. I wish the museum had a section with Egyptian artifacts to go with the mummy. But again, the mummy itself I was impressed with. It's actually weird to think how small it is to be honest. Now exhibits are usually 'no touching.' But the meteorite is encouraged to be touched. It's an iron meteorite on display on the... third floor I think. The staff were quite pleasant and chatty. They love to talk and share their knowledge of their exhibits, and of their city. They were very bright, knowledgeable people. The facility is kind of oddly laid out. During our visit some of the exhibits were closed for remodeling and cleaning. Which is understandable. Some of those dioramas have been untouched for decades, they need more than just a little dusting!

The Academy of natural sciences is so well done. I have been lucky enough to attend several events here. I have attended a movie night, and I also have attended a restaurant tasting event. The venue itself is charming, and in a convenient part of town close to many other museums. There is lots to see and do here without feeling overwhelming such is the case at a much larger museum.

Good it was a nice experience and the service was great and I love how you can see the live animals

This place is super underrated. Even by myself. I sometimes forget it is tucked away in center city. It's one of the cheaper museums that should not be ignored. Lots to learn and a ton of interactive stuff. It has a large focus on dinosaurs too. I suspect this one would be really great for children.

Boring and outdated. Took our 6 year old here and it was underwhelming. Should have gone next door to Franklin Institute. Skip this one.

Definitely geared toward children more so than adults but I liked it. It's a small museum that should take no more than two hours to walk through. I especially enjoyed the animal dioramas and detailed information about specific habitats. The geodes were cool as well. The highlight of this particular museum was the volunteer named Thomas. He was working with the reptiles and was so kind to treat me to some detailed information. I learned a lot in a relatively short period of time. Thank you again, Thomas! You deserve major accolades. As far as museums go, this one is slightly above average. I honestly found it a tad pricey considering its limited offerings. I was also disappointed by the fact that the special dinosaur exhibit was an up-charge. And parking is tough! They do not have a garage or lot of their own so you'll have to use the nearby city lots. Beware! It's expensive to park. Walk or Uber if that's a possibility. In short, I think this museum is great for children or if you have limited time. It's enjoyable but definitely a one and done experience. The franklin institute remains my favorite.

Typical museum, unfortunately the best part was the dinosaurs, and they're claiming that's a limited time exhibit. The upstairs is the typical stuffed animal displays. Some of them are interactive. There's the Pangea exhibit where they show you animatronic dinosaurs, and where they came from. All of the staff was super friendly, and I have no complaints. Hopefully they keep the dinosaurs.

I was pleasantly surprised by this museum. On first impression I thought it was small and limited in scope. However on venturing in I was impressed by their dinosaur exhibit and then on climbing upstairs was amazed by their animal dioramas. They also have live animal encounters and nature videos. The place was crawling with children all excited by what they saw. The museum reminded me of the Smithsonian. If you have the time check it out its pretty cool.

I used to attend summer camp at the Academy of Natural Sciences as a kid. I used to be so fascinated by the Dioramas depicting wildlife. I still like them now as an adult. But now my favorite part of the museum is the dinosaur hall. It has a full T-Rex as its centerpiece! You can't see that in too many places! The rest of the hall contains other dinosaur skeletons, eggs, footprints and sculptures. It's an impressive collection. The only thing missing is the massive sized dinosaurs you can see in a couple other museums. It's a small museum, but well worth spending a couple of hours visiting.

Took my 3 & 6 years old to this Museum on a Friday. It is located at downtown area, so parking can be a problem. I saw meter parking outside the back door but of course all full. Parked at 1/2 block away Logan Square garage. Reserved via iparkit app for$9 minus discount $5 code YELP. Net pay $4. Other parking app is $10 & no code available. We walked 1/2 block to enter at back door. Pro: -entered free due to ASTC passport program. We were told there would be $3 per person extra charge for butterfly exhibit and $7 for special Bug exhibit. We didn't have to pay right away. Money would be collected at entry of exhibits upstairs. We were ready to pay for butterfly exhibit but nobody was collecting $ there. Everyone just walked in and out, so did we -Impressive dinosaur exhibit. - kids can spend a long time at free Dino dig area. They used small spongy feel particles instead of sand. Much less messy. -very child friendly. Step stools everywhere to look at displays. Low sink for toddler/ young child in bathroom. -Program throughout the day. We saw 'meet the animals' at the auditorium-- an owl and an opossum. Also up on 3/F, every hour or so there was 'pat a snake' . At a room on 3/F, there was art and craft. - Cafe at Level G. Cafeteria style. We didn't eat there but I saw people eating their Home brought snacks there. Price seemed reasonable for a museum. See my photo for price menu. Place seemed clean. - Everything was indoor and air conditioned. Con: - no parking lot of their own. - 3/F where my kids spent most time was warm, which may due to the reptiles cages in there. Same thing at the butterfly exhibits down on 1/F. - elevators are confusing. Not too stroller friendly. There were two elevators but they served different floors. They were at the opposite ends. So if you want to go straight up, you have to 'transfer '. Of course they were slow also. - plenty of still live animal exhibit big display windows. My kids just walked through them, not too interesting to them. - Butterfly exhibit was small. I wouldn't pay extra for it. Don't expect butterfly would land on you, even the staff said so. However, it's worth seeing if it's free with admission. Overall, my kids spent most time at the Dino area and 3/F where they could touch and play. Easily spent 3 hours there, may be more if I let them. Definitely recommend.

