Florida Museum of Natural History
Florida Museum of Natural History
4.5
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
1:00 PM - 5:00 PM
About
Open to the public continuously since January 1998, Powell Hall houses exhibits and public education programs. It is located between the Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art and the Curtis M. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in the UF Cultural Plaza at 3215 Hull Road, just east of Southwest 34th Street on the western edge of the University of Florida campus. Visitors to Powell Hall will encounter exciting featured exhibits and signature permanent exhibition halls that explore the state’s unique habitats and rich cultural history, including information about some of Florida's early Native peoples. Visitors may view a Calusa Indian welcoming ceremony and mammoth and mastodon skeletons from the last ice age. Enter a magical glass-bottom-boat theater, and ride, dive and fly through some of the Sunshine State’s most famous springs in a one-of-a-kind immersive experience.
Duration: 2-3 hours
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See what travelers are saying
- thehuntersfairy3 contributionsBeautiful museum!This is easily one of the nicest museums we have visited and the butterfly exhibit is spectacular! We were passing through on our way to Tampa and stopped in Gainsville for lunch. I am so glad we decided to check out the museum, we really loved it! It's shocking the museum is actually free with the exception of the special exhibits. Definitely don't miss it!Visited October 2023Traveled with familyWritten November 14, 2023
- Peggy L1 contributionFlorida history, nature, and artI loved this museum and purchased a partner membership before I went. It was less expensive to see special exhibits ( butterfly garden $14nd artic dinosaurs $10 because it allowed Free admission to these for 2 adults and an y number of children ages 3- 17. I brought 4 children. I was happy I did, because they Lso have the Harn Museum if art next door. I have gone back once already to see more of the Art Museum and the Butterflies who were resting the 1st visit because it was cold. A wonderful and educational venue I highly recommend this .Visited December 2023Traveled with friendsWritten January 16, 2024
- ycarneyVero Beach, Florida375 contributionsGreat place for the whole familyThis place is really a great place to see how Florida was millions of years ago. Great fossils, and the video they have when you first walk in is so cool because you can see yourself right next to prehistoric animals. I think they did an excellent job showing you skeletons of all the extinct animals. We really enjoyed going through the exhibits.Visited January 2024Traveled with familyWritten February 1, 2024
- Bubbly B132 contributionsHistoricalMy family & I drove to Gainesville to visit the Butterfly Rainforest. The museum shares the building with the rainforest. To visit the museum is free. To visit the rainforest costs about $15. Florida's history was perfectly depicted. We learned a lot and got a refresher about other things. Give yourself enough time to stroll and read. I'd say to plan to spend 1.5 hours. I'm so glad we got to visit. My absolutely favorite part was what I am calling a 4D wall. You must see it to believe it.Visited May 2024Traveled with familyWritten May 20, 2024
- William GTavernier, Florida120 contributionsHistory restored.Fun and free experience (the butterfly rainforest was the only thing that cost money). There were so many areas to go here and each of them diversely different and very informative. Was cool to see the size of animals so many years ago, learn about indigenous people, the ways of water and so much more. Easily 2-3 hours of stuff to see and learn about. And with the butterfly rainforest in the same area, 4-5 hours makes for a full day.Visited June 2024Traveled as a coupleWritten June 22, 2024
- Cassandra GHudson, Florida120 contributionsExperience and Learn!!!Wonderful exhibit. We want to come back and take a second look. Dinosaurs, insects, ancient people and estuaries plus much more. Sooo much to see and take in. The butterfly Rainforest was the BEST.Visited July 2024Traveled with friendsWritten July 9, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
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4.5
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TigerLily1010
Summerfield, FL435 contributions
Jan 2021 • Couples
Stopped to explore the U of F museum of Natural History and butterfly exhibit. The museum is free and there is a cost to the Butterfly exhibit. This is a small museum but definitely worth your time and visit. We stayed 2 1/2 hrs and didn’t completely see both parts of museum. Parking is $4.00.
We enjoyed it because it covered the different area of Florida not just central Fl.
I especially like the bayou area. They played the sounds you would hear in the marshes and it was wonderful.you felt like you were there.
Will review Butterfly garden/rainforest under Butterfly garden
We enjoyed it because it covered the different area of Florida not just central Fl.
I especially like the bayou area. They played the sounds you would hear in the marshes and it was wonderful.you felt like you were there.
Will review Butterfly garden/rainforest under Butterfly garden
Written January 19, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you very much, we are very glad to hear you enjoyed your visit!
Written January 21, 2021
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
FDinger
Florida1,381 contributions
Jan 2021
My teen son and I had a wonderful visit to the Florida Museum of Natural History. It’s a fun museum with an excellent variety of exhibits.
Perhaps my favorite exhibits is Florida Fossils: Evolution of Life and Land. It features some great skeleton and fossil displays with educational signage to read as you follow the evolution of Florida. It’s very cool. I also like Northwest Florida: Waterways & Wildlife. It features mini-landscapes found in this part of the state. I learned that the sound I often hear outside my window at night is the Barred Owl! The South Florida People & Environments is a nice chronology of the native people of this part of the state. Finally, the Indoor Butterfly Exhibits are truly amazing. You can see scientific displays of a wide variety of butterflies and other species. You can view actual research rooms and see the tools that are used. It’s a great collection.
