MCM’s new home, located at 100 N. Hamilton Street on Madison’s Capitol Square, has more than three times the space of the museum’s previous facility, with an additional two floors for future expansion. Much looked-forward-to amenities such as on-site parking, family bathrooms, increased stroller parking and a café enhance the visitor experience.

Click here for a floor-by-floor tour courtesy of Madison.com.

Other museum highlights:

• The DeAtley Community Concourse, free to the public, provides mini-exhibits and tantalizing previews of what’s inside.
• The Wildernest, in the Evjue Early Learning Gallery, nurtures children’s first experiences in a global village designed for children under 5 and their adult caregivers.
• The Jim & Susan Bakke Art Studio encourages kids to create a masterpiece any day of the week.
• Lunchrooms are a launch site for school groups as they visit the museum and the state Capitol.
• Possible-opolis, in the Bolz Gallery, stirs imaginations as a city in which art and science meet, and where anything can happen.
• The Rooftop Ramble, the gift of Pleasant T. Rowland, is a four-season open roof and clubhouse that serves as a park in the sky.

Hours: 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day; Thursdays until 8 p.m. Please note that the Art Studio and Rooftop Ramble close a half-hour before the rest of the museum closes, and that the Log Cabin has special drop-in hours only on certain days. Visit our calendar for dates and times.

Admission prices:

• $6.95, adults and children
• $5.95, seniors and grandparents
• $1, Family Access admission (for adults and children utilizing WIC, Head Start, free or reduced school lunch, Birth to 3, SSDI, Fostercare, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, Unemployment Insurance, or other public assistance program)
• FREE for museum members and children under 1 year old

Join us for Twilight Thursdays on the first Thursday of the month after 5 p.m., when admission for all is free!

Military admission: MCM is proud to participate in the Blue Star Museums program, which offers all military personnel and their families free access to more than 750 museums across the country through Labor day (September 6).  Free admission is available to any bearer of the Geneva Convention common access card, a DD Form 1173 ID card, or a DD Form 1173-1 D card, which includes active duty military, National Guard, and Reserve members, and up to five immediate family members.

Map and directions:
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Parking: Paid car parking is available in the museum’s two-level parking lot, with entrances on North Hamilton and East Dayton streets.  Simply park and lock your vehicle, then go to the pay station near the museum’s entrance.  Rates for the museum’s ramp are as follows:

Weekdays:

• 0-3 hours, $4
• 3-6 hours, $8
• 6-10 hours, $12

Weekends:

• 0-4 hours, $5
• 4-10 hours, $10

Overflow car parking is available at the ramp on the corner of North Pinckney and East Dayton streets. Get your ticket validated at the museum’s front desk for a discounted museum visitor hourly rate.

There is ample bike parking at the facility, both outdoors and covered in the lower level parking deck.

MCM is also on the bus line — visit Madison Metro for route and fare information.

Accommodations: Are you from out of town and looking for a place to stay? Visit the Greater Madison Convention & Visitors Bureau website here to search for hotels.

Visiting on Labor Day weekend? The nearby Madison Concourse Hotel & Governor’s Club has teamed up with the museum to offer a special package. For details, click here.

Group visits: The new Madison Children’s Museum offers expanded educational programs and activities for children through age 12.  We hope you will consider us when planning your field trips for the school year.  We have a lunchroom seating up to 60 students.  Our tour programs support the Wisconsin Model Academic Standards. An MCM visit will serve as a nice addition to a State Capitol tour for older elementary students.

Our school visits catalog will be sent in September. To get on the mailing list, click here, or for more information, please call 608.256.6445, ext. 550.

Also mark your calendars for our WEAC Reception for Educators at the museum on Thursday, October 28, from 5 to 8 p.m.

Scouting programs: These programs will begin in the fall. For Girl Scout programs, click here. For Boy Scouts, watch the museum website for more information or call 608.256.6445, ext. 550, to get on the e-mail update list.