This is a picture-perfect museum for kids (and, of course, adults as well because who doesn't like dinosaurs?). It is filled with dioramas, dinosaurs, fossils, geodes, gemstones, artifacts, mini-documentaries, and activities in which kids can engage and learn. It is the type of place I loved as a child when I used to memorize the name of every sort of reptilian creature, and that same rush of memories flooded me when I entered the door and first gazed upon the dinosaurs in all their grandeur. There is also a butterfly room which is full of beautiful butterflies and moths that fly around you. Lovely opportunity for some photography. And we checked out the mythic creatures exhibit featuring information on dragons, unicorns, and other creatures of yore. Definitely a great activity for the whole family!

This place is great. My son and his friends had a blast visiting all the different exhibits. There were tons of kid friendly exhibits that were great. In the auditorium we saw a live animal show where we learned more about snakes and hawks. The kids loved asking question and seeing the animals up close. The big dig area was a hit. They were able to "dig" and see what uncovered in the earth. Outside in was great. It's a one room super kid friendly area. One door in/out so you can sit on the bench by the door and let your kids explore. The staff is willing to bring out live animals so the kids can see them up close. We visited the café which is very nicely decorated. The food was reasonable with discount for members. We parked across the street (use the place on the website) for discounted parking once you validate. Will I be back? Yes.. In the meantime I'm getting on the mailing list. I saw some cool exhibits coming up soon.

The academy of natural sciences museum consists mainly of Diorama type taxidermy exhibits of various creatures. The dinosaur section is pretty cool. You can gain perspective on how large, and strange-looking these ancient creatures were! The butterfly exhibit is neat if it is your first time with these flittering insects. Little people will love the outside-in exhibit on the 3rd floor: turtle petting, live magnifying camara, and a neat play zone. An adult could blast through the museum in one hour. You can stretch it out if you had kids.

My wife and I visited before and this time we brought he kids along. They loved it! Right around 2 hours was a good amount of time for them (5 and 3 year old), though you could easily stay longer because there is lots to do and see and plentiful information. There are so many incredible animal dioramas - so neat to be face to face with these fascinating animals. There is also a section where they show you how the dioramas are made. The dinosaur section is very cool and there is a kids area where they can dig and learn about fossils. I love that this is a real-time learning center, so there are people doing research and offices around each corner. We enjoyed walking through the butterfly room, though we expected that room to be much bigger. We also enjoyed the live animal demonstration - got to meet an armadillo and large snake! And then on the third floor, there is an interactive kids room for even more hands-on animal learning! We brought a bagged lunch along, but they also have a small cafeteria on the lower level, and a few bathrooms throughout the building.

This museum is great for children but as for adults, I'll pass. It'll take you 45min - 1 hour to see all the exhibits. I was able to come here for the Dino's After Dark event posted on Facebook. This allowed you to pay as you wish while they opened the museum after hours to guests. They offered beer and food as more of an incentive. That to me should have classified the event for 21+ but of course they wanted a wider base. It's no surprise that the event was jam packed. The exhibit worth mentioning would be the Butterflies. Through the doors, past the Dinosaur from NJ lies a Tropically humid room holding a variety of species from different parts of the world. The larvae comes in daily, they head into the incubation chamber and then release them into the room. It turns the exhibit into you being their visitor, as if you were in the wild seeing them face-to-face.

We took the toddler today. She still loves it. The butterfly exhibit and the upstairs kids area are closed but that's understandable. It is worth having the membership because then on days like today we can go for two hours and let her explore. There was good social distancing. Chris Vtrainers Personal Training.

I had such a great time walking around the museum. With three floors and plenty of displays to admire, I will definitely go back. My favorite place was the butterfly room! It was a little humid in there, but that's necessary for the butterflies to survive.

The museum was rather small but it had some nice displays. The unfortunate part is that the Butterfly Exhibit was closed for the day so they took about $3 off of my ticket which I appreciated but sad that I missed the exhibit. This museum only took about 45 minutes to complete but I did stop at the gift shop and got 2 shirts for $30 which is pretty good considering museums are always super high in price. I'm happy with that purchase. It was a nice museum overall. It's no natural history museum in NYC or Washington but it is very nice for what it is.