I reviewed the Butterfly Rainforest separately. It requires an additional entrance fee. I did not visit the gift shop this visit, but it has a lot of nice items for patrons of all ages. Again, I highly recommend a visit to the Florida Museum of Natural History.
Perhaps my favorite exhibits is Florida Fossils: Evolution of Life and Land. It features some great skeleton and fossil displays with educational signage to read as you follow the evolution of Florida. It’s very cool. I also like Northwest Florida: Waterways & Wildlife. It features mini-landscapes found in this part of the state. I learned that the sound I often hear outside my window at night is the Barred Owl! The South Florida People & Environments is a nice chronology of the native people of this part of the state. Finally, the Indoor Butterfly Exhibits are truly amazing. You can see scientific displays of a wide variety of butterflies and other species. You can view actual research rooms and see the tools that are used. It’s a great collection.
I reviewed the Butterfly Rainforest separately. It requires an additional entrance fee. I did not visit the gift shop this visit, but it has a lot of nice items for patrons of all ages. Again, I highly recommend a visit to the Florida Museum of Natural History.
Written January 18, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
That's great to hear, thank you very much! Glad to hear you and your son enjoyed all our exhibits and we appreciate you taking the time to write these reviews.
Written January 21, 2021
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
ExploringD2
Melbourne, FL34 contributions
Jan 2020
This is an amazing museum! It has something for all ages and interests. There is so much here, it would be best to visit a couple of times to really be able to appreciate all of the exhibits. We spent a couple of hours but did not get to see everything so we will have to return another time!
Written February 12, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hello ExploringD2,
We're pleased you enjoyed your experience at the Florida Museum of Natural History, and thank you for the kind review. We hope to see you again soon so you have an opportunity to visit the rest of the Museum.
Kind regards,
Paul Ramey
Written March 2, 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Joanne G
4 contributions
Feb 2020
This is a must visit place for anyone. We loved the exhibits, the hall of bones was fantastic, so well planned so well lit and even little sculptures of the animals who’s fossil bones you were looking at. For all that it is small compared to our Natural History Museum in London uk, we much prefer this one. It is a little gem, so peaceful and no crowds. There is an area for children full of activities to do. Also a huge wall with cases of butterflies and insects. This place astounded us, Apart from the fact that I write this when most countries are on lockdown, when this situation improves, if you are anywhere near Gainesville, (make a detour if not), and make time for this place. Free to enter though they ask for donations. (They deserve them) Thank you for your efforts in your displays we loved it. (Visited from the UK)
Written March 24, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hello Joanne- Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback! We're so happy to know you enjoy your experience at the Florida Museum. Thank you!
Written August 31, 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Mandarin2882
NJ52 contributions
Jan 2020 • Family
The Florida History Museum was fun and educational. We brought our young kids here and the exhibits were set up fun for people to walk through, not just things to walk by and look at. They also have a kids touch & play area. It wasn’t huge, but the kids found it fun. They have a butterfly exhibit (you have to pay for) that we came to see that was unfortunately closed due to a cold snap. They had a great website that was updated saying the butterfly exhibit was only open until 1pm because it would be cold that evening. So we went over that morning and it was not closed, but they advised us against going in since the butterflies were already under tarps. I want them to be protected, so that’s all fine, but saying it’s open until 1pm when it’s really not was disappointing. I would call ahead if you see an advisory like that on their website. We will try again if we are in the area again.
Written February 18, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hello Mandarin2882,
Thanks for the thorough review and comments, and we appreciate the feedback. We apologize for the misunderstanding about the early closing. I believe the front desk employee you spoke with gave you good advice because they didn't want you to pay to enter the exhibit and then be disappointed. But I will definitely share your comments with our staff so they are aware of the situation. We hope you have an opportunity to visit again on a warmer day.
Sincerely,
Paul Ramey
Written March 9, 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Jacklyn W
The Villages, FL3,503 contributions
Aug 2020
On your way to your Florida destination you really should stop in this very worthwhile museum. You will learn that Florida is a lot more than beaches, Disney World and the Daytona 500. One of the things we leaned was that there are over 36,000 Native Americans living in Florida and representing over 300 tribes. There are also Indian Reservations in Florida! We really enjoyed all of the information in regards to the various animals that are native to Florida and much more. Take a little time from your schedule and spend a hour or two here. Your won’t regret it and the price is right, free!
Written August 7, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hello J-W - Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback and comments! We're so happy to know you enjoy your experience at the Florida Museum. Thanks again!
Written August 31, 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Karin R
Boca Raton, FL2 contributions
May 2021
We went to see the butterflies but initially spent a lot of time perusing through the museum as well. I especially enjoyed learning about the indigenous Florida Native Americans, how they lived, hunted, and thrived. If you love butterflies as much as we do, the Butterfly Rainforest is a real treat. It is a beautiful, tranquil environment full of all species of butterflies, and any interesting facts about them. The butterflies and all of the exhibits kept us smiling all the way home.
