Academy Happenings
The Academy is open!
Current Hours
Weekday Hours: 10 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Tuesday - Friday
Weekend Hours: 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Saturday - Sunday
Winter Break at the Academy
Thursday, December 26-Sunday, December 29
Tuesday, December 31 is $10 Tuesday!
Join us at the Academy during your winter break! Visit our newest exhibit Ice Dinosaurs, where you can marvel at lifelike animatronic creatures who lived in ancient, icy terrains. Dream of warmer weather and flowering plants in our Spotlight Gallery exhibit, Heirloom Plants.
Step into The Ecology of Fashion exhibit with some bundled-up style to learn how our soft, glittering or shiny garments are inspired by the natural world yet impact the environment.
Plus learn about turtles and bugs in activities throughout the museum!
Winter Break Hours
- Thursday, December 26: 10AM to 4:30PM
- Friday, December 27: 10AM to 4:30PM
- Saturday, December 28: 10AM to 5:00PM
- Member Morning, Sunday, December 29: 9AM to 10AM
- Sunday, December 29: 10AM to 5:00PM
- Monday, December 30: Closed
- $10 Tuesday, December 31: 10AM to 4:30PM
Member Morning
Sunday, December 29, 2024: 9:00 AM-10:00 AM
Members can explore the Academy before the crowds! Guests of members are welcome and receive discounted admission.
Not a member? Join now.
Winter Break Tickets
December 31 Tickets
The Ecology of Fashion
November 16, 2024–August 31, 2025
Experience The Ecology of Fashion, the first-ever, co-created exhibition by Drexel’s Westphal College and the Academy of Natural Sciences.
Featuring stunning and provocative garments from Drexel’s Robert and Penny Fox Historic Costume Collection — heralded as a “world-class collection of fashion and textiles” by The Wall Street Journal — as well as specimens from the Academy of Natural Sciences and works by contemporary change-makers, the exhibit boldly shows how materials, production processes and our own patterns of clothing consumption impact the world around us.
The Ecology of Fashion invites visitors to explore both the fascinating and fraught ways in which flora, fauna, fungi and fossil fuels are fundamental to our clothing.
All exhibits are included with the purchase of a general admission ticket.
Save $2 per ticket when you purchase online.
Learn more about The Ecology of Fashion.
Ice Dinosaurs
September 28, 2024–May 4, 2025
Explore paleontology’s final frontier in Ice Dinosaurs, the Academy’s exciting new special exhibit. Transport yourself to the Late Cretaceous period in the Arctic Circle, where dinosaurs actually lived year-round in extreme polar environments. This brand-new, immersive and educational experience brings this era to life with animatronic dinosaurs, engaging stories and real fossils, skeletons and museum casts.
Follow a family of Troodons —large, feathered raptors — and discover how they survived, made nests, hibernated, hunted and cared for their young, all in a place that experienced darkness for half the year. Investigate the changing geography of ancient snow-covered lands with interactive maps. Explore fossils and casts to learn about the real force of dinosaur’s teeth, the size of their eggs or how they burrowed in icy terrain. And of course, marvel at the magnificent life-like moving creatures!
Built around groundbreaking discoveries that challenge traditional understandings of paleontology, Ice Dinosaurs celebrates the unique adaptations of real polar dinosaurs who lived in cold, dark and snowy conditions long ago.
All exhibits are included with the purchase of a general admission ticket.
Save $2 per ticket when you purchase online.
Learn more about Ice Dinosaurs.
Birthday Parties at the Academy
With a T. rex that has celebrated millions of birthdays, the Academy really knows how to throw a party!
Celebrate your child’s special day in a one-of-a-kind way! We offer theme parties for kids who love dinosaurs, butterflies, and bugs. Basic parties and add-on options are available. Members also save!
Click here to explore birthday parties at the Academy.
Sensory-friendly Mornings
Select Dates
9 a.m.-11 a.m.
Sensory-friendly mornings can be a comfortable, calmer way for museum visitors, especially those with sensory sensitivities, to explore the museum. These mornings will include:
- Advanced ticketing to help avoid lines
- Smaller crowds
- More tranquil sounds in exhibitions whenever possible, with soundscapes and roaring dinosaurs softened or turned off
- An available quiet and relaxing space
- Time to explore our signature and special exhibits and wander through the dioramas at your own pace.
- Noise cancelling headphones and fidget toys available for guests
- Understanding, empathetic staff ready to help and share science with you!
Guests of all ages are welcome at this family-friendly event!
Preregistration is required to ensure a calm, positive experience for all guests. While guests will not be turned away if capacity allows, we strongly recommend reserving your ticket in advance due to the popularity of this program and to help all our families avoid lines.
Learn more about Sensory-friendly Mornings.
Outside In
Inquisitive minds of all ages can investigate animal habitats, explore science and the natural world and discover how
we all have a role to play in our ecosystem.
All exhibits are included in general admission.
Field Trips
Whether you prefer a structured visit complete with lessons taught by Academy educators, or you’d like time to explore the museum on your own, we promise that our interactive field trip ideas will make your experience memorable. Museum exhibits are engaging for groups of all ages, from preschoolers to elementary schoolchildren and beyond. In Dinosaur Hall, stroll beneath towering fossil skeletons, examine dinosaur anatomy up close and see real fossils being prepared. Travel the globe through our ever-popular dioramas, visit our special exhibits and touch real specimens as you chat with Academy educators. Meet the Academy’s live animals and learn about animal adaptations, or watch an experiment and get the facts on climate and weather in exciting live stage shows!
Learn more about Academy Field Trips.
Self Guided Tours
Down the Hall and Around the World Self-Guided Family Expedition Tours
Free with admission; pick up onsite or download at home.
Ready to embark on an expedition? When you visit the Academy, grab a brand new, free self-guided tour to take a
closer look at Dinosaur Hall, North American Hall, and African and Asian Halls.
Explore each exhibit at your own pace. The answers will be right before your eyes or printed in the labels, so have
some fun on this expedition and travel to a whole new world in the halls of the Academy. What will you discover
today?
Like to preplan your route? Download the guides here!
Science From Home
Visit our Science From Home page for simple science activities, coloring pages, outdoor activities to explore the
nature around you, and more! We are constantly adding and changing the contents of this page, so check back often!
Click here for 50+ activities to try from
home.