Top US museums young children will love during the holiday season

Space fans have much to explore at the Kennedy Space Center, with opportunities to meet real astronauts and walk among rockets year-round. However, the center's staff takes decorating for the holidays to colossal proportions. Visitors can expect to see 6-foot-tall astronaut nutcrackers and a 50-foot-tall tree with more than 61,000 light pixels.

From Dec. 20 to 30, staff will project a holiday-themed show on the outside of a 50,000-square-foot building it calls Gateway: The Deep Space Launch Complex. The show follows Starflake, a shooting star that transformed into a snowflake, through some of the Kennedy Space Center's most well-known buildings and is included with the price of admission.

Smithsonian museums and its affiliates in Washington D.C. offer dozens of holiday-themed events during December. Some highlights include a Dec. 19 Kwanzaa celebration for children ages 3 to 8 at the National Museum of African American History and Culture and a Seasons of Light play at the S. Dillon Ripley Center Discovery Theater that teaches children about many cultural holidays, including Diwali, Chanukah, winter solstice, Ramadan, and Christmas.

The Musical Instrument Museum is a home for musical instruments played the world over. It has more than 7,000 instruments from over 200 countries, many of which guests can play while visiting. The Musical Instrument Museum's signature holiday event occurs the weekend of Dec. 14 to 15, with several family-friendly activities. Kids can make their own handbells, which they can play during the event.

Families can enjoy several live musicians, including Dickens carolers, a band called the Hot Beignets playing traditional 1920s jazz music, and a mariachi group. MIM will also put on holiday concerts throughout November and December, including a Charlie Brown Christmas on Dec. 9.

Young baseball fans will get a kick out of touring the Louisville Slugger Museum with Santa Claus as their guide. Visitors can take a tour through the baseball bat-making factory, with children getting a special surprise from Santa at the end of their tour. Santa tours will only take place on the three Sundays in December at specific times. Interested visitors should reserve their Santa tour ahead of time to ensure there's availability.

The majesty of St. Augustine's Lighthouse illuminates even brighter during December when the grounds are decorated with holiday lights. Children and families are invited to check out Tides, Tidings, and Trees at the museum, where 21 Christmas trees, each with a different theme, are decorated throughout the property. Children must be at least 3 feet and 8 inches tall to climb the lighthouse, but kids of all ages can enjoy the site's shipyard playground year-round.

The Pima Air and Space Museum puts on a big show with its annual Christmas Balloon Glow, where spectators can see holiday lights from the bright glow of hot air balloons this year on Dec. 14 from 5 to 8 p.m. There will be crafts, mazes, and carolers to add to the festivities. For an additional fee, families have the chance to ride in a military vehicle called a Duck to get up close to the hot air balloons and decorate cookies.

The Strong Museum of Play chronicles how toys and games have evolved through the years, and museum staff will continue that mission with its annual exhibit on the changing look of Santa through toys. The museum will also have a 7-foot dollhouse decorated with holiday lights for the season. For those looking for events to participate in, on the first three Mondays in December, The Strong will have a storytime that explores holidays celebrated around the world.

Young children can meet "Polar Express" characters at the Central Pacific Passenger Station in Sacramento before boarding a train headed for the North Pole. After sipping hot chocolate and enjoying a sweet treat, it'll be time to meet Santa and his elves as they board the train to pass out silver sleigh bells. The annual event hosted by the California State Railroad Museum will take place four times on most days from Nov. 16 through Dec. 22, 2024.

The city of Kennebunkport is known for going all out for Christmas. In early December, trolley museum staff decorate the Maine Central Model Railroad for the holidays. Visitors can participate in scavenger hunts through the scene. On Dec. 8 and Dec. 13 through 15, Santa will join trolley riders in the town's Christmas Prelude festivities.

For families looking for winter break activities not tied to any particular holiday, the Air Zoo Aerospace & Science Experience holds secular events when children are out of school with its air and space artifacts, flight simulators, and amusement park-style rides. Museum staff will offer themed games and crafting activities from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Dec. 26 and 27 and again on Jan. 2 and 3. On New Year's Eve, the museum will host a noon countdown for families looking to ring in the new year without the exhaustingly late bedtimes.

Story editing by Carren Jao. Copy editing by Kristen Wegrzyn. Photo selection by Lacy Kerrick.