Museum of Discovery Reopening Late August

Thank you for your patience during our extended closure as we repair and renovate following mid-February’s flooding caused by burst pipes during our frigid weather. It is with great excitement that we share an estimated reopening in late August. As much as we want to announce a specific date, we are hesitant to do so as we have faced many delays due to shortages in building supplies. As soon as we are confident in a date, we will make a grand opening announcement – and we cannot wait to welcome all of you back to Museum of Discovery!

News about existing Memberships

If you are a current museum member, you should have received an email with a link to notify us if you prefer to:

Extend your expiration date up to six months (based on the number of remaining months on your account at the time of our closure in February or the number of months you won’t be able to use your membership if you purchased after mid-February*)

or to:

Forgo an extension and renew your membership at its original expiration date

If you are a current member, or had a membership that expired March of this year or on, and did not receive the email, please email Austin Hall.

Buy a membership now, receive nearly two months of additional benefits!

Any Museum of Discovery memberships purchased now until our reopening will not expire until August 31, 2022! Although you will not be able to receive free admission at Museum of Discovery until we reopen, you can still receive free admission to hundreds of museums across the country, including Amazeum in Bentonville! See participating museums at https://museumofdiscovery.org/membership/.

And we have come to an agreement with the Mid-America Science Museum in Hot Springs to offer free entry to each museum’s members when they visit the other one. Formerly, there was a $5 fee for our members when they visited Mid-America, and vice-versa.

What to expect when Museum of Discovery reopens

Despite the renovations being made during our current closure, the Museum of Discovery you will experience later in 2021 will not be the Museum of Discovery you will experience in 2023! The flooding we experienced this winter caused an estimated $7 million in damages. A large portion of this amount is due to the destruction of 70% of our hands-on, interactive exhibits.

The exhibit design and fabrication process is a lengthy one, as these interactive pieces must be tailored to each museum’s needs. There are also a limited number of exhibit design and fabrication companies. With that said, we are in the initial design phase of this process and expect our new exhibits to be installed in about two years. Therefore, we will use a number of temporary interactive exhibitions during this interim phase.

When our doors reopen in August, we will be unveiling an expanded Tinkering Studio as well as an expanded animal care studio that will be viewable to our guests for the first time! Both these expanded spaces will allow for guest-staff engagement and public programming. We also anticipate the installation of a few permanent, high-engagement features in our science center before the new exhibits arrive.

We thank you for your understanding and continued support! Although we have faced a number of challenges since March 2020, we remain committed, perhaps more than ever, to igniting and fueling a passion for science, technology, engineering, arts and math through dynamic, interactive experiences. Thank you!