Museum of Life and Science (Outdoor)

433 West Murray Ave, Durham, NC

Did you just recently get a membership to the Museum of Life and Science in Durham for Christmas? We did, and we’ve been visiting almost every week since!

Not to be confused with the Museum of Natural Sciences in Downtown Raleigh, the Museum of Life Science in Durham is a huge museum with both an indoor and outdoor section. The outdoor section is much larger than I realized and it will remind you of the NC Zoo, complete with animals and all! It’s definitely worth the money and the drive to check out at least once.

This review is going to focus on the outdoor portion of the museum. There is also an indoor portion, which you can spend a lot of time in as well. The exhibits inside are geared a little bit more for older children, but there is an indoor play space for younger kids and few fun hands-on exhibits that kids of all ages will enjoy!

Sound Garden and Gateway Park

As you enter the outside portion of the museum you will be greeted with a natural play space for the kids to climb and explore. We always spend quite a bit of time here since the kids love making it a type of obstacle course challenge.

Nearby you’ll also find the sound garden, where you can bang on everything from a windchime to a metal pan. You’ll hear lots of “music” being made here!

Hideaway Woods

One of the newer exhibits is Hideaway Woods. As described on the website: “Hideaway Woods is a two-acre, nature discovery environment featuring treehouses, a flowing streambed, and fanciful nature sculptures.”

The tree house is awesome and I am not ashamed to admit that I personally enjoy it. Some of the climbing is quite challenging. I went with my 3.5 year old daughter and she had a hard time. There’s no way my little boy (almost 2) could manage it.

There’s also a smaller natural playground area that is mostly fenced in and perfect for the 6 and under crowd. There’s only one fairly small opening to enter/exit. Both my kids love this playground, but my daughter really loves the stream. Ankle to knee deep water (for toddlers) is super refreshing after a long day of play. This area also has nice bathrooms and changing facilities because your kids are gonna get wet!

Side note: Stroller and a change of clothing is a must!!

If you have kids of multiple ages, this place is great. The big kids can play at the at the treehouse while the younger ones play at the nearby stream. We’ve spent an entire morning in this section and not gone anywhere else, but there is much more to see!

Farmyard

Another thing to check out on your visit is the farmyard. You can meet pigs, cows, alpacas, chickens, goats and donkeys. The Animal Keepers are always around teaching the children about the animals.

Butterfly and Insect House

You can continue your walk (and you will be grateful for the stroller at this point) to the butterfly and insect house. The insect part is a nice indoors place that has a/c, so it’s a good escape on a hot day. They have some really strange bugs, a working beehive, and the butterfly house? It’s gorgeous, green and lush – beautiful butterflies all around. It’s good for kids of all ages.

Sprout Cafe

Next to the butterfly house is Sprout Café, which is not a bad place to grab a bite to eat. Life and Science museum allows spill proof cups and small snacks, so you may want to pack a snack before you leave home.

Train Ride for an extra cost

The Sprout café is near the train station and another set of bathrooms. We’ve only done the train ride one time. It’s 2 loops around the park so you’ll love it if you have a train enthusiast. But, truth be known Pullen Park $1 train rides totally have me spoiled and we usually save our train excursions for there. Plus, there is so much else to do at Life and Science that my kids rarely even ask for a ride. If you do want to ride, you have to purchase tickets for a select time when you buy your entrance tickets for the day.

Dinosaur Trail

The dinosaur trail is another big favorite of ours. Imagine your little one’s face light up when they go around the corner and see larger than life dinosaurs. It’s pretty amazing. My little boy will grab my hand and literally drag me to each dinosaur… and they have several!! Including one you can touch and climb on.

The fossil dig is pretty neat too but it is muddy and messy. I highly recommend bringing extra clothes and possibly shoes.

The museum is 84 acres, and often times we never make it past this point before we have to leave. BUT, there is much more to do!! See, totally worth the money ;).

Misting Zone

My kids love the misting zone, but we don’t always get to it because its to the back of the park. It’s a nice way to cool off from the heat in the summer though!

Wolves, Lemurs, and Bears

The back section of the park also houses a zoo area, with lemurs, bears and wolves. The animals are fairly spaced out, and this area is a good bit of walking. Usually we hit it towards the end of our day – when then kids don’t mind a stroller ride.

Catch the Wind

Catch the Wind has some of the more fascinating exhibits, in my opinion. You can control your own sailboat in the pond, shoot wind, and send seeds up in the sky and try to catch them as they fall back down. My kids sending seeds up the crane and can spend a lot of time here!

Earth Moves

Earth Moves is the new exhibit that just opened last year. It’s all about the materials that make and shape our planet. You can scoop dirt, carve sand, build with rocks, and of course play in the waterfall. Here’s another one of those reasons to bring a change of clothes!

So, that is most but certainly not all of the outdoor activities at the Museum of Life and Science. Just a sneak peek so you’ll want to visit yourself!

Admission Cost

So, the cost. It’s a tad expensive, especially since so many children activities in the triangle area are free or relatively cheap.

Adults are $18 and children 3-12 are $13. A train ride is another $3-4/person, depending on whether you are a member or not. A family of 4 membership cost us $155 and pays for itself pretty quickly, especially since Life and Science is now part of the AZA reciprocal benefits program. You can use your membership to get into aquariums and zoos nationwide for either free or 50% off. Plus members get admission at 9:00 am (at least during the summer months) so you can beat some of the crowds. Parking is free.

It’s worth the money.

So here is a recap:

It’s worth the drive.
Good for all ages.
Bring a stroller, snacks and a change of clothes and shoes
Much of the outside portion has tree shade – nice during the hot summer months
Consider a membership – it will pay for itself in just a few visits
Perhaps skip the train and ride it at Pullen Park instead
It can be crowded – it’s a popular place, and for good reason.

You could easily spend most of the day outdoors and never even see the indoor exhibits. There is a TON to do

What do you think? Do you like it? Love it?

What is your favorite part??