Children's Museum & Theatre of Maine — Attraction in Portland

A few influencing factors: We're members We're grandparents We believe in learning through play.

While the top floor was fantastic, unique and totally what we were expecting throughout, the rest of the museum didn't live up to the buildup for our family. We expected more cutting-edge, creative learning but, in a number of ways, mostly found a well-done, attractive, play space that was cute and "Mainey."

Children will always love climbing into boxy mock-ups of firetrucks, trains and and boats and our grandchildren loved every minute but we felt like more could be done to make the area more educational or realistic and less of just a play place.

Another example is the outdoor playground. It is very nice and certainly sufficient but it lacks any sort of wow factor. At some nearby city and town playgrounds, with free access, our grandchildren excitedly pull us into their discoveries. There was none of that though they did enjoy jumping from log to log in what was called "The Building Area." A thematic play structure, a tie-in to children's literature, or maybe some multicultural aspects would make this area fun and educational.

The first floor includes a giant climbing structure that is not the common plastic tubes of play structures but multiple platforms allowing children to climb from one to another. Our grandchildren (5,5, 4 & 3) enjoyed it but were ready to move on after only a few minutes. In the former museum they played with the large, foam building pieces until we had to pull them away. That popular area did not make the move to the new museum.

In total, our expectations and hopes were too high. We hoped for maybe some interactive displays about climate or renewable energy. We hoped for the more cutting-edge, interactive learning spaces we've experienced in other city children's museums like Pittsburgh or Atlanta.

The live bee hive exhibit is fascinating to watch but it loses something in the design because the children cannot see the bees coming and going. There is tremendous potential in this room to add tactile displays of honey comb, explainations of what the bees are doing, how they seal the honey inside, how honey is harvested, how we can help protect the bees and on and on.

From what I understand, the children's theater space is wonderful. We look forward to seeing a production there soon.

The building is beautiful. Paid parking is abundant and nearby. There is much for children to do and enjoy such as the very-well-stocked Makers Area for arts and crafts. There are even dining options right there on Thompson's Point.

The new Children's Museum is a wonderful play place for children. A family of 4 can expect to pay $60, without tickets to a children's theater performance, and spend 3-4 hours when time limits of 3 hours are no longer in place.

I am thrilled to see that families on limited incomes have full access at only $3 per person just by showing their EBT card! So often lower income families are locked out of museums and the arts by prohibitive costs. Kudos to the BOD for being inclusive.

The children's museum is a strong start with tremendous potential for future enhancements and development. Congratulations are due to all who had the vision, courage and determination to make it happen.

Go! You WILL have fun with your children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews in a bright, new space that allows children the freedom to play...

This was a great museum for kids 12 and under (My kids are 5-years-old and younger). The highlights at this museum for me was the water play exhibit and the power tool/hand tool workshop. I have been to many children's museums throughout New England and this museum is unique for that reason.

Let's talk a bit more about the museum exhibits....

Water Exhibit (2nd Floor): The water exhibit is very fun, even for adults haha. Just make sure to bring a change of DRY clothes because your kids will get wet like mine did (including myself). Talk about the ultimate water table experience, your kids could easily spend 30 minutes in this exhibit alone!

Tool Exhibit (3rd floor): I love the fact that my child can finally learn how to use a screwgun and power drill with the guidance/supervision of the museum staff. Plus, safety is a top priority for the staff. So they will keep your kids safe and ensure your kids will have fun placing in screws and nails into wood. This tool set includes teaching the kids how to use a hammer! Haha, don't worry, it is safe (even with their tiny delicate fingers).

Toddler Exhibit (2nd floor): There is a toddler area (3 years and under) where the little tots can climb cushioned stairs and slide down cushioned slides. My youngest loved this part the most and so did other toddlers too.

Climbing Structure Exhibit (1st floor): Rainy day for your little monkeys? NO Problem! They have an indoor climbing structure where you have 100% visibility with your children. Unlike other museums, where your child climbs to the second floor and your have to go chasing after them (cough cough, Bangor,ME/ Boston, MA Children's museum!) My kid was on this exhibit for 30 mins! The exhibit is a kid magnet! They love it! Kids love to climb!

My honorable mentions are the outside playground structure and the animal exhibit on the 3rd floor.

What a great museum! Definitely one of the best I have been too. Money well spent! I will definitely be going...

Tl;dr: If you have a car and an hour to drive there, I strongly recommend at least looking into the Children's Museum in Dover, NH, instead.

The Children's Museum in Portland, Maine, is fun and awesome - - for about 5 minutes. The museum itself is small and tends to be dirty around the edges, and the limited exhibits always seem to have pieces missing or broken. We bought a family membership in February but by April my preschooler was bored, and we only went about every other week or so. What's more, two of their best exhibits were "remodeled" or completely replaced over the summer: the grocery store section, which was pretty awesome before and was one of our favorite sections, was remodeled into a small farmers market style cart that my son isn't even remotely interested in, and the indoor wooden playscape on the main floor - a necessity for days when it's too cold and/or icy to play at an outdoor playground - was completely replaced with a multi-cultural exhibit that, while kinda cool, simply isn't as fun for the younger kids as the playscape was.

The good news is that plans are in place for the museum to move to a larger, brand new building, but the move is scheduled to take place in spring of 2019 and construction on the new site hasn't even begun yet. Until then? When we have an extra hour to drive there (and an hour back), Dover might be our...