Children's Museums in Boston, MA
We list 7 children's museums across the Boston area. Compare prices, hours and age ranges in one place, then pick the one that fits your day.
Sorted by distance from the middle of Boston, nearest first. Those are straight-line miles, so every drive is longer than the number on the card.
Boston Children's Museum is a museum in Boston, MA where families can engage in interactive learning through play and exploration. The museum offers programs…
View place
Huey's Hideaway Children's Museum in Medford, Massachusetts is a nonprofit children's museum dedicated to inspiring children and connecting families through…
North Shore Children's Museum is a play-based children's museum in Peabody, Massachusetts, designed for kids ages 2-10. Housed in a former bank building, it…
View place
Founded in 1799, the Peabody Essex Museum is the nation’s oldest continuously operating museum. Today, PEM stewards a collection of over 850,000 objects…
View place
The Children's Museum in Easton, located in North Easton, Massachusetts, offers art, science, math, music, literacy and other subjects through hands-on, open-ended…
View place
Discovery Museum is a children's museum located at 177 Main St in Acton, Massachusetts, offering STEAM-focused exhibits alongside outdoor play experiences…
View place
Children's Museum of Franklin is an inclusive, hands-on museum in Franklin, MA featuring interactive exhibits and creative play spaces designed for children ages…
View place
Where a card says no price or no hours listed, the venue does not publish it. We would rather leave the gap than fill it with a guess. Prices come from each venue's own website, and we publish one only when the figure appears on the page we took it from. Tell us if we are missing one you know.
Which one, by age
Two children three years apart do not have to be a compromise. The age line on every card shows what that venue serves.
Boston Children’s Museum
Best here for under 2, 1 miles out, listed ages 0–9 and admission $24.
Children’s Museum In Easton
Best here for two to five, 20 miles out, listed ages 0–9 and admission $15.
Children’s Museum of Franklin
Best here for six to nine, 26 miles out, listed ages 0–9 and admission $14.
By town
Most of these are not in Boston proper, and the town is usually what decides whether a place is worth the trip.
Children's Museums in Peabody
2 of them: North Shore Children’s Museum and Peabody Essex Museum, the closest 13 miles from the middle of Boston and 1 with a published admission price.
Planning a visit
These run from 1 to 26 miles out from the middle of Boston. Hours move with the season and with school holidays, so check the listing before you set off. If you run one of the places on this page, you can claim it for free and keep its hours and prices right.
Before you go
Grip socks. Almost every venue requires them for children and several require them for adults. Most sell them at the door for a few dollars. Bringing your own is cheaper and means you are not buying a fourth pair.
Check whether adults pay. It runs from free to full price and it changes the cost of a visit by a lot when there are two of you.
Weekday mornings are the toddler rush. If you want space, aim for after two on a school day. Weekend mornings are the busiest hours of the week almost everywhere.
Ninety minutes is the realistic ceiling for most children under five. There is rarely a gradual wind down. Leaving with time left on the clock is not wasted money, it is a better afternoon.
Call ahead in school holidays. Several of these venues run camps and private events that close open play with no notice on the website.
Looking somewhere else in the metro? Browse every kid-friendly place in Boston.
Other things to do in Boston
Children's Museums in nearby cities
Common questions about children's museums in Boston
How many children's museums are there in Boston?
We list 7 children's museums within 36 miles of Boston, MA. Every one is a published listing with an address we checked.
Which children's museums in Boston publish their prices?
5 of the 7 here do, and each price was checked word for word against the venue's own page before we published it. The rest do not publish one, so their card says no price listed rather than carrying a guess.
Which children's museums in Boston suit a toddler?
5 of them list an age range starting at two or under. Check the age line on each card, because a place that suits a six-year-old does not always suit a two-year-old.
How did Mini Navigators choose these children's museums?
We list every one we have within 36 miles of the center of Boston. Each is a published place with an address we geocoded and checked, and the business can claim its listing to keep the hours and prices current.
Do adults have to pay?
It varies more than you would expect, from free to full price, and it changes the cost of a visit by a lot when there are two of you. The price on each card is what it costs to get a child in. Where a venue publishes an adult price it is on the listing, and where it does not we have left it out rather than assume.
Do I need to book ahead?
Usually not for open play, but several venues cap capacity at weekends and during school holidays, and some close open play entirely for private events. Where a venue has its own booking page, the listing links straight to it.
What should I bring?
Grip socks, a water bottle, a change of clothes for anyone under four, and a plan for leaving before the meltdown rather than after it.
What else is there to do with kids in Boston?
Boston has 11 categories of kid-friendly places on Mini Navigators, from playgrounds and museums to splash pads and zoos. The Boston hub lists all of them.
Listings last checked August 21, 2026.