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Museums and Educational Attractions in Connecticut
Explore›Connecticut›Museums and Educational Attractions

A day out that teaches something.

Museums and Educational Attractions in Connecticut

Looking for museums and educational attractions in Connecticut? Here are 21 of them, with the details parents check first: price, opening hours and the right age range. Admission runs $8 to $19, based on the 8 here that publish a price.

21 museums and educational attractions in the Connecticut area

Find a museum in Connecticut

21 museums and educational attractions in the Connecticut area.

Sorted by distance from Hartford, nearest first. Straight-line miles, so every drive is longer.

21 places

The Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art

The Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art

Museums · Ages 6–16
Closed today · No price listed
Accepts NARM

A museum of art in downtown Hartford holding nearly 50,000 works spanning 5,000 years. The collection ranges from ancient Greek and Roman pieces through European…

0.2 mi View place
Connecticut Museum of Culture and History

Connecticut Museum of Culture and History

Museums
Closed today · Admission $8
Accepts NARM

About the CMCH A private, nonprofit, educational organization established in 1825, the Connecticut Museum of Culture and History is the state’s official historical…

1.7 mi View place
New Britain Museum of American Art

New Britain Museum of American Art

Museums
Closed today · Admission $10
Accepts NARM

The New Britain Museum of American Art is the first institution dedicated solely to acquiring American art. Spanning four centuries of American history, the…

9.3 mi View place
CT Trolley Museum

CT Trolley Museum

Museums
Closed today · Admission from $10
Accepts ROAM

A museum housing over 70 pieces of historic rail equipment collected from railways across Connecticut and beyond, including trolleys, freight cars, locomotives…

12.1 mi View place
The New England Carousel Museum

The New England Carousel Museum

Museums
Closed today · Admission $10

The New England Carousel Museum in Bristol, CT preserves and showcases historic carousel animals and amusement park memorabilia through rotating exhibitions and a…

15.2 mi View place
The William Benton Museum of Art at University of Connecticut

The William Benton Museum of Art at University of Connecticut

Museums
Closed today · No price listed
Accepts NARM

The William Benton of Art is located at the University of Connecticut and is home to art of different periods, styles, and media. The museum offers a variety of…

21.9 mi View place
American Mural Project

American Mural Project

Museums · Ages 3–12
No hours listed · No price listed
Accepts NARM

American Mural Project is a one-of-a-kind museum and arts center in Winsted, CT, built around the world's largest indoor collaborative mural celebrating American…

22.6 mi View place
Mattatuck Museum

Mattatuck Museum

Museums
No hours listed · No price listed
Accepts NARM

The Mattatuck Museum is an art and regional history museum on the Green in downtown Waterbury, starting out as a historical society in 1877. The Museum opened its…

23.9 mi View place
The Slime Lab Co.

The Slime Lab Co.

Museums · Ages 3–9
Today 11am–6pm · No price listed

The Slime Lab Co. is an interactive slime sensory museum in Oxford, Connecticut where families can explore creative slime creations and engage in hands-on fun…

Playground on siteRestroomsFood available
32.9 mi View place
Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History

Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History

Museums · Ages 3–16
No hours listed · No price listed
Accepts NARM

The Yale Peabody Museum is one of the oldest, largest, and most prolific university natural history museums in the world. It was founded by the philanthropist…

33.6 mi View place
Yale Peabody Museum

Yale Peabody Museum

Museums · Ages 3–16
Closed today · No price listed
Accepts ASTC Passport ProgramAccepts NARM

The Yale Peabody Museum, located at 170 Whitney Ave in New Haven, CT, is a natural history museum where families and children can explore exhibits and educational…

RestroomsFood availableParking
33.6 mi View place
Yale Center for British Art

Yale Center for British Art

Museums
Closed today · Free admission
Accepts ROAM

A museum in New Haven housing the largest collection of British art outside the UK, with works spanning five centuries from the 1400s to today. The building…

34.3 mi View place
Yale University Art Gallery

Yale University Art Gallery

Museums
No hours listed · No price listed
Accepts NARM

The Yale University Art Gallery collects, preserves, studies, and presents art in all media, from all regions of the globe and across time. The museum’s…

34.3 mi View place
The Shore Line Trolley Museum

The Shore Line Trolley Museum

Museums · Ages 3–12
No hours listed · No price listed
Accepts ROAM

A museum dedicated to preserving and operating historic trolley cars, located in East Haven, Connecticut. Visitors ride authentic electric trolleys on a 1.5-mile…

