U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum — Attraction in Colorado Springs

Rating - 3.5 stars. My wife and I visited last weekend, and I've thought about this review all week. I want to leave 5 stars, but I can’t. I started watching the Olympics at age 6 in 1964, and haven’t missed one since. I am a huge fan of the competition, the drama and the human excellence on display every two years.

The building is spectacular, inside and out. Galleries are well and logically organized and there’s plenty of space to move around. The entrance is very cool and there’s lots to absorb right away. You pay, sign in and are taken to a kiosk where you get a lanyard that is supposed to enhance your visit with a more personal experience. Most of the exhibits read your lanyard. We did not find this to add a great deal to our visit. And while certain information was forwarded to your “digital wallet” (email) this was not particularly useful either. The whole lanyard/tech thing was a miss for us.

You take an elevator to the top and make your way down. The galleries open up to a large central open space. The highlights are the complete collections of both the torches and medals in the modern era. The 2nd gallery is a hands on, immersive concept where you are supposed to be able to try some Olympic events. You can race against track athletes, but all are Parathletes except Jesse Owens. How about Usain Bolt?! The games are not very real feeling or looking, and we found nothing that was either fun or interesting, and based on what were hearing from others, it’s a common problem.

The biggest drawback is the over emphasis on Paralympians. I’ve have never seen a single para event – ever. I know they train as hard as non-Paralympians, but I am just not interested, and I suspect I am not alone in this. While a LOT of time and space is given over to the Paralympics, SO many regular Olympic sports and athletes were either minimized or left out altogether. Where was the special display for Carl Lewis? Not only is he arguably the greatest US sprinter of all time, but probably the first real track star. And if you're going to have a piece on doping, how can you not include Marion Jones? There was a mention of beach volleyball (women only) how about the indoor game, and/or the men? How about some very old Olympic sports like equestrian and sailing, both of which go back to the start of the modern era?

I realize it is about impossible to give a spotlight to all who deserve, but there really were quite a number that felt conspicuous by their absence.

Then there was the docent in the 2nd to last gallery. I know he is there to help and answer questions, but he was quite intrusive. We frankly tried to avoid engaging with him. I was in front of the display about the “Miracle on Ice” and he came up and started talking to me. I told him I had watched it live in 1980 with my best friend. He said I had missed the best artifact on display about that game, the original scoreboard. In fact, I had not missed it. Sometimes it is best to leave people alone.

Every bench should be replaced – they are incredibly uncomfortable with very sharp edges and hard as rocks.

At $24 for a regular entrance fee, it is not cheap, but I would still consider it good value. I hope they will consider reducing the Paralympic content and focus more on mainstream...

Enjoyable experience. Will be a while before I go through it again mainly due to price.

The parking seems waaaaaay expensive ($15) considering the $25/adult admission. Recommend going during a non peak time and just paying for 2-3 hours at the meter.

Pictures are allowed even encouraged unless otherwise specifically directed by the staff. I didn’t take many, just cause I’m more one to enjoy an exhibit for its own sake.

Experience with the staff was good for some and okay for others. Overall friendly and helpful, but seemed not very open to conversation. The gentleman who provided more in depth info about the olympic torches exhibit was great! He helped us understand the history of some of the torch models and was over all very knowledgeable. Throughout the rest of the museum, the staff seemed more like direction and safety staff. And at times we felt rushed through certain interactive exhibits even though there was no one in line behind us.

Exhibits featuring the torches, medals, and equipment used by athletes was my favorite part of the experience.

Interactive exhibits were okay… there was a mock curling floor near the entrance which was fun. Wasn’t a huge fan of the interactive screens. If I wanted info from a screen, I can get that from my phone or computer at home. A couple of the more “game type” interactive exhibits seemed broken or had tracking failures, and others felt like basic Wii games. Still some were cool, and it’s worth trying them out.

Would love to see more practical exhibits like that of the curling floor and the “run vs Olympiad” simulator. A little more world history around each Olympics would be fantastic as well!

Over all enjoyable, and worth going if you haven’t been yet. Would have stayed longer if I had put more money in the meter, but we got through the majority of it in less than 2 hours. The person who enjoys reading every word will likely spend 2/3 times more time, so plan your day accordingly if you really want to experience Aaaaallll of it.

Will return eventually and especially if they add like a speed rock wall or...

I'm sad to say that I was very disappointed with my visit to this museum yesterday. The exterior looked beautiful which added to my excitement of being there. Once inside, we had to wait at least 15-20 minutes to get a ticket. The line wasn't long, only 4 people ahead of us, but only 1 register was working and the staff seemed to be very disorganized. We did not opt for a guided tour, and maybe that would have been better? I felt bad for the Olymipian that was at the "meet and greet" table. She had competed in weight lifting, yet I didn't see 1 display covering this sport throughout the museum. Actually, there were so many sports that I never saw at the museum, such as ski jumping, bi-athalon, rowing, and what about the sports that are no longer a part of the Olympics? There was nothing about those. (Google it, there are numerous events) Then the interactive sports, wow, lame! I tried skeleton and continually to try to throw myself out of the track, but it wouldn't let me. I can compete more realistically on my Wii. I didn't see anything in this museum that small children could participate in. I was really expecting to see an area where children would be encouraged to try new sports, but no. Next, there was no gift shop. I would have loved to get a t-shirt to support team USA but there was Nothing I could buy there except food at the Flame Cafe. We did eat there and the fish and chips were good but the view looking out towards that beautiful bridge and Pikes Peak were overshadowed by the train tracks and homeless people we watched walking over the bridge. Next, on my list of disappointments...where is a display of the Olympic Rings? The most recognized symbol of the Olympics are not here! I was hoping to take a picture of us standing next to them. Plus, only 1 large mascot was displayed, where are all the others? I hate to say it, but this is not worth the money, especially if you have...