This place is really really big! It can get confusing where you have and havent been already, but overall a great experience and full of information and some really interesting stuff!

Went to visit the updated Dinosaur exhibit in the Fossil Hall...super amazing! The brightly lit colorful exhibits take you back in time to explain evolution of species as well as human impact on the planet. They had fantastic dioramas which began at kid level sight. These displays allowed the visitor to get close to the exhibits. Family of 4, 2 kids 9 and 5, 2 adults with Grandparents in tow and everyone loved it! It was a bit crowded but there was enough room to maneuver through. Be sure to check out the poop display by the bathrooms just past the worker observation room.

One of the best things in Washington DC are the Smithsonian museums. They all have free entrance. They can hold your attention whole day and you will come out much richer in knowledge.

Always a great time at the Smithsonian Natural History museum. First time for my son and wife and they really had a blast seeing all the displays. Great place for the family and lots of things to see.

I was in absolute heaven here. Everything I love - butterflies, elephants, Egyptology, dinosaurs, photography - was here. I had limited time to spend but I was able to see everything I wanted to while finding time to sit and eat at the food court. At the time I went, the new dinosaur exhibition was still being made, so I thought I wouldn’t get to see dinosaurs...but I was so wrong. After the Egyptology section, I turned the corner...and saw the Tyrannosaurus Rex of my dreams. My jaw hung open for a good minute or two. It was humbling to see how large it was standing next to it.Edit: Their new fossil hall just opened and it is definitely worth seeing! The giant sloth blew me away!!!

The Smithsonian museums are all free. They had so many exhibits for the kids to see and many of them are interactive. In one section they had over one thousand samples where kids can see close up, e.g. birds, fish, reptiles. You can put some samples under a microscope to learn more about them. A must see.

Beautiful place to relax, learn and explore.

Wish I would’ve had more time here. I did get to see all the pretty jewels. Will definitely try this place again when I have more time.

Beautiful building, not what I expected

Excellent place for gathering natural history of Americans

Very disappointing. Manmade displays with manmade opinions of evolution tied to every feature. Didnt spend too much time here. Children exposed to such false reports.

They have a lot of stuff to choose from even for kids 😏

Fun and interactive. Lots to see for all ages. Interactive displays. However, tickets to butterfly experience went fast (we were there 45 min after museum opened and 1st time available was 3 hrs later!) Many displays being renovated. Cafeteria being renovated but small cafe there with pre made sandwiches & salads that were pricey.

Nice place and good dining place

One of the most popular Smithsonian museums after to NASM, it houses large collections of insects, reptiles and mammals of all shapes and sizes arranged chronologically. The humongous replica of a blue whale, taxonomic elephant near the entrance and bone imprints of early hominids are the most captivating and interesting.

This place never gets old for me. You can spend a couple of days here if you want to see everything. Get there early to beat the crowds.

Wow. You can spend hours here.

A full day affair

Pretty good museum.

So cool! Lots of things to learn for everyone of all ages and nationalities! You will definitely spend hours here and still wish you could have stayed longer. This was an amazing experience and hope to make it back again soon. Also, the fact that it is free entrance is a huge plus! Nothing to complain about!

I thought I was created in the image of a loving God, and I find out from “a reputable source” that I came from a monkey. 😩 Sad to see federal grant money going towards “educational institutions” that are fearful of the bedrock of education, CRITICAL THINKING. The Natural History Museum has no representation for any opposing view especially that of creation which arguably has greater validity. Promoting the view of the religion of atheism/humanism is not separation of church and state.

The museum of course is great. The one star is for the temporary cafe (while the regular one is under construction). I got sick off one of the ham sandwiches, which was no surprise since it - and all the other sandwiches and salads for sale - looked stale and wilted, as if they came out of vending machines or a truck stop cooler. How hard would it be for the museum to bring in a temporary caterer, or just hire out to Jimmy John’s, or anything more edible?! Anyway, plan on eating elsewhere.

The museum contains several specialty shops, small, self-contained stores focused on a specific area, like Gems or Mammals. However, the shop downstairs from the Marine Life area is home to the Museum Store, which has wares pertaining to the different exhibitions. While some are strange (the Scorpion-in-a-lollipop in particular), it is a diversified store with many decent areas akin to other museum stores, including books, gemstones, and museum items like pens, bookmarks, and such. A good visit overall, at the same level of quality as other Smithsonian museums.

Beautiful museam, fantastic exhibits

It’s very well kept . Great story telling, lots of interesting bits . So visit the Egyptian civilization section for sure

My favorite!

Gets a bit stuffy with all the people but a cool place to check out. Free entry. Eat somewhere else though (they charge an arm and 2 legs for scraps).

I finally decided to visit this monumental museum, why did it take me this long to do this? Such a beautiful place, there is the magnificent elephant, the great shark, lots and lots of precious stone/gems, the finding nemo aquarium and lots of other displays to make every turn and every corner in the museum a memorable one.

