AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY

Built around 1860, located on the west side of Central Park, the New York Museum of Natural History is one of the most extraordinary museums in the world. A magical place to bring the children. This must-see museum is made up of several buildings characterizing the different stages of the American empire, with the statue of the great imperialist Theodore Roosevelt himself, standing guard at the entrance to Central Park West. You'll come away amazed by so many treasures gathered and so much ingenuity.

Whether you enter from the 77th Street foyer (with the grandiose Alaskan Tlingit war barge) or from Central Park West, corridors will lead you to the discovery of the main mammals of North America, recreated life-size in panoramic niches that recreate their environment. And that's just a small part of the journey through regions and eras. Extraordinary collections devoted to Eskimos, Indians, Asian, African, Oriental and Central American cultures. Rooms of meteorites, fabulous collection of precious stones (the largest sapphire in the world). On the 4th and last floor, the skeletons of dinosaurs, mammoths, flying reptiles, many of which were brought back from expeditions financed by the museum in the Gobi desert. In all, 34 million pieces to see. And the life of the museum is punctuated by the many simultaneous temporary exhibitions, always as complete, entertaining and educational ("The construction of Petra and the civilization of its builders - the Nabataeans", "500 tropical butterflies living in their natural environment", etc.). Not to be missed: the Rose Center, which has been spectacularly designed to reveal the mysteries of astrophysics and earth sciences. In the Hall of the Universe, you can consult the Astrobulletin, a screen where images of NASA's observations from spacecraft are projected and see images of the Willamette meteor, the largest discovered in the United States. In the hall of the planet Earth, all the explanations concerning the formation of the Earth and its transformations due to climatic phenomena. A dynamic globe offers a vision of the Earth in rotation from space. On the second floor, you will admire suspended models of galaxies, stars and planets and listen to the narration (by Jodie Foster) of the first moments of the universe. Then you'll take the Cosmic Pathway, a spiral walkway that leads you around a sphere illustrating the changing state of the cosmos over 13 billion years. With each step, you cross 75 million years. For an immersive experience that will appeal to the youngest, a cinema broadcasts half-documentary and half-show films on a giant screen and in optimal sound conditions with subjects such as India, the land of the Bengal tiger, volcanoes in the abyssal depths, a day and night in the Serengeti Park, etc. Also to be seen, the Space Show, a half-hour 3D film, offers its vision of the universe.

In May 2023, the Gilder Center, a new center for science, education and innovation, was unveiled. This architecturally innovative addition evokes the interior of a canyon. Must-sees: the three floors of exhibits, the butterfly vivarium and the 360-degree video-mapping experience (both at extra cost).