# North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences > Place to go for families in the Raleigh–Cary area (NC). Times are Eastern Time. - When: Downtown museum Tuesday–Sunday 10 am–5 pm. Closed 2026 dates in the window: Thursday Nov… - Where: North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, 11 West Jones Street, Raleigh, NC 27601 - Ages: All ages - Price: General admission is free; donations appreciated - Schedule: Downtown museum Tuesday–Sunday 10 am–5 pm. Closed 2026 dates in the window: Thursday Nov 26, Thursday Dec 24, Friday Dec 25; also Jan 1 and Jan 13–16 (2026 list). - Organizer: North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences - Official page: https://naturalsciences.org/visit - Last checked: Sat, Oct 24 Source: Grassy Knees is a directory of real family events, places and programs for kids across major U.S. metro areas, where every listing is researched from the organizer’s own page and shows the date we last checked it. https://grassyknees.com covers 42 metro areas as of Oct 24, 2026, with more added regularly. About: https://grassyknees.com/about Freshness: listings are re-checked on a daily research run (latest check 2026-10-24), and new events are added as organizers post them. Sell-outs, weather cancellations and time changes show up on the live page first: https://grassyknees.com/raleigh/activities/north-carolina-museum-of-natural-sciences--listing-b50eada0e37bbe95a3f37a14 ## About The largest natural history museum in the Southeast fills two connected buildings in downtown Raleigh. The Nature Exploration Center (east side) holds permanent and special exhibits, live animal programs and educational films for all ages; the Nature Research Center (west side) has working laboratories, interactive exhibits and live presentations by scientists. For young children, the Discovery Room on the 2nd floor of the Nature Exploration Center lets families touch fossils, feel bird wings, smell tropical scents, watch a working beehive, try on costumes, play with puppets and hunt for hidden animals in a dead-tree 'critter hotel'. Older kids can head to the Naturalist Center, the VisLab and the Investigate Lab in the Nature Research Center. The Living Conservatory butterfly room is closed until summer 2027. Two cafés and museum stores are on site. ## Similar picks in Raleigh - [Investigate Lab and Naturalist Center at the NC Museum of Natural Sciences](https://grassyknees.com/raleigh/activities/investigate-lab-and-naturalist-center-at-the-nc-museum-of-natural-scie--listing-85039c776048ef6af81d48dd) — Open during museum hours (downtown museum Tuesday–Sunday 10 am–5 pm); the labs' own… · North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences — Nature Research Center · All ages · Free · checked Oct 24. Two drop-in science spaces in the museum's Nature Research Center. In the Investigate Lab (3rd floor) visitors work through up to seven self-guided, hands-on activities at a time… - [Teen Science Café: Rhino Conservation](https://grassyknees.com/raleigh/activities/teen-science-cafe-rhino-conservation--listing-b07d63d8537fcb49e9a28b40) — Fri, Nov 6 · 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM · North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences · Ages 11–17 · Free · checked Oct 24. Teen Science Cafés are free first-Friday evenings for teenagers at the Natural Sciences museum's Daily Planet Cafe. This month Dr. Liz Kierepka, head of the museum's Genomics and… - [North Carolina State Capitol](https://grassyknees.com/raleigh/activities/north-carolina-state-capitol--listing-ac4a019840b68841b60dd29a) — Monday–Friday 9 am–5 pm; Saturday 10 am–5 pm. Closed Sunday and designated state… · North Carolina State Capitol · All ages · Free · checked Oct 24. The seat of North Carolina's government since June 1840; the building once held the governor's office, the Supreme Court and the General Assembly chambers. Families can tour on… - [Trunk-or-Treat and Pumpkin Parlor at the Top Greene Center](https://grassyknees.com/raleigh/activities/trunk-or-treat-and-pumpkin-parlor-at-the-top-greene-center--listing-37e46c9d3613b539b2fc8dfa) — Sat, Oct 31 · 3:00 PM – 6:00 PM · John P. "Top" Greene African American Cultural Center · Free · checked Oct 24. Halloween afternoon at the John P. 'Top' Greene African American Cultural Center. It starts with trunk-or-treating in the parking lot alongside the NC Black Women Empowered 50+… - [North Carolina Chinese Lantern Festival](https://grassyknees.com/raleigh/activities/north-carolina-chinese-lantern-festival--listing-40d644119b2d7eeb2d85d262) — Nov 21 – Jan 10 · 6:00 PM – 10:00 PM · Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary · Paid · checked Oct 24. For its eleventh year the North Carolina Chinese Lantern Festival fills Koka Booth Amphitheatre in Cary with all-new, larger-than-life lantern displays made by Chinese artisans… - [Creepy Critter Month at Lake Crabtree](https://grassyknees.com/raleigh/activities/creepy-critter-month-at-lake-crabtree--listing-71d4de729c639eac1c7bcab3) — Oct 24 – Oct 31 · Lake Crabtree County Park, Morrisville · All ages · Free · checked Oct 24. Lake Crabtree County Park celebrates Halloween with a month of creepy-critter fun. Through Oct 31, families can follow the self-guided Creepy Crawly scavenger hunt along the… ## More for families - [This weekend in Raleigh](https://grassyknees.com/raleigh/this-weekend) (Markdown: https://grassyknees.com/raleigh/this-weekend.md) - [Things to do with kids in Raleigh](https://grassyknees.com/raleigh) (Markdown: https://grassyknees.com/raleigh.md)