35.3 mi View place
Lyman Allyn Museum

Lyman Allyn Museum

Museums · Ages 3–9
Closed today · No price listed

Lyman Allyn Museum is an art museum in New London, Connecticut, housing a permanent collection of more than 18,000 works alongside rotating exhibitions. Families…

40 mi View place
Mystic Seaport Museum

Mystic Seaport Museum

Museums · Ages 3–16
Today 10am–5pm · Admission from $19

Mystic Seaport Museum is the nation's leading maritime museum located on 19 acres along the Mystic River in Mystic, Connecticut. The museum features a recreated…

RestroomsFood availableParking
46.1 mi View place
Danbury Railway Museum

Danbury Railway Museum

Museums · Ages 3–12
Closed today · Admission $10

Danbury Railway Museum is located in a historic 1903 train station in Danbury, Connecticut, and houses over 75 pieces of railroad equipment from throughout New…

RestroomsFood availableParking
47.5 mi View place
SHU Discovery Science Center and Planetarium

SHU Discovery Science Center and Planetarium

Museums · Ages 1–12
Closed today · Admission $15
Accepts ASTC Passport Program

SHU Discovery Science Center and Planetarium is a children's museum located at 4450 Park Ave in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Families can explore hands-on science…

RestroomsFood availableWheelchair accessible
47.8 mi View place
The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum

The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum

Museums
Today 12am–5pm · Admission from $9
Accepts NARM

Founded by Larry Aldrich in 1964, The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum is dedicated to fostering the work of innovative artists whose interpretations of the world…

54.4 mi View place
Museum of Contemporary Art, Connecticut, MoCACT

Museum of Contemporary Art, Connecticut, MoCACT

Museums · Ages 6–12
No hours listed · No price listed

MoCA Westport is a contemporary art museum in Westport, CT that also runs educational programming and a summer camp for kids. Families can visit rotating…

55.9 mi View place
The Bruce Museum

The Bruce Museum

Museums
Closed today · No price listed
Accepts NARM

The Bruce Museum is an art, science, and natural history museum located in Greenwich, CT, offering interactive exhibits and galleries designed for curious visitors…

71.2 mi View place
Nothing here matches that combination. Clear a filter, or browse everything in Connecticut.

5 of 21 museums and educational attractions

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.

Before you go

Quick answers for busy parents.

Look for a free day or eveningMany museums run one. It is the busiest time, but it is free.
Ask for the children’s trailMost have a backpack, a trail sheet or a hunt, and most keep them behind the desk rather than advertising them.
Check which galleries suit your childA museum can be brilliant for a nine-year-old and a long hour for a three-year-old. The website usually says which rooms are hands-on.
Bags and coatsLarger museums require a cloakroom for anything big, which is worth knowing before you carry it round.
Other things to do in Connecticut
Children's Museums Climbing and Adventure Parks Family Entertainment Centers Farms and Orchards Historic Sites Indoor Playgrounds Mini Golf Nature and Gardens Science and Discovery Centers Trampoline Parks Zoos and Aquariums
Museums and Educational Attractions in nearby cities
Long Island, NY Westchester, NY Boston, MA New York, NY New Jersey Philadelphia, PA Washington DC Detroit, MI

Common questions about museums and educational attractions in Connecticut

How many museums and educational attractions are there in Connecticut?

We list 21 museums and educational attractions in Connecticut. Every one is a published listing with an address we checked.

Which museums and educational attractions in Connecticut publish their prices?

9 of the 21 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.

Are any museums and educational attractions in Connecticut free?

Yes. One place gets you in free: Yale Center for British Art.

Which museums and educational attractions in Connecticut suit a toddler?

One of them lists 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 museums and educational attractions?

We list every one we have within 66 miles of the center of Connecticut. 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. 9 of the 21 on this page publish a price at all, so call ahead about the adult rate before you rely on it.

Do I need to book ahead?

Free museums often still ask you to reserve a slot, and special exhibitions almost always do. Where a venue publishes a booking page, the listing links straight to it.

What should I bring?

Water and a snack for outside. Many museums do not allow food in the galleries. Whatever else you need is in the notes beside the listings above.

What else is there to do with kids in Connecticut?

Connecticut has 12 categories of kid-friendly places on Mini Navigators, from playgrounds and museums to splash pads and zoos. The Connecticut hub lists all of them.

Listings last checked October 5, 2026.

Explore related activities in Connecticut

Children's Museums 9 places Climbing and Adventure Parks 5 places Family Entertainment Centers 29 places

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