Northeast Texas Children's Museum — Attraction in Commerce

Before I get into my review I’d like to give a shout out to all the educators who are very busy this time of year trying to get the school year wrapped up and still take the time and give the effort to schedule fun field trips for their students and try to make sure they all have a great time.

⭐️ the new location is great; easy to find and since you have to schedule your visit there’s plenty of parking. The inside is decorated very nicely and the different stations give children lots of variety to play and explore.

That being said; If I could I would title this one BEA ARTHUR STRIKES AGAIN!! The elderly ladies that work here are really over board with the micromanaging, specifically the one with light colored hair previously referred to as Bea Arthur (ref review posted by T.P) There were two younger employees who were very helpful and friendly this morning while my family and I visited along with several other large school groups. The two older staff members however were hyper vigilant on correcting the children and interrupting their play to correct them sternly when they strayed out of bounds with a certain toy or needed to put something back where it belonged often times over stepping/undermining teachers whom had just given redirection or during. Now, I understand the time and patients it takes, being a parent of four children myself and I understand kids can and will make messes everywhere they go however I was under the impression that NETCM was a place intended to encourage children to learn and grow, sadly the behavior of the current staff makes this not only impossible but also takes the fun out of the experience completely. If you don’t want to clean up after messing children I don’t suggest working in a children’s play facility.

Lastly, the situation I observed during clean up time was one that has me most concerned and ultimately the reason I will never bring a child back to their facility. As I mentioned earlier there were several large groups visiting today most likely for school field trips as their matching color coordinating shirts and badge carrying adults made it pretty obvious; I feel the children all played very well amongst each other and the teachers did a great job making sure everybody played safe and followed the rules. As our designated play time came to an end the children began picking up their play areas as they were requested by the voice on the loud speaker, as I scanned the play stations full of kids buzzing to put things away I observed the Bea Arthur staff member step in front of a child as their attention was being called by their parent and she intentionally placed her hand in front of them as to stop them from taking another step. This woman then looked at the parent (who was with in arms reach of me but we were on the opposite side of Main Street) and insist “he can’t leave until he cleans up” keep in mind this child was NOT wearing a color coordinated tshirt and had infact been assisting the other children in cleaning up directly before this. I quickly collected all that were in my party and we will not be returning.

Prior to sharing I read some already posted reviews and it is very unfortunate to see that this employee has been an issue for some time despite their poor behavior, it is...

Just a rant: So a couple months ago we went to the Northeast Texas Children’s Museum because I was interested in doing Mj’s party there. They informed us they were moving locations down the road but that they would be open by October 5th (when we first planned on doing his party) I was weary on doing it there because they were moving but they INSISTED that they would be ready and open. So I put the deposit down and set the date up for October 13th. They called me yesterday and told me their card machine would be down today and said I could pay over the phone so I did, and AFTER I paid they said “I don’t know if someone informed you but there are going to be a bunch of centers in the museum closed because the paint isn’t dry” they told me this after I paid over $150. I decided to still go ahead with the party. We get there and Main Street is completely closed. They only had the back space where they could play which had a pirate ship, bubble room, animals, puppet show ect. They were not able to use the hospital, the play grocery store, the vet room, the baby room ect. HALF OF THE MUSEUM WAS CLOSED. The kids had to see stuff they couldn’t even play in. I asked for a refund and the lady said all they could do was give passes for kids to come back for free. I honestly believe I should get half my money back if we could only utilize HALF of the museum why should I pay full price? When I was told it would be ready multiple times. On top of that, there was some kind of trash in the floor of the museum foil and Easter eggs?? The rugs were covered in grass and you can tell hadn’t been vacuumed, and someone found some kind of small sharp nail on the ground where the kids were playing!!!! I am so disappointed by this and am going to talk with the director about it on Tuesday. Anyone have any advice on how I should...

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5-Star Mom Review!

We drove over an hour to visit the Northeast Texas Children’s Museum, and it was absolutely worth the drive! We had such a fun time — and to our surprise, we were spoiled with the place practically all to ourselves!

Every single staff member we interacted with was kind and welcoming. The museum is clean, safe, and child-friendly — even the bathrooms were spotless and thoughtfully designed for little ones.

There’s so much to explore! From the cutest mini restaurant, vet clinic, shopping area, gas station, and police station — to real cars, a real airplane, and even a real rowboat inside the building (WOW!). Outside there’s a ship to play on, a sand pit, & an amazing organic music garden for banging out sound and rhythm.

One of the biggest hits was the tube blower ball run — my child could have stayed there all day watching the balls zoom through the pipes! Plus, there were fun fossil digs, exciting slides, and even real airplane seats to sit in like you’re on a flight.

We also loved the penny press collectible machine, and the gift shop had some great little toys and snacks — we picked up a few treasures to remember the day.

If I could suggest one improvement, it would be to consider offering guest WiFi. Since the area is quite rural, my phone went into SOS mode and I couldn’t get in touch with my husband, which made him a bit worried.

Overall, this museum is a hidden gem. We’ve traveled to so many play places and children’s museums, and this one stands out for its creativity, friendliness, and just how much there is to do. The entry price was totally affordable, and if we lived closer, we’d be here all the time.

Thank you for such a...