Took the opportunity to enjoy this museum on Free Museum Day from the Smithsonian. A friend fondly remembered all the dinosaurs from his own youth and birthday parties though says they have built things up and the building seems much smaller now. If you're just adults enjoying some natural history, plan to take about an hour and a half. If you have kids, add time based on interest and playtime. They do push quite a lot of interesting areas and engagement activities for kids, especially on the top floor. We didn't pay for the extra areas but they seemed well attended. The live talk at the dino excavation area was extremely well informed and communicated. If you want to spend some time checking out lots of dinosaurs, interesting biome dioramas from around the globe and some fun "please touch" areas for small creatures, this definitely fits the bill. Located in the big museum area along with the Franklin, access is very easy to walk from public transit or other parking areas.

As far as natural science museums go, this was just average. It wasn't the AMNH in NYC, it wasn't the the California Academy of Sciences. It was just a simple run of the mill natural science museum, with a very kid-friendly focus. As a college student with no children, the mock 'dig for fossils' exhibit and such did not really appeal to me, nor did the screaming children distracting me from the plaques. I think the highlight of this museum for me was the exhibit on the making of dioramas as I hadn't seen that before anywhere else. It was very informative and stressed all the components that go into their creation.

When my son was in his early years, we were members of the Academy of Natural Sciences on Logan Circle, Philadelphia. Our membership entitled us to free entrance into the museum, and discount tickets to the special exhibits they always had coming in. Too, we received some kind of courtesy from the gift shop. It was well worth the drive from Bucks County to explore the dinosaur permanent exhibit, as well as the few interactive corners and events that were available throughout the three story hall. Digging for dinosaur fossils, and touching live reptiles and small mammals, had a profound effect on his young mind, and very likely explains why he now excels in high school science and math. He went from wanting to be a paleontologist when he grew up, to a geologist, once he discovered there was something beyond huge skeletons in the ground. The diorama halls were persuasive in suggesting how various species lived in the wild, and had him imagining he was standing on the savannas of South Africa, watching wildebeests run in a panic from hunting lions. In truth, it wasn't just the kid having these thoughts. It brought that child out of his father, too. We explored the butterfly exhibit before it became permanent, and the frog rooms while available. We watched the nature movies in the theater and encouraged each other to dream big when contemplating our planet and universe. In truth, we were also members of the Museum of Natural History in Manhattan, and went there as often as possible. It was much bigger and better in many ways, but lacked the convenience and crowd management that made the Academy so accessible. No "Night in the Museum," here, unless you were lucky enough to get a cub scout sleepover. If you scored that, anything was possible.

All the exhibits we wanted to see were closed because of covid. So it was a complete waste of time and money. I wish they would have said at the entrance that they were closed. It was kinda boring.

This is the Philadelphia museum that often gets overlooked. It was another place that overwhelmed me as a child. all of the incredible dinosaur skeletons are especially worth checking out. They even have a fun dinosaur robot that should impress the kids 9it's been awhile since I've been, but it was there the last time). The only flaw to the place is the size. It's worthy of getting as much attention as the Franklin Institute and The Art Museum. But it's freakishly small by comparison and often gets overlooked by result. And while it does get in some interesting special exhibits, they aren't as big league as what the Franklin Institute and Art Museum gets.

What a wonderful museum! Kinda small but great for kids! The butterfly exhibit was gorgeous! The live animal show was adorable and the host was so interactive and informative and friendly! Really had a great experience!

Brought our kids here to explore. They had a good time and the best part was walking through the butterfly exhibit. It's pretty hot and humid in there so be prepared. Our kids had a blast seeing all the different butterflies and the cacoons. The dinosaur exhibit was also something different to see. They also had quite a bit of animals on display (stuffed) and during our stay they had a live animal show going on. They also had a ninja turtle station where kids could get their face painted for free. :)

Loved all the dioramas and displays, especially of the old-ass times before the dinosaurs. They have a meteorite that's like 5 billions years old or something, older than the sun and earth, so it was cool being in the presence of that. I'll be back when the butterfly exhibit is open.

The dinosaur & butterfly exhibits are out of this world! The wild animal exhibits are both short but informative for the little ones. They have several people on site doing little demonstrations and informative shows. There were several parties going on and the staff was so patient and awesome with the kids. Looking forward to bringing my future little one here.

