Tucson Children's Museum: Travel Savvy Mom

Sidetracked! The Tucson Children’s Museum

March 20th, 2009 | by Debbie Abrams Kaplan 2 comments

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side·track (sīd´trăk): n. 1. A diversion from the main course. 2. A detour taken with children that you would never, ever take without them.
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Who:
Me, my husband and kids (ages 5 & 7), my brother-in-law, sister-in-law and their kids (ages 1 & 4) plus my in-laws.

What and Where:
Tucson Children’s Museum…in (wait for it) Tucson, Arizona.

Why:
We badly needed to get out of the house, and figured this was something all the kids could enjoy.

High Points:
Life-size Operation game. Faux-submarine. Dinosaurs. Trains. Foam blocks. Dance Dance Revolution. Pint-sized rock climbing wall.

Low Points:
I couldn’t figure out how to slow down the Dance Dance Revolution machine, so I almost fell over trying to keep up. Plus I never should have worn a wool sweater with no shirt underneath – even in winter. Especially, you know, for the dancing.

The Kids’ Take:
They had a blast, but we had to keep track of everyone by cell phone since each kid wanted to be in a different room. Of course.

The Bottom Line:
This is an impressive and fun kids’ museum. I could have stayed for several hours, but the rest of the family pooped out after 75 minutes.

Debbie Abrams Kaplan is a San Francisco Bay Area journalist, specializing in family travel. She writes for Shape, Family Fun, AAA Traveler, the Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, and the San Jose Mercury News. Read her full review of the Tucson Children’s Museum on Frisco Kids.