Written July 30, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for visiting and for your review. Glad to hear you enjoyed your visit and we hope you visit us again.
Written August 5, 2021
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
KMW-FL
Port Saint Lucie, FL643 contributions
Jul 2022
The Florida Museum of Natural History is a great place to explore. There is so much to see, read, and absorb. My husband and I spent over 4 hours and probably could have stayed longer. The featured fossil exhibit was quite interesting and we got to talk with a worker (Ken Marks) who explained the procedure for excavating fossils and how they process them once they are in the lab. The museum itself is free (with donations ) but the featured fossil exhibit and Butterfly area tickets were required. You don't want to miss anything so I suggest you purchase tickets to those areas. They have an exhibit hall dedicated to FL fossils which showed the evolution of the state. Take the time, take the family, take in FL history. It's worth it!
Written July 15, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you so much for visiting and for your kind words! Happy to hear you enjoyed our Fantastic Fossils exhibit. We're glad to hear you enjoyed your visit to
the Florida Museum and hope you visit us again.
Written July 27, 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Alan H
Toronto, Canada179 contributions
Mar 2023
This is a really fine natural history museum which has some presentations to engage young children, others that will interest older children, and still others aimed at adults. Several areas of natural history are addressed, including fossils, palaeontology, ecology, and butterflies. It would take a great many hours to take all that in. On our visit, we focused on quite a large exhibition, presented in a series of rooms, of the Calusa Indians who for thousands of years dominated what's now south Florida. (They disappeared after European contact.) Of particular interest to us were dozens of artifacts from the archeological projects on Marco Island (in the Gulf, south of Naples, Florida) in the late 1800s. The artifacts include arts, crafts, and tools in wood and shells. Some of these are original; others are replicas, since the originals, after thousands of years in muck, aren't in the best condition. The Calusa people, as a group, had great engineering skills, an intimate understanding of their environment, a sophisticated social organization, and a creative spirit that expressed itself in some awesome art. Admission is free to most parts of the museum; parking was $4. It's on the University of Florida campus, and after our visit we took a lovely walk along a boardwalk through the "stormwater ecological enhancement project" (SEEP), a wetlands which is far lovelier than the name applies.
Written March 6, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you so much for visiting and for your kind words! We're glad to hear you enjoyed your visit to the Florida Museum and look forward to you visiting us again.
Written March 13, 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Carlos L
Doral, FL467 contributions
Jul 2020 • Family
Once we left the butterfly rainforest we heading next door to the museum of natural history. The museum had a lot of exhibits of dinosaurs and prehistoric animals. The kids loved it. You could see both exhibits in less than 2 hours.
Written August 29, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hello Carlos- Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback! We're so happy to know you enjoy your experience at the Florida Museum. Thank you!
Written August 31, 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
This is a little bit complicated. I will summarize it, and tell you how to access the museum website. General admission is free, although the university suggests an entirely voluntary donation of $6 for adults, $4 for youngsters. Note that this is a tax-deductible donation. For some of the special displays,such as the butterfly garden, a special add-on ticket is required at a separate price. The TripAdvisor listing includes a link to the website as well. Just double click "website" at the right side of the listing, then go to plan your visit/admission. The attraction is fascinating and well worth the cost involved.
Written November 30, 2016
About how long does it take to walk through the museum? I know it is different for everyone based on how long you look at everything, but I just want a general idea of how long it will take. Thanks!
Written June 3, 2016
Florida Museum
Gainesville, Florida
Hello,
Thanks for the question. As you stated, everyone goes at a different pace.
If experiencing the entire Museum, including the free permanent exhibits, as well as the featured exhibit (currently "Wicked Plants") and living "Butterfly Rainforest," exhibit, I would say plan at least two-three hours.
But again, everyone really is different, and some may be visiting with different ages or for specific purposes.
For example, some parents or grandparents bring young children and stay for hours in only the Discovery Room area. Other visitors will spend two hours only in the "Butterfly Rainforest" taking photographs. (Same day exit and re-entry is allowed with your hand stamp). If you plan to attend a live butterfly release in the exhibit, held at 2 p.m daily with additional releases at 3 and 4 p.m. on weekends (weather permitting), allow an additional 15-20 minutes. Others may want to simply take a peek in each of the two gift shops, while some may spend 30 minutes or more in each shop.
I hope this is helpful and that you enjoy your visit.
Kind regards,
Paul Ramey
Written June 5, 2016
is there any handicapped parking close to the entrance?
Written September 8, 2015
Florida Museum
Gainesville, Florida
Hello,
Yes, there are handicapped spaces just north of the Florida Museum front doors, as well as additional spots just past the parking attendant booth. After pulling into the parking lot, go straight past the parking booth on your right, and pull into the front circle area of the Florida Museum on your right (Look for a butterfly plant sale sign). After turning right, there are regular 45-minute metered spots on your left, and the handicapped spaces are a little further up on your right. Please let us know if you have other questions, and we hope you enjoy your visit.
Written September 8, 2015
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