For the price, I would not recommend this place. It is really really small we went through the whole place in about 30-40 minutes. The best thing about this place is the live butterfly exhibit! You get to actually walk through the butterflies habitat and see all of them either perching on trees, fruit, or walls. It's really amazing. However be careful because they blend in really well and you might step on one! It's also super hot in there (80 degrees) so take off your jacket first! Overall, if you have the Philadelphia pass and free time, it's worth checking out because it's right next to the Franklin Institute. But, if you're paying per museum I would just walk on over to the Franklin Institute. MUCH better use of your money and time.

Fun times in this expensive relatively small and clean family-friendly museum admiring huge stuffed wild animals from up close, live butterflies in their warm and humid environment, ... The dinosaur exhibition was fine.

I recently went here for the first time since I was in elementry school. The thing I quickly realized is that it seems so much bigger when I was younger. The first floor is great, lots of dinosaurs and other prehistoric beasts. You can even stop and see a real palentologist working on fossis. The rest the museum seemed to be made up of diaromas of animals from around the world. I am a huge fan of the polar bear and bison. We were out of here within a hour so... I"m assuming its a better place when you have younger kids around. But still a lot of fun.

This is an interesting place to visit and I suggest checking it out. My daughter really enjoyed the dinosaurs. The dioramas were interesting too however when we went they were having a bug convention or something like that and people were set up right in front of exhibits making it a little harder to see them. They should of planned that out better. Other than that it was a very enjoyable and educational experience.

I recommend taking the train and the Phlash bus to here. There is no parking near that museum. I love the butterfly exhibit and I am glad they kept it. This is one of my favourite places in the city. Like their ticket says they are naturally awesome.

decided to take my 4 year old daughter here because she mentioned to me she'd like to see dinosaurs. Since it is in the city it can be difficult to find parking. I went on a sunday and was lucky enough to find street parking a block away. Pro tip: if you've attended Drexel University at all and still have your dragon card, it's free for you! for one adult and one child plus the extra fee for the sloth exhibit, it came out to around $46. not bad considering most of the museums for kids are PRICEY! my daughter, of course, began to cry as soon as she saw the t rex. she wasn't expecting it to be so large! it was a fun experience for us. we managed to stay 3 hours which was an all time record. the current exhibit is about sloths, and slow animals. and there was even a cute baby sloth being carried around. it was a great educational trip for my little girl and she already wants to come back and promised not to cry this time!

Came here with my four-year-old son and had a great time. While I do think that the exhibits are geared more towards children who are a little bit older there were certainly activity is that he could enjoy. We came while they were doing a bug exhibit which was really super cool. The butterfly sanctuary is beautiful.

Attended the warren miller film here again his year. Very nice venue, ever changing. Easy parking in the street. The seats in the theater are comfortable. The bathrooms were clean and the entry prices are affordable.

I just recently joined as a member since there seemed to be more adult programs than the Franklin Institute. The last time I visited a month ago, I was pleasantly surprised with a member's preview of the Bizzare Beasts. The artist came to talk about how he molded and build the life-sized beasts. He also talked about his collaborations with scientists, paleontologists, and fossilist to get everything as accurate as possible. A few years ago, I did an adult program with building a bee house with some power tools. It was alot of fun to learn about different pollinators and then get to build my own bee house. I would recommend this place for everyone since it has everything for everyone. Franklin Institute has great success with traveling exhibits as well as provide some great IMAX films both documentaries and blockbusters. However, it lacks in adult programs but makes up with family programming. If you are a science nerd/geek like me, then you will appreciate this more than the Franklin Institute. Besides the adult, family, and member programs, the Academy also holds seminars from their scientific community which is really great. It is pretty much a research institute where you can learn more about birds, fishes, etc. from their staff. Parking is a bit hectic around Logan Square with all the snow this year. But, I found a great place on the weekends behind the Free Library (Callowhill and 19th Street) for only $6.50 all day. For a short seminar, you can just find a parking meter during the day closer to the Academy. Member Benefits and More * Access to special exhibit previews * Discounts to adult and family programs * Lectures and seminars throughout the year * Reciprocal science museum admission with ASTC museums

This is great for kids. You can start from the dinosaur exhibit and work your way up to taxidermic animals. I think all the dinosaur bones are just replicas. There are so many activities for the kiddies like a dinosaur dig on the second floor. There's a live animal section on the top floor with a gigantic bunny, and tutles, spiders, bee, etc. very fun and interactive for the kiddies. There is also a live butterfly exhibit, very humid but educational. You can watch where all the cocoons are hung until the butterflies are ready to come out. They also have a bird exhibit, with no live birds though. It's all just educational stuff, with videos and presentations. They have a game called dance dance evolution where you can dance like a male bird and have female birds vote for the best dancing bird. They also have live animal presentations in the auditorium, but you don't get to touch the animals. Apparently the animals rotate and are random. The presentation was 20 mins to 30 mins. The lady showed us a snake and an iguana. If you have kids, it will be a great family day :)