One of our favorite activities when visiting new places with our kids is exploring museums we know they'll enjoy. That’s where the Chicago Children's Museum comes in. We've never been to a children's museum before because we'd heard some negative things about the San Diego Children's Museum, not well-run, and not supervised properly by staff or even parents.
On the other hand, we heard fantastic things about the Chicago Children's Museum, and it had solid reviews on Google, TripAdvisor, and Yelp. This made it a must-visit for us, especially since it was only about half a mile from where we were staying during our trip to Chicago.
The first thing you notice after passing the front desk are the steps leading up to a bunch of activities. I loved that each step was labeled with numbers and letters of the alphabet. And, no surprise, our kids went up and down them twice just to recite the numbers and letters. No shock there, they totally did!
At the top of the steps, the first thing both of my kids noticed was something they could climb, no surprise there, given how active they are. It was a net tunnel that they eagerly scrambled up. Once they reached the top, they could walk, run, or hop across a bouncy bridge, which they, of course, did multiple times. I appreciated that there were employees monitoring the entrance to the net climb, ensuring that not too many kids were on it at once, so everyone stayed safe.
At this point, the kids decided to go in two different directions, so my wife and I had to split up to keep an eye on both. I went with our older child, who was eager to build a skyscraper. We ended up spending nearly an hour there while he figured out the best way to make his skyscraper stable. We built and took it apart several times before he finally settled on his design. I have to say, I was pretty impressed. I helped him with the construction, but almost all of the design ideas were his, inspired by own thoughts and some examples on display at the museum.
And of course, no children's museum adventure would be complete without a water play area. This section was pretty awesome, with lots of interactive features focused on cause and effect. But for most of the kids, it was all about just having fun in the water. I appreciated that they provided raincoats to keep the kids mostly dry, unless they decided to pour water all over their shoes, which, luckily, mine didn’t! We spent a good 30 to 45 minutes here. There was also a staff member supervising to ensure the kids weren’t running or splashing water on each other, though he did have to chase after a little one, maybe 2 or 3 years old, who ran out of the room. The parent wasn’t even inside. They were lounging on a couch outside. Seriously, how do you not keep an eye on your little kid?
After finally getting them out of the water play area, we wandered into a few rooms that were more focused on imaginative play, like a pretend car wash and a fire truck. They played on these for a few minutes, but I noticed our kids were steering clear of these areas. It seemed like some parents had just dropped off their kids and were sitting outside, so the supervision was a bit lax. Some of the kids were playing too rough for our little ones, who, despite loving to wrestle with me, aren't really into fighting or constantly bumping into other kids.
Uh-oh, we discovered another climbing area, and this one quickly became the kids' favorite. It was called the Cloud Buster, a 37-foot-tall structure where kids could climb and navigate through various obstacles. They wore helmets for safety—thank goodness—because my youngest bumped his head a couple of times while squeezing through different entrances.
I ended up climbing through this area with them because my youngest got stuck while making his way up the Cloud Buster. Naturally, the path he chose wasn’t meant for adults, so I had to wiggle my way through. But we eventually made it to the top, and I had a blast up there with them!
If you find yourself in Chicago, Illinois with kids, I highly recommend the Chicago Children's Museum. It’s a blast and located right on Navy Pier, so you’ll have plenty of other activities to enjoy—there’s great food, a big Ferris wheel, and more. The museum is well-organized, balancing safety with allowing kids the freedom to explore and have fun.