Kid-friendly museums and science centers around Washington DC
Kids growing up around DC get the most extravagant museum childhood in the world: every Smithsonian is free, there's no pressure to see it all, and you can go on a whim any weekend. The trick is one hall per visit, then out to the Mall lawn or the carousel to let off steam.
The 2-year-old version: Wegmans Wonderplace on the ground floor of American History is built for ages 0–6, the elephant and the whale at Natural History need only a tilted head, and the Building Zone at the National Building Museum gives 2–6s giant blocks and a Great Hall to run in. The big-kid version: Udvar-Hazy in Chantilly has the real shuttle Discovery and a Concorde with no reservation needed, the renovated Air and Space on the Mall is brighter than ever, and KID Museum in Bethesda hands kids real tools for woodworking and robots. The little College Park Aviation Museum costs a few dollars and faces a runway, and for a true children's museum, Port Discovery in Baltimore is an hour away.
- 8 places
- 4 free
- 8 stroller-friendly
- closest is 10 min away
8 places
Drive times from Rockville
College Park Aviation Museum
5.0College Park · 30 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
$ · Parking: Free lot; admission about $5 adults, about $2 ages 2–17
Smithsonian National Museum of American History (Wegmans Wonderplace)
5.0Washington · 35 min drive
2.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Metro to Smithsonian or Federal Triangle and a 5-minute walk; street parking is free on weekends but hard to find
National Building Museum
5.0Washington · 35 min drive
2.5 h · stroller-friendly
$ · Parking: Metro Red Line to Judiciary Square puts you at the door; admission about $10–12 adults, about $7 ages 3–17, free under 3 (check the website)
Port Discovery Children's Museum
5.0Baltimore · 60 min drive
3 h · stroller-friendly
$$ · Parking: Nearby garages about $15–20; admission about $23 per person, free under 2 (check the website)
Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
4.0Washington · 35 min drive
3 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Street parking around the Mall is free on weekends but nearly impossible; Metro to Smithsonian or Federal Triangle and a 5-minute walk
Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (National Mall)
4.0Washington · 35 min drive
2.5 h · stroller-friendly · reservation needed
Free · Parking: Easiest by Metro to L'Enfant Plaza and a 5-minute walk; street parking is free on weekends but almost impossible to find
Udvar-Hazy Center (Air and Space Museum at Dulles)
4.0Chantilly · 35 min drive
3 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Admission free, parking $15/car (free after 4pm); the lot is enormous and never fills
KID Museum
2.0Bethesda · 10 min drive
2.5 h · stroller-friendly · reservation needed
$ · Parking: Free lot shared with the Davis Library; admission about $10–15 per person (check the website)
💡 Good to know
- The Air and Space Museum on the Mall needs free timed passes from its website, gone days ahead on popular dates; Udvar-Hazy and Natural History need no reservation.
- Wonderplace and the Building Zone are both timed and capped: claim a slot first, then see the rest. Be at the doors at 10am on weekends.