The Philly Files: Please Touch Museum

A few months back I mentioned Neighborhood Toy Store Day, a time set aside to promote small toy stores unaffiliated with larger chains. The toy store within the Please Touch Museum qualifies as such, and it was with great happiness that we accepted the offer for a free visit to finally check out this fabulous museum for ourselves.

I grew up near Boston– a city with amazing museums.  The Boston Children’s Museum was one of my absolute favorite places to go when I was a kid.  I vividly remember not only the fun activities and displays but also how much I loved being there.

Yeah, Please Touch kinda blew those memories outta the water.  This place is the bomb!

Let me say that I barely took photos of a fraction of this museum.  I’m sure you can understand how difficult it was to take any photos with two kids and lots of people around.  I’ll show you a few of my favorite spots, but please know we didn’t even visit half of it and even the half we did visit I barely photographed.  Unbelievably I didn’t get a photo of the big tree, the maze, or the entire city they have replicated sized perfectly for the under-10 crowd.

The Please Touch Museum is geared entirely toward imaginative play and hands-on fun.  There’s almost nothing there you can’t touch.  The space is huge but open and airy and bright, but not overwhelming.

First stop on our tour: the entrance.  Ya’ll, this is just the lobby.

It was obvious this was a place for children. A hands-on, safe, wonderfully amazingly place for them to explore and play. There were special areas for children under 3, which this mama appreciated so Noodle could enjoy certain spots without worrying about being knocked over by larger kiddos.

The first thing we saw was an entire room full of water play, complete with boats, rubber ducks, and smocks to stay dry.

There was a huge river with waterfalls, spouts, sprays, etc.  It was a little high for Noodle, but I soon realized why… see that little cutie in the foreground?  He dunked his head right in!

We adored the nursery rhyme area, tailored just for the under-3 crowd.  This boat moved up and down when you turned the wheel.  Noodle thought it was magical.

The Alice in Wonderland area provided lots of opportunities for play.  Even Bee loved it!

There is a full sized carousel as well.  Noodle loves merry-go-rounds, and she was enchanted.

Here’s the crazy part– we only got to half of the museum.  We’ll save the other half for another day.  This is a place we’ll be sure to visit again.. and again, and again!

Our last stop was the museum store.  I could have spent hours in here.  Small toy stores are full of magical things…

… I left with two Putamayo CDs and a bunch of name stickers for some special friends.  I know I’ll be back!

I have to say, I’ve been to many “child centered” places in my day and this was one of the few where everyone seemed totally happy.  You see how everyone is smiling in the photos, even this one, taken just before we left after a long morning of play?  It’s that kind of place, no whining, no tears, no long lines… just tons of hands on fun for everyone.

Stop by the Please Touch Museum’s website so you’ll get an idea of the full scale of the place as opposed to the small section I featured.  You’ll be amazed at just how much there is to do!