Philadelphia's Please touch museum is a parent's dream come true. As the name implies, everything is there for the sole entertainment and education of it's visitors under the age of seven.
Housed in Fairmount Parks' memorial hall, the museum is seemingly never-ending. There are exhibits to please all ages, from just barely crawling to
almost school aged.
There is a city bus to climb on, a full supermarket, shoe store, a hospital equipped with a mini MRI machine, to list just a few of the permanent exhibits.
Our favorite room by far was the exercise room, part of the get up and grow initiative promoting healthy living to children. Complete with styrofoam barbells, miniature treadmills and a climbing wall, this room alone is absolutely worth the visit, my two kids (ages two and a half and one) could have spent the entire day in there.
If you forget to pack a lunch, the cleverly named Please Taste Cafe has a surprisingly healthy array of kid friendly options that transcend the usual mac and cheese and pizza options (although those are also available), including a create your own pasta bar.
On a final note, I was pleasantly surprised with how helpful the staff were in each room. They were interactive and attentive, which was a huge bonus for me since it was just me and two kids. We were fortunate that we went on a quiet day, as I know the museum can be crowded on the weekends and school holidays. As a quick tip - there are no school groups on Mondays so that is a good day to visit, and afternoons tend to be quieter.
No trip would be complete without a ride on the carousel, and if you do end up spending the whole day there is a parade every afternoon in the great hall.
Admission is steep at $16 per person over age one with an extra $3 for the carousel, but truly this museum has so much to offer that it is well worth it. We intended to go for a few hours and ended up spending almost the whole day there.
The membership packages are reasonable and a great option if you live locally. Now that I know how great it is we will certainly be back. With a membership you can pop in for just a quick visit and it will pay for itself in just a few trips.