Visiting with Kids
The Smithsonian is a place for all ages! We hope this information can help you have an enjoyable visit.
Things to know:
- Admission is free at all locations except Cooper Hewitt in New York City. For the four locations that require entry passes or tickets, all visitors, regardless of age, must have a pass or ticket.
- Entrance lines to our museums and zoo can be quite long, especially during busier times of the year and on weekends.
Amenities
We encourage you to limit the number of personal belongings and bags you bring into our facilities as they will be subject to a thorough search. Limiting the items you bring will increase your speed through security checkpoints.
The following museums currently offer visitor lockers/storage:
- African American History and Culture Museum
- American Art Museum/National Portrait Gallery (F Street entrance only)
- American History Museum
- Asian Art Museum (Freer and Sackler)
- Hirshhorn Museum (temporarily out of service)
- Natural History Museum
- Postal Museum
- Udvar-Hazy Center (VA)
Visitors should not leave personal belongings unattended, nor leave them stored at one museum while visiting other sites.
Restrooms at all museums and the zoo can accommodate families, through baby changing tables, care spaces, and accessible spaces. Please check with the visitor desk when you arrive to inquire about specifics.
All mothers are welcome to breastfeed in any space that is open to the public.
If you would prefer to nurse in private, the following Smithsonian sites have dedicated lactation rooms:
- National Air and Space Museum (DC location)
- National Museum of African American History and Culture
- National Museum of American History
- National Museum of Natural History
- National Postal Museum
- Smithsonian's National Zoo
Please check at any information desk for specific locations and for options at those sites not listed here.
Strollers are welcome at all locations. However, Zoo visitors cannot bring strollers, baby carriages, or other conveyances, except wheelchairs, into exhibition buildings and public restrooms.
All buildings are accessible and at least one entrance is accessible to visitors with limited mobility. View our Accessibility Map (PDF) for accessible entrances, parking, and more.
Family Activities
This is a small sample of activities that you and your family can enjoy together. We have something for young people of all ages from tots to teens! Or view family friendly exhibitions
Air and Space Museum Discovery Stations and Science Demonstrations
Look out for carts around the Washington, D.C., and Virginia locations, where you can engage in a hands-on, facilitated activity.
Ages: Activity dependent
Air and Space Museum Northrop Grumman Planetarium
Feel the sensation of zooming through the cosmos, enveloped in color saturated moving images and spine-tingling sound at the National Air and Space Museum on the National Mall.
Ages: All ages
Air and Space Museum Udvar-Hazy Center (VA) Ride Simulators
Fly with the Wright Brothers and the Tuskegee airmen, pilot military aircraft, or go on a spacewalk—all without leaving the Museum. Simulator rides are a fun addition to any visit to the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. Tickets are required to ride (fee), no advance reservations available.
Ages: Various height restrictions
American Art Museum Family Activities
Bring your young, budding artists and participate in fun hands-on activities at the Smithsonian American Art Museum that will be sure to spark their creativity! Visit the Luce Center to check out secret eye miniatures, audio tours, cool jewelry, and scavenger hunts.
Ages: Various
American History Museum Spark!Lab
Hands-on space for children to create, collaborate, explore, test, experiment, and invent.
Ages: 6-12
American History Museum Wegmans Wonderplace
This 1,700-square-foot interactive space in the National Museum of American History provides the youngest historians with age-appropriate activities and experiences.
Ages: 0-6
American Indian Museum imagiNATIONS Activity Center, DC
The family-friendly imagiNATIONS Activity Center provides young visitors a lively space with a wide variety of learning experiences. The cultural and scientific knowledge of Indigenous peoples reflects a tradition driven by innovation that is unique and universal. Visitors may explore some of these ingenious adaptations through a variety of play-based interactives.
Ages: 10 and under
American Indian Museum imagiNATIONS Activity Center, NY
The interactive, family-friendly imagiNATIONS Activity Center provides visitors a lively space to explore scientific principles behind Native innovations and technologies that are so ingenious, many remain a part of our daily lives.
Ages: 10 and older
Asian Art Museum Family Programs
Discover resources designed with kids in mind that you can use in the galleries for a family outing.
Ages: Various
Hirshhorn Guide for Visiting with Kids
There’s something for kids of every age: artworks that spark conversations and inspire new ways of thinking. The Museum’s unique shape is perfect to explore as a family—no art history required.
Ages: Various
Natural History Museum
Highlights include the Insect Zoo and live Butterfly Pavilion (temporarily closed).
Ages: Various
Portrait Gallery Family Activities
Designed to “inform, involve, and inspire,” Portrait Gallery programs invite the discovery of art and history through a variety of hands-on activities. Kids ages eighteen months to eight can enjoy the Explore! Space with a variety of activities and experiences.
Ages: Various
Postal Museum
Meet Owney the Dog, the mascot of the Railway Post Office. He is just one of the 10 fun things to do with kids at the museum.
Ages: 12 and under
Smithsonian Associates' Discovery Theater
The best in live performing arts, this venue provides a variety of educational and cultural programs for both kids and adults.
Ages: All ages
Smithsonian's National Zoo
For a break, visit the Me and the Bee Playground, located next to Kids' Farm, where children of all ages can “shrink” to bee-size! Take a ride on the wild side! Located across from the Zoo’s Lemur Island, the Speedwell Foundation Conservation Carousel features dozens of custom-carved and hand-painted animals. Stomp in the shallow waters of American Trail's Tide Pool Squirt Zone, weather permitting.
Ages: Various
Smithsonian Theaters
Our IMAX theaters at the National Air and Space Museum on the National Mall and its Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia offer immersive movie-going experiences.
Ages: Film dependent