Hands On Children's Museum

106 11th Ave. SW. Olympia, WA 98501
Phone: (360) 956-0818
http://www.hocm.org

Voted BEST PLACE to take kids!

Voted Best Place to Take Kids for nearly a decade, The Hands On Children's Museum hosts more visitors for its size than any other youth museum in our region! The Museum has six galleries filled with more than 55 exciting, interactive exhibits.

The new Good for You! exhibit gallery helps educate children and their parents about what they can do to live healthier, happier, more active lives. Watch for a new feature: special staff-led activities with a healthy focus. Come see why families are giving this new exhibit two thumbs up!

Busy hands of all ages can choose from a huge assortment of new and recycled art supplies to express ideas and create their own unique works of art. Drop in for one of our regularly scheduled staff-led art sessions for fun, family-friendly art ideas!

Find out how your backyard can be a home for plants and wildlife! Bring animal friends to life at the Tree Snag Puppet Theater; get a bird's eye view of the Museum from the Climbing Tree; track the weather from our Weather Station; and act out a play on our Backyard Stage with costumes, sound, and lighting!

Select and place whimsical segments to create an unlimited array of paths for our Magnetic Ball Run; arrange colorful gears to operate the gadgets at our Gear Table; design and draft your own building plans in our Design Studio; create large-scale structures in the KidStruction Zone; drive, load and operate our construction site Dump Truck; and use the Kidz Crane to transfer cargo onto a waiting ship!

Specially designed for parents and their toddlers age birth to four, the gallery includes a Dramatic Play Loft; Imagination Stations with age-appropriate arts and crafts, a Soft Space Area for infants and crawlers, and the Parent Resource Library with a wealth of information on various parenting topics.

Explore the engine room, galley, decks and bridge of our Cargo Ship; take on the role of city planner in the Build It & Bridge It Neighborhood; and investigate the channels and currents of our Water Table!

Featuring an ever-changing variety of fun, educational gifts and puzzles for all ages. Wide selection of affordable party favors and custom treat bags for parties in the museum or offsite. Free gift wrapping. 10% discount for Museum members. Healthy pre-packaged snacks and beverages and Museum Store gift certificates are also available.

Shop for fresh, healthy foods in our Market & Grocery, load and drive the Delivery Truck, plant and harvest produce in the Garden & Orchard, pack a healthy lunch in the Family Kitchen and get your body moving on our Two-Story Climber!

Directions to the Hands On Children's Museum in Olympia

Just Off I-5: 30 minutes from Tacoma, One hour from Seattle!
From Southbound I-5: Take Exit 105-A. Follow 14th Ave. through tunnel to Capitol Way. Turn right onto Capitol. At the next light, turn left onto 11th Ave.

From Northbound I-5: Take Exit 105. Stay left, following signs to State Capitol. Follow 14th Ave. through tunnel to Capitol. Turn right on Capitol. At the next light, turn left onto 11th Ave.

Museum Parking is available on the upper level of the G.A. parking lot next door; along the Capitol Campus diagonals; and one block east of Hands On in the Natural Resources parking lot. On weekends and Friday nights, parking is free and easy! Dash, Intercity Transit's Downtown Shuttle, offers a convenient park-and-ride option.