Above & Beyond Children's Museum — Attraction in Sheboygan

It has been almost a month since we’ve taken four grandchildren to this place. I have struggled writing this review but after explaining our experience to many of our grandparent friends, I do feel the need for all to know about a few things. Let’s start on the top floor where my husband spent quite some time untangling the fishing poles which obviously were knotted together on purpose. Then to find out only one fish was available to “hook”. I looked everywhere for more but to no avail. I also cleaned up the fire station clothes since they were strewn everywhere and many inside out. Now this is all from 9:00 when you can enter and 9:30. It seems apparent the place is not tidied at the end of the day.

The next floor down is the toddler area but when I walked our four year old grandson to the barn, two middle school attendees were climbing on the roof of the barn. Of course, I told them to descend which they did. These older children really caused an issue with our littles.

The next floor where the blue net tube is where I wanted a group picture. I finally corralled my four and had them pose only to have another middle schooler tell my six year old grandson, “Move outta the way, kid.”

On the first floor, the roller skate which sends a soccer ball up a ramp was broken soon after we arrived. That’s my grandkids favorite item. What a shame!

I did find out that I could call ahead of time to find out if groups, camps, or parties were going to be there. We paid $42.00 for two and a half hours of not much fun. I really don’t think we’ll return. They have always loved this place but broken displays, out of control older students, and the price just...

Echoing what many others have said— this is a really awesome interactive play “museum” for kids. Kids learn by play, but some easy to follow descriptions of the STEAM principles or historical notes featured in each area might have made it more of a museum than a huge play place. Best geared toward kids 2-10, but there is a small fenced off soft play area for toddlers. The layout was really well thought out, and the design of every floor was so so cool. I was constantly in awe of the artwork and build quality of each area. Would recommend trying to time your visit at non peak hours for the best experience. We visited at the same time a bday party was being held, and felt it was overrun. Nobody (parents nor staff) bothered returning items to their respective exhibit areas. So most areas were missing the interactive components and thus felt empty/pointless. Kids were definitely abusing the elevator which felt borderline dangerous. Free coffee was a great perk but hoping they clean out the machine. We would absolutely visit again but maybe first thing in the morning or later...

Concerning the museum:

There had been a recent pipe burst and flood here so it had been closed for some time for repairs. Had an expectation to see something new when they reopened and it was exactly the same with some updates on paint and bathroom fixtures. Pretty disappointing since the place feels like it is slowly getting gutted.

Concerning the park that opened up next door:

This expensive eyesore replaced a nice public garden with something that attempts to be a children's park but feels more like an art installation. Everything is made of wood which is already deteriorating after less than a year. There really isn't anything to do at this park. There's a slide and a strange rope swing. There's a few things to climb on but those objects were built more to look nice than be played on and are dangerous. There is potential for splinters on everything. There's a tiny 'rope play' area that can potentially dump you into a wooden balancing beam. The entire surface of the park is purposely built with bulges that create trip hazards. Not sure how this park is...