Richardson Nature Center — Attraction in Bloomington

We just had our daughter's 7th birthday party at Richardson, and I can't speak highly enough about it. The rental price gave us a large room and an hour with Heidi, one of their naturalists, and then another hour on our own for presents and treats. It's a pretty great deal, very competitive with other similar birthday party offerings. The room had a sink and good counter space, tables and chairs were all set up, and the white boards were decorated with colorful birthday messages for the birthday girl.

Heidi was amazing! She engaged the kids and had them answering questions and totally involved. The kids got to meet a snake and take turns holding it, and then we went pond dipping and talked about the creatures that live in the pond. Heidi was lively and warm, and obviously loved her job and enjoyed being with the kids.

After the kids were done with cupcakes and presents, they spent the remainder of the time in the nature center, looking at animals, dressing in costumes, putting on puppet shows, or exploring in general. The staff checked in on us to see if we needed anything, but everything went so smoothly! They weren't in a particular hurry to get us out of the room, so we were able to take care of clean up and packing things up without feeling rushed.

Overall, it was an amazing experience. I don't know that I can think of anything that could have been improved. We felt very welcomed and well cared for. The nature center is really kid friendly, and I could really see our family coming here more often for lots of other...

Our preschool classrooms at Eden Prairie Montessori have been visiting Richardson Nature Center for over 10 years, and it continues to be one of the absolute highlights of our summer.

Each visit is a wonderful experience from start to finish. Upon arrival, we are warmly welcomed and thoughtfully divided into small groups, each led by a Richardson Nature Center staff member. These educators are not only highly knowledgeable and well-prepared, but also incredibly friendly and engaging.

The activities offered are always age-appropriate, hands-on, and thoughtfully planned. Whether we’re learning about bee pollinators, catching bugs in the field, or discovering pond creatures, the children are consistently fascinated and inspired. The staff at Richardson go above and beyond to make each visit memorable, bringing learning tools and real-life experiences that spark curiosity and joy.

We are so grateful for the partnership we’ve built over the years and can’t thank the team at Richardson Nature Center enough for their continued excellence, creativity, and dedication. We truly love coming here, and we look forward to many more visits to come!

With gratitude, Eden...

Gorgeous trails with beautiful views and sights of the ski jump in the distance on some of them. Most of thr trails are bark chip, so not accessible to less rugged strollers. They have an area with sticks and logs for the kids to build forts and the indoor area has tanks with small reptiles, a small nature play area, a raptor area and an indoor viewing area where they have birdfeeder and beehives set up outside. One of the coolest things in that area was a glass beehive with a tunnel to the outside so you could see the bees at work on the honeycomb...