Museum at PrairieFire

This clocks in around three stars on Yelp, and that feels about right. I have to temper my expectations and instead think of it as a fun spot to pop into when the weather is lousy. I used to work with a group in Overland Park, and we got to tour this place with local politicians before it was open. The way they talked about it, you'd think NYC had uprooted the American Museum of Natural History and plopped it on 135th Street. Instead, it's a fine, aesthetically pleasing building with a fun discovery room for kids, and that's about the extent of it. The good thing is that tour taught me both manage expectations and to never trust politicians.As winter break crawled along, we did what so many parents out here do: swing by Scheel's for some ferris wheel rides and shopping, then popped into Prairiefire. It's only $5 per person which is very fair, and they have a replica T-Rex, some green screen action downstairs, and not much more. There is a discovery room upstairs with:-A furnace that really works. It was probably 80 degrees in there. Bring your swimsuits!-Dino bones covered in sand for discovery-Scorpions, tarantulas, hissing cockroaches, stick bugs, and other creepy cool little charactersMy kids were pretty into it. I'd say you're going to get about 30 minutes out of it, more if they're feeling super curious, less if they're super cranky. Not a spot I'd seek out, but I do appreciate having it around even if the expectations for it weren't met. There's also lots around here like a movie theater, toy store, restaurants, etc. Of all the pop up developments, Prairiefire has a little something to it and I enjoy the rare visits out this way.

While visiting Kansas City I knew that I had to visit this museum, and get a picture of my family in front of it. The museum is beautiful and so colorful. I can definitely see this being a location where you take some really pretty professional photos. We went inside to check out the towering T- Rex and some other dinosaur things. My daughter was a big fan of the interactive virtual dinosaur. The first floor of the museum is free, so that is a bonus. I took off one star because the bathrooms were in pretty bad shape, with most of the toilets being clogged. I do think it's worth checking it out.

If you are looking for a free museum in Overland Park definitely check out Prairiefire. There are some cool walking trails around the building and on a nice day it can be very relaxing to bring your dog for a beautiful stroll. They offer a virtual experience with oculus headsets. There are currently two movies to view and I recommend both! It's a small museum centered toward children, I enjoyed the fossils on the first floor. The second floor was mostly geared towards children but the live amphibians were cool.

I've brought my granddaughter here several times over the past year. She loves it every time we go; particularly the Discovery room which is perfect for her age (now 3), younger, or up to grade school age. There's a lot to do, see, touch, and experience. Plus the entry fee is $5 which you can't beat. Additionally, if you have EBT you can get free admission with their participation in the Museums for All program. Definitely a fun place to take little ones in inclement weather!

The museum at prairie fire is less a museum I would say and more a place where a dinosaur stands. They have a t-rex. They also have interactive systems that teach about certain paleontology and dinosaur types with an interactive camera system, you know what, just check it out. Upstairs they have a children's center, I think called the Discovery center, which is essentially a fully interactive room filled with 30 or so interactive stations. You can dust off dinosaur bones, you can pick up and look at all kinds of different types of Flora and fauna from modern times to Paleolithic times. They have a really intriguing full display of human skeletal bones juxtaposed with two other human genus creatures. The smallest one, I believe Lucy was one of these, is unbelievable how small they are compared to modern humans. They have a bunch of living creatures in there, but the rooms not very large. I believe you also do have to pay a fee to get in, but I don't think it's that much. It's really a beautiful center to go and check out a few things about dinosaurs, though if I'm being honest it's not too populated with enough that I would call it a museum. I would call it a very nice Hall that shows documentary movies which also has dinosaur bones and fossils that you can look at. I also particularly like this tiny room upstairs that houses actual meteorite and solar array. They also have oddly, space suits, but hey, the more the merrier am I right?

Beautiful buildingThe building is by far the best part. It is beautiful with the different color glass. Inside they have some areas to look at. What they call the great hall is free and has some dinosaur themed exhibits and a few astronaut and space themed items. Other areas cost to get in and were closed when we went there. Worth a stop if in the area but overall we were confused about what the building is meant for. It's in a shopping center with restaurants and apartments and we figured they wanted to add some arts to the area.

This is a small museum however has some very fun interactive activities for kids. My kids love to create their own dinosaur and watch it on the screen and playing in the discovery room. We were a bit disappointed that the sprint gallery and the VR exhibit were closed. I wish they had they ability to open them during the week. If you are looking to spend 2hrs of your day in an inexpensive way this is definitely a great place to go to. I will say it is also a great photo op area. The colorful glass is absolutely stunning. The trail is fun to walk on especially around May - early June. (Some Pictures were taken shortly after Covid, masks are no longer required, on our visit today we didn't take many pictures)

Others have mentioned the museum, or lack thereof. I'm here to comment on the kid's area.The kid's section is located on the top level and costs only a few dollars per kid to get inside. Digging for dinosaur bones is the main attraction and there are all sorts of bugs and bones and books and critters and fun things to explore. With that being said, the activities hold my 3 year olds attention for a bit, but bore my 2 year old, so we don't last long. The employees have never been friendly either. Fun for an occasional quick visit.

Go check this place out! I loved it! I recently went to the museum and enjoyed all the neat exhibits. I enjoyed it as an adult but paying for the interactive experience room upstairs would be much better for children! It was geared for kids with lots of activities and animals to see.Due to covid multiple exhibits weren't open, hopefully I can go back and see them! I loved learning about the history in the Kansas area and thought the interactive displays were really creative!

Amazing museum...highly recommend. We brought our 5 grandsons ages 10-15 and spent 90-120 minutes. We adults enjoyed it as much! Also this is a great location for food, shopping etc.