Virginia Living Museum
Accredited Natural History Museum And Living Collection In Newport News; Every Living Exhibit Is A Species Native To Virginia · Newport News, Virginia
A natural history museum in Newport News where most of the exhibits are alive, and every one of them is native to Virginia - which is the rule that makes the place work. There are no lions, no elephants and no pandas. Instead there is a boardwalk through coastal cypress swamp with otters, a mountain cove with bobcats and red wolves, a Piedmont section with bald eagles that cannot be released, a touch tank of Chesapeake Bay species, and an aviary you walk into. The idea is that a child leaves knowing what actually lives in the state they live in, which very few zoos attempt. Indoors there are aquaria running the length of the state from mountain stream to open ocean, a planetarium, a digital dome theatre and a changing exhibition gallery. Outside, beyond the boardwalk loop, there is a conservation garden and a dinosaur trail that appears in warmer months. It opened in 1966 as a small nature centre and has been rebuilt twice since; it is the best thing in Virginia to take a seven-year-old to.
524 J Clyde Morris Boulevard, Newport News, Virginia, 23601, United States
Generally open daily, roughly 9 AM to 5 PM, with extended summer hours and reduced winter hours; usually closed on major holidays - check before travelling. Planetarium and dome shows run to a daily schedule and may carry a supplement. THE DINOSAUR TRAIL IS SEASONAL and outdoors. The December light event is separately ticketed and sells out. Admission is charged per person; a family membership pays for itself in about two visits.
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