Love this place! Great for families in particular but also good if you just want to commune with nature. The staff is wonderfully welcoming, and it is obvious that they take good care of their charges. It's a quiet spot right off a busy area of Newport News, but you forget all about the hustle and bustle as you watch otters frolic in the water or suddenly spot an animal secreting itself behind foliage. It's one big adventure!

Ive just always loved places like this! Spots like this will forever hold a special place in my heart. If you have ever wanted to get outside, step 1. Get up and go! Step 2. tho, I’d recommend getting a little familiar with things you may encounter while being outdoorsy af 🙌🏾 You know answering questions around what leaves you may not want to touch and how insects don’t actually want to kill you! It’s one thing to google them but to see real examples at this hybrid aquarium, zoo, 🌺botanical garden and science center is just super dope to me. If you have never been, be a tourist where you live, pack a lunch and make a day out of it, I think you’ll dig it!

Love this place! It’s a unique combination of museum, aquarium, and zoo. It’s laid out very nicely with the indoor and outdoor areas intersecting nicely. The animals looked well cared for. I love that it includes all the ecosystems of Virginia and breaks it down for even smaller kids to understand. It entertained a teen, child, and adult. Not easy to satisfy all three of those!

We got to see all the outdoor animals awake except the possums. Even heard wolves howling. The apiary was closed due to bird flu risks. The aquariums could have used a little better signage, but we still enjoyed the indoor exhibits as well. It looked like a great place to bring kids.

Indoor and outdoor living exhibits, based upon reproducing and interpreting wild habitats rather than simply displaying animals.

We came with 2 of our grandchildren and enjoyed the visit very much. The downside is that It was so cold so we rushed our outdoor experience a bit. Loved seeing the animals and the kids loved the dinosaur area. Sad to see the snakes in such small areas and a few other creatures as well.

Very clean and well kept. Great exhibits and friendly, knowledgeable staff. My kids loved the outside trails. Cool place, would recommend for anyone who enjoys animals.

Good 3 hours to occupy Kids. Don't know why the Cafe is still closed, stupid. No masks, thank goodness. Very clean and informative. Dinosaur GIANT exhibit and outside was great. Gift shop has good selection. Parking and access are easy.

Loved seeing so many animals in natural settings! Very enjoyable visit with lots to see. We spent about 3 hours and it was well worth it. Not at all crowded. Highly recommend.

My husband and I visited in late October 2020 during the week so it was pretty dead, which was nice as we could roam around freely without having to worry about social distancing in a crowd. I'm not sure the size in total of this place but there is a large out door portion and then the inside is pretty big as well. I was beat tired and ready for a seat when all was said and done. The outside I think was my favorite. I love coyotes, wolves, etc. and many animal places up where we live in PA don't have any canines. All the outdoor exhibits I feel were well designed, so you could always see the animals. Everything had a very natural setting for the animals which was nice to see. The inside had so many fish, so, so many fish! If you or anyone you know like fish, this is the place to go.

We were so happy we selected to go to the Virginia Living Museum. It was part inside and part outside. There are lots of living animals, fish, turtles etc... that are local to the area. I learned a lot of tidbit information. This is a wonderful family adventure, though my husband and I enjoyed this without children😀 . It’s a quiet strolling afternoon enjoying the different areas. They have a rescue bird area That is fascinating. Two pelicans understood hand gestures from the trainer while she fed them... remarkable! They have a dinosaur area that is enjoyable and informative... they have a cave section, a nocturnal section etc... it’s very well done! Take a few hours and visit... you will be glad you did!

I found this to be a very nice living museum which offers over 250 species of animals, reptiles, birds, fish,and more that's found in Virginia. The glass on the aquariums was clean of nose and finger prints which made for good photo taking. Along with the animals inside they have an outside boardwalk and during the walk you will see different animals that have been rescued and for one reason or the other are not able to be released back into the wild. Since the boardwalk is raised you are looking down on the animals and some were hard to find. It also takes you around a lake. Also outside they have a dinosaur trail that will be fun for kids of all ages. That trail also has fossil huts loaded with fossils and bones which I found very interesting. They also have excavation areas so the kids can dig for fossils and bones.

So.... Wednesday (7/15) my husband and I set out to go to museums.... (or that was what we thought). We try several different museums with no luck. And then my husband found the Virginia Living Museum! WHAT A FIND!!! Great for children of all ages (1-100)! Great information and live exhibits. I really enjoyed the outside portion through the "swamp/marsh" area. Part museum, aquarium and nature walk. LOVE IT

The Virginia Living Museum is a gem in Newport News, Va. Tons to see inside and out with very well-maintained exhibits with informative signage. Volunteers are available to answer questions and there is a wonderful gift shop and a little restaurant that is surprisingly good! Great for children under the age of about 15 and all ages of adults.

It was amazing! Bathrooms are clean and the animals are amazing. I would go early and not on a hot day as about half of the museum is outside. Staff is super nice and will give you so much info. I would rate this 10 stars if it was an option! We had a wonderful time and will definitely go back!