riverfront museum

Newer museum where all the hands-on exhibits worked! Kids loved it and lots for adults to see and do to. Limited eating area, but welcome to bring a lunch. Small snack area located in museum and restaurants located near by. Underground free parking steps away from museum door. Plans to return again soon!

We went to see the Hobbit trilogy marathon on the big screen. There was just one exhibit room open, a hands on room. It was a fun and need release after sitting for 3 hours, 3 times.

The IHSA interactive sports is fun and will keep you busy for awhile, no matter your age - I've gone with high school age kids, 40-somethings, and family in their 80's - they've all enjoyed that. The old Peoria history is nice, some cool older bikes. Downstairs there is an old car that was one of the first cars ever built and it's from Peoria, so that is neat. Overall it is a lot smaller than what the size of the building shows. There is no accessible parking that is close, so be aware if you are traveling with older friends/relatives if they have difficulty walking long distances. We have gone mostly on the free days. The shows are okay, mostly a place to sit yourself down to relax.

Can spend couple of hrs with friends. Not a big place but good for one time visit. Kids will enjoy more.

This was a great time with interactive sports challenges that are fun for all ages, a great movie on the big screen, some really cool local history, and a staff that enjoys their job. Do not miss the planetarium. The guy that hosts it, LOVES the solar system and it shows with his incredible knowledge and ability to entertain. DO IT!

We had never been here before and were from out of town...either we missed a lot of the attraction or there wasn't really much to offer? The discovery area was really nice and if the whole museum was that - I think it would be a great, unique children's museum.

A father's day treat! What a fun time we all had with dad! The visiting exhibit was Ripley's Believe it or Not. Everyone had a great time.

There are lots of hands on exhibits for the younger family members as well as art exhibits for the adults. We especially enjoyed the planetarium which appealed to all age levels. The planetarium has slightly different shows at different times. Everyone learned something while at the museum and learned something as well.

We recently visited the new Riverfront Museum and was very impressed with the many exhibits being shown..There was a section sponsored by Guiness Records that was very interesting and the many artifacts that are displayed from around the state were also very educational. There were displays for all ages and an interactive section for kids. We would highly recommend a visit tothe museum.

We first visited the museum not really expecting much and were so pleased we wound up getting a membership before we left. The kids love it here! They always enjoy the IHSA portion of the museum and where the build your own race cars are in the Peoria History hall. My little one loves the water table and build your own cars. We try and make it to The Dome every few times to try and catch a new show - some we like, some we don't. And as adults we also enjoy trying to compete with each other in the IHSA area and the traveling exhibits.

Don't get me wrong, what is up and running a this museum is really very good. There's just not much! The art exhibit was not open yet when we were there. (It is up and running now.) The planetarium was very nice and much friendlier than a trip to Chicago. The history of Peoria section was very nice. We didn't see any "broken" items in the children's section, but our kids are older. The movie is NOT $15 at all. Not sure where that came from. We enjoyed the film about Van Gogh very much and it was indeed family-friendly. Would we come back in a heart-beat? Probably not next week, but it is worth a stop. The new building is very, very nice.

After spending millions to produce a Hugh building it appears that Peoria got little for its money.The museum was no real improvement to the small museum that preceded it. There was little to see and the the presentation was average. The cost versus return unacceptable.So sad

My son and I went and he was so excited to go, less than an hour later we had seen everything, half of it was broken (kids room) but even if it would have worked it was very cheesy. This was the worst experience ever...... as we were leaving my nine-year-old son held his head down and said he never wanted to go to a museum again, I had to explain that this is not what a museum truly is. I would not even recommend this to an enemy...what a waste of money..

Lots to see and do we are going back a second time to do what we missed the kids loved it. We went to the ripleys section and had a blast. Can't wait to see what they bring in next.

My family visited yesterday on the Smithsonian Live day, so we didn't have to pay admission to the museum, and parking in the underground parking garage is always free if you have your parking garage stub validated in the museum.Yesterday (09/27) was the 1st day for the Impressionism into Modernism Art exhibit, which was immediately off of the main lobby area. The exhibit had a good mix of American artists and displayed the change of styles over the period of 1880 - 1950.There was a permanent exhibit documenting how Peoria has contributed to the growth of the country, and items which started in Peoria. After that was the Planetarium, which has some smaller hands on exhibits documenting gravity and wind outside the entrance.On the other side of the lobby, the IHSA has several hands-on exhibits involving testing your athleticism as well as some videos of Speech and Chess competitions. In the same area is the play area for small children.Past this area is some exhibits that document the fish and wildlife in the area, and how things have changed over the years.As several previous reviews have mentioned, the museum doesn't really have a theme, but its identity is clearly to document the area of Peoria. If it will play in Peoria, it will play anywhere.Also within walking distance, as well as sharing the underground parking garage is the Caterpillar Visitor Center. Both of these museums could be visited within one afternoon. Although it would be a pricy afternoon. Had we had to pay for admission to the museum, our party of 4 (2 senior citizens, one adult and one 11 year old child) would have cost $36.