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Portland Children's Museum
Rating Details »
Neighborhood: Southwest Portland
4015 SW Canyon Rd
Portland, OR 97221
(503) 223-6500
4015 SW Canyon Rd
Portland, OR 97221
(503) 223-6500
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
10 reviews for Portland Children's Museum
The Portland Children's Museum is good for kids from about 18 months - 3 years. After that it seems like it would be pretty boring.
The infant play area was updated in 2008 and is good for early crawlers and walkers (the water feature in this room is a big hit). The dress up/theater area is okay (the percussion instruments in here are probably the best feature) and kiddos who are learning to climb stairs seem to like the stadium seating. The water area gives me the heeby geebies. Really dirty and it doesn't exactly smell good in there. The water area is really for kids 2+ due to the height of the water tanks. The grocery store checkout area is a huge draw as is the dig pit (although the dig pit is kind of hard to find). The train area is okay but kids seem to like the kid sized bus that's in there more than the trains. I never made it to the clay pit. It's pretty expensive if you only go once but a membership pays itself off quickly.
I must say that my kid got sick nearly every time that we went here...just saying. Once a year they shut down for a week long deep clean, though,so perhaps that is the time to go.
I have enjoyed taking my daughter here for several years. Last night was not one of those times. There was an event held there and we attended per an inviatation. They had all of the play area's open to the kids and had the clay station open as well. We went in and my daughter and BF spent time making things to bring home. When we finished we were told "because it is an after hours event, you can't take the items home BUT if you want a "memory" of it.... you can take a picture". WHAT THE F? Seriously?!?! They didn't say they changed the rules when you were making things, my daughter actually got tears in her eyes. It really put a sour taste in my mouth about this place. I know in general it's a fun place for kids but when you are holding a specialty event, if your rules change, post them.
This is a great place to go on a rainy day. All kinds of shiny sparkly things to catch your child's attention!
We attended a birthday party here and did some awesome crafts. The eating area is nice, so bring your snacks along with you.
The membership seemed steep, so we passed on that. They have a great water area and a way cool castle! You can be a dragon...fun!
This is an interesting place, but doesn't blow me away. I've had family memberships to the Oregon Zoo, World Forestry Center and OMSI, but never sprang for it at this place. I've been here for a few birthday parties and also brought the kids here on a few rainy weekend afternoons.
My kids spend most of their time in the castle section where they get to wear dragon tails and chase the girls and in the grocery/cafe section pretending to shop and serve food. They also like the water play area.
The museum is very spread out, so if you have more then one kid, it can be difficult to keep them contained in one area. In particular, for the birthday parties, the kids went everywhere so they don't necessarily play together after the celebration in the party room. The pottery area looks great, but we haven't spent any time there yet.
For some reason this place, more then any of the others museums, gives me the heebie-jeebies about germs. How many kids have touched that?!? Yes, I also avoid the ball pit at McDonalds.
I can vouch for their security system. This is the one place I had a child wander away from me and get lost. I was in the lobby enquiring about a membership and the little guy got bored and wandered into the museum. They have a lot of staff with walkie-talkies in all of the zones and immediately located him for me. I was calm until they found him and then had a complete parental meltdown.
This place is great, especially for preschool age children. I found the balance between girl and boy-related activities to be great for families. I've been here twice and both times had to drag my 4 year old out because he loved it so much. I also had a baby's 1 st birthday party there and it couldn't have worked out better. It's extremely affordable and there is something for everyone. You can bring your own food and they don't nickel and dime you like other places. Parking is the only bummer.
They have had an insane price increase for memberships this last year, but unfortunately it is very worth it. They do individual programs and sing-a-longs. They also have the best prices for personalized pottery. My daughter absolutely loves coming here and we spend half the day every time. They are always updating and remodeling so there is lots of variety. The face painting area is a hit every time. One thing I have noticed is that moms tend to like this place better than dads. And my friends with multiple children tend to avoid CM because everything is so spread out.
Make sure to check out:
puppet shows
toddler sing-a-long
pottery tuesdays
story time
the lockers are free, you just need a quarter for a deposit!
Be sure to bring your own lunch, they have a great eating area.
On the bad side:
They have the gift store right in front so that while you are waiting in line, you child may be tearing apart the gift items!
I have yet to enjoy one of their exhibits.
The microwave is broken in the eating area.
We really enjoyed our visit to the Portland Children's Museum on our trip in April 2007. My kid's favorite part was the Water Works, and since we enforced a strict "smock required" rule they stayed relatively dry. My son really enjoyed the Building Bridgetown exhibit, where he was able to put plumbing in the walls, and then put the outer wall up. They also enjoyed the KidCity Market where they were able to push grocery carts around, pick up fake food, and check out at the registers. One of the coolest exhibits in my opinion was the theater. They had a real stage with working curtains, and the kids could turn each of the stage lights up and down with dials, and make special effect noises by pushing buttons on a control panel. They had costumes to dress up in, and a working ticket booth. We'll definitely be back on our next trip to Portland.
BOOO-RRRING!
The water section is mildly amusing at best, and that's one of the best features of this place. The only other plus is the clay play area. The "music room" has 1 xylaphone, 2 drums, and one percussion box... I have more that that at home!
I moved here from the Bay area in Cali, and love it up here, except I was sorely dissappointed with the children's museum.
They could really use some lessons from the Children's Discovery Museum - http://www.cdm.org/ind...
Now, THERE'S a fun place. I wish I could have taken it up here with me!
I really enjoyed taking my kids to the Portland Children's Museum on our visit to Portland in September 2008. This museum is definitely geared for toddlers and preschoolers. Everything is little sized. Perfect for my 4 and 2 year old. They have a grocery store with little shopping carts and plastic foods and boxed stuff. It's so cute. The checkout stands are awesome. Then, the tool/builder area is cool. My guys really loved it. Plus, they loved the digging area. Not sand, but chunks of rubber. Perfect. No sand in the eyes and not a problem if they fall! I love it! My kids didn't want to leave....
Just across the parking lot from the zoo/max station, so totally easy to take the Max from downtown!
We have been taking my son since this past summer. Enjoyable visit each time, but it gets crowded on the weekends. My favorite visit was on the Fourt of July. They had a 'campout' and we sang silly songs. Overall a great place to take the little ones. Just enjoyed the Five Friends from Japan exhibit. My sons favorite is probably a toss up between the water area and the giant xylophone. Watch out for the price.... it's a bit steep. $95 for a yearly memership almost seems like a rip off, but what else are you gonna do?