Great museum located near Washington DC. Nice to stop by and visit when you are visiting the area.

Really crowded, hard to take in and enjoy. Spent a significant portion of my time picking up trash. Exhibits are well designed and engaging. We enjoyed the mammal exhibit the most.

This is a great place to bring children there are many hands on things to do but if you go I recommend to spend the day there as there is a lot of stuff there

Love this museum! The butterfly exhibit was amazing but get there early for it. They were sold out for 3 hours.

Awesome exhibits and an unbelievable number of things to see. Give this one a full day at least.

Absolutely wonderful today we got the free tour for the first time it was fantastic

A little pricey but very interesting and fun selection.

Great gift shop. It has a selection of items. Books, clothing, scarves, you name it.

Excellent as always, many new exhibits and discovery kiosks open. My life especially like the section on mummies and meteorites.

Cant go wrong here. Great museum. Get food at the food trucks though.

This shop is within reason when purchasing souvenirs. Its much better at pricing compared to the $11 sandwiches at the café. Pack a lunch, $42 for three sandwiches and two bags of chips is highway robbery.

Easily the best museum gift shop in DC. So well curated, and always bringing in something new and exciting!

If you are lucky enough to visit when its not crowded, its a world-class experience. Its an obvious example of tax dollars actually working.

Must-see museum around DC. Completely free as well so its easy to come and go at your leisure.

This museum is a place of wonders. There are a lot of things to do for the little ones to learn and have fun.

Thrilling experience, the entry lines are a bit long the wait is almost 40 minutes, nonetheless, it has a good display of artifacts and history has been captured quite vividly ..

After finding parking there is a short distance that you have to walk. Nice museum.

Fantastic museum! I could spend a whole week exploring the dinosaurs, fossils, sea life, butterflies, birds, ...

The Natural History Museum does not do tours on the weekends. You can still see all the sights you want but it will be a self-guided tourperiod on occasions they do have tours of special areas but they are usually early in the morning, so get there when it opens at 10 a.m.

We were a bit disappointed that the dinosaur bones were exact replicas (though the signs insist that doesn’t make them “fake”). We understand why, was just not something we realized ahead of time. Otherwise it was an amazing museum, we only had time for two and we’re glad this was one of the ones we chose!

Fun time. Make sure to move your car by 4p on the street, they will start towing not a minute past!

What an amazing and incredible place this is. Definitely worth visiting.

I love the items in this store and I understand that some of the money goes to helping support this institution, but I still expect that if I pay $48 for an allosaurus hoodie for it to not fade from stop sign red to terra cotta red within two washings. I am willing to pay more for better quality clothing from them. Everything else I bought is still awesome though.Note: I updated this review a few years later as I believe 4 stars would be better than 3 just because of a badly-printed hoodie.

Very nice free no cost so you can go but very crowed

Coming to a place like this, I wish I could have shown my boys. Next time maybe... :-)

Great variety of gifts in the gift shops!

Get there early to beat crowds and get good parking.

Wonderful. Need to come back to see more. Cant do much in a day.

Great museum for kids. As an adult, Im finding its less interesting for repeat visits.

Limited exposition of animals.Third floor is used under office rooms could be usef for more stuff.

Wonderful place wish we had more time

This is the museum you should visit when you come to USA, you can see every thing you always wanted to see and check out things you didnt even know, I have never been so happy when I visited the Smithsonian museum

A great place....a bucket list item

Very educational fun for all ages.

Every Smithsonian Museum is amazing. I recommend it.

Do not let your kids go through here unless your wallet is too heavy. i felt like i was running through the discovery store reincarnated.

One of the best places to visit

So much to see... may take multiple days...

Everyone should go. also free to everyone

The place constantly gets new material.

Definitely worth a visit.

The staff is rude Especially in the gift shop

One of my favorite museums

Absolutely wonderful!

Its a museum of natural history.

It was neat!

Was very disappointed with this museum.

Amazing

Amazing

Too many people...

Natural History museum

It is a gigantic museum, really impressive, it has pavilions classified for the visitors interest, and above all it has impressive scientific information that explains its collection in detail ...You cant go to Washington without stopping to visit it ....It should be noted that it is free ... Any other site in the US is worth a consideration to visit.

It is very interesting, the museum has a lot of information on each piece and exhibition so a guided tour is not really necessary.You need tennis shoes, comfortable clothes and time to enjoy and seize the day.The dinosaur exhibition is spectacular, the English crown jewels, the hope diamond are incredible!They can also touch moon rocks and aliens.😊 Admission to all the Smithsonian is free! If you like history, botanical gardens and art, you should set aside days to visit these museums.

The content of the exhibition was so strong that it was impressive.

It was an incredible thrill to be able to visit this place, and I wasnt really disappointed one bit. Beautiful where you look at it.

Wonderful experience, we enjoyed each of the things we could appreciate, we achieved wonderful photographs.

Very educational and well assembled. But in general aftershocks.

One of the best natural history museums in the world.

Amazing!!