Discovery Gateway Children’s Museum | Salt Lake City
Kyra is back with some more details on Discovery Gateway!
We’re big fans of Discovery Gateway. We’ve had a pass for a few years now and my kids never seem to tire of it. I love that it’s located at The Gateway in downtown SLC with covered parking that leads right to the entrance of the museum.
It makes for a perfect visit no matter the weather.
The museum is 60,000 square feet of hands-on fun. On the first floor, they have the “Garden” area which has been recently improved with a new ‘Honey Climber’ which allows kids to climb from the lower level to the upper level of the museum.
When kids reach the top there is an attendant waiting who won’t let the kids loose on the 2nd level until a parent is there with them, so be prepared to meet your kiddos if you know they are headed up.
There is also a large hive area where kids can send plastic balls through tubes as the air carries them through the ‘pollinator’ and there’s a glassed-in, live hive nearby where you can watch real bees in action.
Next, to the Garden area, they have The Kids Eye View area which lets kids explore the world on a kid-sized scale. They have a construction zone, grocery store, a farm, a home, an auto repair shop, an infant and toddler area perfect for kids 3 and under and their new and improved water play area. We love the renovations done to the water play. It includes a 38- foot water table with lots of interactive components and learning opportunities.
There’s a water vortex, tipping buckets and so much more. Fair warning: my 2-year-old is always pretty soaked even when wearing one of the waterproof aprons they provide.
On the 2nd floor of the museum you’ll find a story factory and sensory room, an area of giant blue blocks for stacking and creating, a STEAM studio, a DG Derby where kids can build and race their own cars, the outdoor Intermountain Healthcare Saving Lives exhibit with an authentic Life Flight helicopter, and ‘Move It’- a fun, play space full of obstacle courses, jump ropes, balls, hula hoops and more to help busy kiddos burn off some extra energy.
Definitely be prepared to spend a few hours at this museum, it’s the perfect place for kiddos to learn and play and you’ll find you enjoy it as much as they do!
-Kyra
- Stroller friendly.
- The most direct and secure parking for Discovery Gateway is in the NORTH GARAGE at The Gateway. Park toward the south end of the garage and enter the elevator lobby in the southwest corner. Park on levels -1, 0, or +1 and enter through the South-West doors marked with our logo. Press +2 in the elevator to get to the Museum entrance. The first hour of parking is FREE. Parking validations may be purchased at Admissions Desk or Information Desk for $1, and they cover up to 3 hours.
- Pro Tip: Field Trips are held Tuesdays – Fridays and are typically in the morning from 9 am – 1 pm. For Field Trip schedules, call (801) 456-5437 on the day of your visit. Field trips can make the museum crazy busy- we try to avoid them if we can. Evenings are always an awesome time to go.
- They offer fun events on certain days that are often included with the price of admission or some that have an additional cost. You can view their calendar online to see what’s happening before you go. They also offer free admission days several times throughout the year.
- They do birthday parties!
