By: Ashlea Halpern | From: Conde Nast Traveler

 

While there are several children’s museums that have climbing gyms, tot-scaled supermarkets, and STEAM-inspired tinkering labs, what makes an institution really stand out from the pack is its creative play spaces. At the Children’s Museum of Eau Claire in Wisconsin, for example, kids scramble up the tongue and slide out the bum of a digestive track-themed indoor playground. Then there are the record-breaking exhibits like the world’s largest Triceratops fossil skeleton, a.k.a. Big John, which is on display at the Glazer Children’s Museum in Tampa, Florida. As for the places that dedicate space to deep dives on unique and important subjects, the Bronzeville Children’s Museum in Chicago is the first and only African-American children’s museum in the country. (And it goes all in on Black inventors.)

The DoSeum in San Antonio, Texas

Best for: prospective spies and roboticists

STEM is the star of the show at this decade-old haven targeting children ages 0 to 10. Among its more than 100 bilingual experiences is a clever Spy Academy, which invites kids to put on their special agent caps and crack top-secret codes, and a dedicated Sensations Studio for experimenting with light and sound. A bubble lab, robot arena, musical staircase, ADA-accessible treehouse, and splashy outdoor water features—a welcome foil to the relentless Texas heat—round out the offerings. Don’t miss DoSeum’s newest interactive exhibit either: “Emotions at Play with Pixar’s Inside Out” is the first based on the popular Disney film and helps little kids with big feelings explore their rollercoaster of emotions.

Where to stay for families in San Antonio: