Itching for a road trip but don’t want to pay for gas? Grab the kids and head to Imagine It! Children’s Museum of Atlanta, where a new exhibit lets you visit all 50 states without hitting a single interstate.
The “Weebles Coast to Coast” exhibit features more than 50 interactive activity stations intended to engage all five senses. Want to visit Louisiana? There’s a soundboard where kids can “mix” a jazz band playing at New Orleans’ famous Preservation Hall. They’ll “soar” over New Mexico in a model air balloon with a video-screen floor. They can play arcade games in Atlantic City, learn to putt golf balls in South Carolina, pilot a dogsled through Alaska and get stuck in a simulated traffic jam in Los Angeles (you’re suckered into the car with a gorgeous view of the California coast first, just like in real life)!
Imagine It! also offers permanent exhibits and play areas for ages 18 months and older. There’s an imagination station where kids can dress up and playact or learn how to tap dance with Elmo.
Budding engineers can operate scaled-down versions of cranes and assembly lines, moving balls from machine to machine, or create 3-D wireframe sculptures. There’s a series of rooms that help them understand how food is grown, packaged, shipped, sold and prepared. There’s even a sandbox, a fishing pond, a treehouse and a padded play area for those who can’t yet walk.
Pack a lunch (the museum has vending machines but no on-site cafeteria) and be prepared to spend most of the day there.
The museum is adjacent to Centennial Olympic Park, across the street from the park’s playgrounds and the World of Coca-Cola, which has the closest indoor parking lot. Plenty of outdoor parking is available, and the Peachtree Center and CNN Center rail-line MARTA stops are within walking distance.
The museum, which opened in 2003, has welcomed nearly 2 million visitors since then, presenting three new exhibits each year. It also created “The Imaginators,” a company of professional actors who perform daily, and launched the Imagine It! Express, a bio-friendly bus that brings children to the museum when safe, affordable transportation is unavailable.
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“Weebles Coast to Coast” is up through Sept. 8. The museum is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday, and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. weekends. $12.75 for ages 1 year and up; babies free. Details at childrensmuseumatlanta.org.
