Dr Pepper Museum — Attraction in Waco

If you’re looking for a museum with interactive activities for the kids I’d say skip this place. I have seen a lot of low reviews of people calling this place a money grab. While this museum isn’t as interactive as a science museum I thought it was a pleasant experience. General admission tickets can’t be bought online (at the time of my visiting) but I highly recommend making a reservation for the “make your own” soda experience. You cannot participate in the make your own soda experience if you didn’t make a reservation online. Please read the website thoroughly in order to avoid these “surprises”. The $12 general admission tickets comes with a “complimentary” 12 oz. Dr. Pepper, this does NOT include the special flavored Dr. pepper or the float. If you decide to get a specialty flavored Dr.P or a float the general admission tickets does discount $1 off of the order, so don’t lose the ticket. Tbh I got the cherry vanilla Dr. pepper and was a bit disappointed to see they flavored them with torani syrup. I should’ve just gotten the complimentary Dr. pepper because it didn’t taste much of cherry nor vanilla. The custom made to order Dr Pepper was sooo cool to see. They simply mix the Dr. pepper syrup with carbonated water from the tap. Now for me the museum portion was pretty interesting. Seeing how most of the soda’s we consume today started off as pharmaceutical products was pretty interesting. As you go through the museum it shows the creation, development, and globalization of the beloved soda. You really do have to do a lot of reading in order to find interesting facts so if this isn’t your thing I’d say this isn’t the museum for you. The gift shop was pretty stocked, but I do wish they had more of an assortment of products. Most of the merchandise in the shop could be found in other stores such as academy so I wasn’t as excited. They did have a cool shirt with Japanese on it which was pretty hard to pass on. I came to the museum a day after Valentine’s Day and witnessed the staff doing fun experiments for the kids as well as a proposal so maybe certain dates will have more interesting experiences. Overall if you’re looking for a interactive museum experience I say you should skip it, but it does offer pretty cool experience. According to the website they also offer a paranormal experience, but it’s only during certain hours at night. If you’re in the area and love Dr. Pepper I’m sure it will be a...

My fascination was deep within this remarkable museum. The Original Home of Dr. Pepper. See their deep historical factory water well! That you might dare to stand over it, with their see-through circular plexiglass guard in place, to keep anyone from falling into it! Because it was drilled very deep. They lit up with a string of lots of bright bulbs to view the depth of it.

The mystery for me is why anyone ever would consider to rightfully use it as a dumping area for waste at one time. The video I took of melded bottles on display there on the ground floor of the original bottleling plant says it all. It is like an art deco sculpture that is so real it is sort of disturbing in an eco green world some of us live for. Al la natural art showmanship are my thing. I majored in the Arts, and this is why it is that impactful for me. Secondly, their two company vintage delivery trucks for me was another peak of the day. Yes, indeed, for Texas trucks with larger cargo beds! That rocked to stand next to two classic American vehicles!!

My sister suggested this visit, which was on her all-time bucket list since she is now a sugar-free Dr. Pepper junkie.

With your price of admission, you get your choice of one hand crafted iced Dr. Pepper, with two pumps of their factory syrup pumped by an actually trained soda jerk 50s style.

May I also suggest a hot Dr. Pepper in percolator fashion. Loved it both. Both will give you that cold and hot sensation in 30 - 40 degree weather, which was enjoyable as both of us are traveling here as Texas Gulf Coast residents. It reminded me of a hot apple cider with Dr. Pepper flavors in place. Full of kick like a cider in an insulated little coffee cup for $4. I'm going to do my own science experience, per my home, to perculate. Also, I will add a cayenne pepper sauce because Franks says you can put that s* on anything. We'll see if they're in the know.

Donna chose the Dr. Pepper float with a scoop of Blue bell ice cream. And she purchased a bottle of Stubbs BBQ sauce with Dr. Pepper syrup added to give your brisket, that sugary coating and spices baste.

All in all, a fantastic day was experienced by going here an hour before closing on December 5th, 2024. Leaving there, the Texas sunset was incredible blended with the...

Dragged family out here for my second visit earlier this month (first was a solo trip in February 2016). Museum has certainly expanded in 7.5 years since my prior visit and has its share of interesting exhibits. The inclusion of a fountain drink with admission is a nice touch, although the service could be a bit more prompt. Some additional constructive criticism:

1. I bristled at the person selling tickets asking for donations because the museum is a "not-for profit." $10/person is more than fair for admission, and asking for donations on top of the admission at the ticket counter simply because you're a not-for-profit is rather tacky.
2. I thought that some areas, specifically the international section, could have been better curated. I spotted an exceptionally beautiful woman in what was presented as a 1980s Japanese advert for Dr. Pepper (included in a photo below) - she reminded me of the late Singaporean author/model Bonny Hicks, so I thought that she might be also be multiracial. Unfortunately, this advert, along with others shown, made no mention of the individual(s) in the ad, and provided little in the way of context, other than the target market and the decade of the ad, which I'd suggest any cultured individual can figure out with minimal effort. There was also a bit of inconsistency throughout the museum, with mention in some places that the current parent company is Keurig Dr Pepper (correct), and Dr Pepper Snapple (incorrect post 2018).
3. There was an entire wing on the top floor dedicated to a former Dr Pepper executive, which I thought was a bit much. Yes, a wall mentioning his accomplishments was warranted, but an entire wing? We're not talking about Walt Disney or Satya Nadella (i.e., household names) here, and I thought that this portion of the museum was a bit self aggrandizing for anybody who isn't (very) closely affiliated with Dr Pepper.
4. Little to no mention of some of Dr Pepper's missteps throughout the years (e.g. the fiasco surrounding Guns N' Roses / "Chinese Democracy" and some promises that were made by Dr Pepper).

This was yet again an enjoyable visit, but these minor quibbles prevented me from giving a 5 star rating. Nonetheless, if you're in Waco, the Dr Pepper museum is certainly...