History

One of the oldest museums in the country and the reason most local kids know it is the two ancient Egyptian mummies on permanent display. Beyond that there is Hudson River School landscape painting, Albany silver, and rotating exhibits on regional history. It is small enough to see properly in ninety minutes which suits families better than a sprawling institution. Staff run family art workshops and drop-in activities on select weekends. A short walk from the state museum so you can chain both in one downtown Albany afternoon.

The battleship where Japan formally surrendered in 1945, moored on Ford Island and open to walk through from the teak deck down into the ships interior. Kids stand on the surrender deck, sit in the wardroom, climb up to the bridge and look down the sixteen-inch gun barrels. Guided tours go below into crew quarters and the engine spaces. Large parts are enclosed which makes it workable in rain, though the main deck is open. Reached by the Ford Island shuttle from the Pearl Harbor visitor center.

Three floors telling the story of Texas, anchored by the recovered wreck of La Belle, a French ship from 1686 displayed as an actual excavated hull. Kids respond to the shipwreck, the Goddess of Liberty statue in the atrium, and the full-size artifacts far more than to the wall text. An IMAX theater on site runs both documentaries and current releases, which is a useful rainy-afternoon backup. Right across from the Capitol so you can combine both in one downtown trip. Free family days and hands-on carts run on select weekends.

The only royal palace on American soil, home of Hawaiis last monarchs and a genuinely moving place to bring older kids. Guided and audio tours take you through the throne room, the grand staircase and the upstairs room where Queen Liliuokalani was imprisoned after the overthrow. The palace had electric light and telephones before the White House did, which is the detail kids remember. Everyone wears booties over their shoes to protect the koa floors. Tours run on a schedule so book ahead, and note it is not a place for restless toddlers.

A small two-building museum in Lihue covering the natural and cultural history of Kauai and Niihau, from the islands volcanic formation to the sugar plantation era. Kids respond to the koa wood canoes, feather work, and the shell lei from Niihau. A relief map of the island helps explain why the interior is impassable and why the Napali coast looks like that. It is genuinely small, about an hour, which makes it a reasonable stop when a Kauai downpour parks itself over the island. Gift shop has good local crafts.

A collection of full-size locomotives and rail cars including massive steam engines, a Pullman sleeper, and vintage passenger coaches. Kids get to walk through cars rather than just look at them, which is the whole appeal when you are five and obsessed with trains. Guided tours explain how the equipment worked and why Texas rail mattered. Part of the collection sits outdoors on track so check the forecast, but the indoor exhibits and tour building work on a wet day. The scale of the steam locomotives up close is hard to convey until you are standing next to one.

Three floors of baseball history in a small upstate village, and a pilgrimage for any kid who plays. The Plaque Gallery with every inducted player is the emotional centre, but the artifact halls are what hold kids: game-worn jerseys, Babe Ruths bat, World Series rings and a locker room exhibit with a stall for every team. A short film in the Grandstand Theater sets it up well for younger kids. Cooperstown itself is walkable with baseball card shops on every corner. Two to three hours inside, more if your kid reads every plaque.

A much bigger and better museum than the name suggests, built around Western art, rodeo history and a full-scale indoor frontier town called Prosperity Junction that kids can walk through street by street. There is a childrens cowboy corral with dress-up gear, a stagecoach and a barn area. Galleries cover Native American art, firearms, and the reality of ranch work versus the movie version. The End of the Trail sculpture in the entry hall is enormous. Half a day and it sits right next to Science Museum Oklahoma.

A museum about women of the American West that is far more fun than that description suggests. The bucking bronc simulator is the thing every kid lines up for, and yes there is video. Exhibits cover rodeo champions, ranchers, and Wild West performers with enough saddles, boots and costumes to hold attention. It is on the small side which makes it a good second stop rather than a whole day. Sits in the Cultural District within walking distance of the science and art museums.

A large state history museum across from the Capitol with five galleries covering everything from the land runs and the Dust Bowl to Oklahoma aviation and the space program. Hanging aircraft, a full oil derrick and a Route 66 section give kids big physical things to look at rather than pure text. The Dust Bowl exhibit with recorded accounts lands hard with older kids. There is an outdoor Red River Journey trail for when the weather cooperates. Two to three hours and rarely crowded.

A small museum in a former bank building on the Hilo Bayfront about the 1946 and 1960 tsunamis that destroyed this exact neighbourhood. Survivor accounts, photographs and a wave tank explain how tsunamis form and why Hilo was hit so hard twice. Kids can see the high water marks and understand that the empty park across the street used to be a downtown. It is genuinely sobering, so it suits school-age kids and teens more than little ones. Under an hour and a short walk from the Mokupapapa center.

Two working seaplane hangars on Ford Island that still carry bullet holes from December 7, 1941, filled with restored aircraft from that day forward. Kids see a Japanese Zero, a B-25 bomber and Cold War jets up close, plus a restoration shop where volunteers work on planes in view. Flight simulators let older kids fly a mission and are usually an extra ticket. The setting does most of the work here because you are standing inside the actual buildings. Reached by shuttle bus from the Pearl Harbor visitor center.

A real World War II submarine you go down inside and walk through end to end, which is the kind of thing kids talk about for years. The passages are genuinely tight, the bunks are stacked beside torpedoes, and an audio tour explains what life aboard was actually like. An adjoining indoor museum holds torpedoes, a Poseidon missile and submarine artifacts. It is at the Pearl Harbor visitor center so it slots in alongside the memorial and aviation museum. Not suitable for strollers and small kids need to manage steep ladders.

A world-class museum campus spread across 121 acres on the shore of Blue Mountain Lake that tells the story of the Adirondacks through interactive exhibits, historic buildings, and outdoor experiences. Kids love the Life in the Adirondacks exhibit, the rustic log hotel, and the working blacksmith shop. The campus includes a boathouse with historic guideboats, an indoor nature exhibit, and walking trails along the lake. Plan for at least half a day as there is far more here than you would expect.