We just got back from a quick trip with friends to Kentucky to visit the Creation Museum and Ark Encounter again. Accchhh! I just love going there! It’s one of those “at least once in your lifetime places.” I would highly recommend the trip. Everything is so well done, and it’s totally worth the money.
If you’ve never been, here are a few tips to help you get the most out of your days there.
Get the Combo Pass or the three-day Bouncer Pass to save money.
I recommend hitting up both places in one trip if possible. They are just 45 minutes apart and definitely worth it to see both. If you do decide to do both, make sure you grab the special tickets that cover both places to get the best deal.
Different people will say different things, but I can say for sure that you’ll want at least one full day at each place. We didn’t need a third day personally, but we’ve also been to both attractions before. First-timers might want more time.
Also, children 10 and under are FREE right now. I believe that is something new-ish because of Covid, and I’m not sure how long it will last, so take advantage of that while you can! It makes for a relatively inexpensive excursion especially if you’ve got a bunch of younger kids!
Visit the Creation Museum first, then hit up the Ark Encounter.
Ok, this is personal preference, but whenever this conversation comes up, this seems to be the general consensus…save the best for last!
But in general, if we’re talking order of events, Creation comes first. Lol. The creation museum has a small ark exhibit to wet your appetite. Then you can really dive deep into the ark and surrounding events on day two!
What to do about food.
The Ark Encounter beats out the Creation Museum on food options HANDS DOWN.
The Creation Museum has two food options. Upstairs you can buy snacky items like fruit, nuts, string cheese as well pre-wrapped deli-style food, like sandwiches and wraps. Downstairs, there are other things like personal pizzas, subs and sandwiches. We were commenting about how expensive it would be to feed a slew of kids there.
From what we and some of you have experienced, you can bring in food and drink as long as it is inconspicuous. If you pack your food items in your back packs, you will be able to pull them out and snack or eat as needed. If you try to bring in a cooler full of food, you will be asked to keep it in your car.
There are tables both inside and outside where you can eat if you pack your own food.
The Ark, on the other hand, has a slew of food options. Both times we’ve been, we’ve eaten at the amazing buffet, Emzara’s Kitchen. It is totally worth the $15 a plate. The food there is amazing! Oh, and their French fries are awesome! (You’re welcome all you fry people! Lol.)
My parents chose to eat at Zofar’s hamburger joint. Mom said it was good. It’s just your typical burger joint with burgers and dogs. I was also eyeballing The Village Smokehouse and Grill. It sounded really delicious, but I didn’t get a chance to try it.
For extra foodie people, the ice cream shop in the ark gift shop is very good. And the fudge from the Creation Museum was pretty amazing too! Melts in your mouth! So good! The homemade lemonade stand was also calling my name, but at that point, we were too stuffed!
Here are my thoughts about $$$ and food. Day one, we hit up the Creation Museum and bring our own snacks and drinks or bring a picnic lunch to eat outside at the picnic area. If we need bulkier food at lunch, I would buy a couple of personal pizzas for everyone to split as a main dish to eat with snacks we brought. (Bananas, granola bars apples, etc.) I don’t want to dump my food money at the Creation Museum. Day two, we still bring snacks and water bottles for a long day, but we dump most of our food money there, specifically at the buffet because it’s great food. We eat so much, we don’t really need dinner later. We can stop by the ice cream shop for a snack later in the day.
Timing Matters.
It’s really nice to do all the outside things…gardens, zip line and animals first thing in the morning. For one, it’s cooler in the mornings on hot days, and for two, it’s empty because most everyone goes straight inside. Also, added bonus…the animals are hungry and happy and out roaming first thing in the morning. (Tip! Bring quarters if you want to feed the animals!)
Something to keep in mind. The ark is PACKED OUT in the mornings and relatively empty in the afternoons. We did part of the ark in the morning and finished the rest later in the day after a late lunch. The afternoon experience was much more enjoyable! I suppose doing the ark in the afternoon would be harder with young children who are needing a nap, but for adults and older children, it’s a dream!
I’ll give you more details about the Virtual Reality show in a bit, but just remember if you are planning on having a long day at the ark anyways, don’t stand in line for an hour and a half early in the day waiting for a ten minute show. The crowds are ridiculous. Save it for the last thing you do before you leave, there is literally no line!
Be sure to catch the Free Shows.
If you can, schedule the free shows into your day. They give your feet and legs a break from so much walking, and they are enjoyable.
My favorite free show was the 4D experience called, “In Six Days” at the Creation Museum. That was so good! And the 4D effects added the perfect touch. I thought it was really special that such a good show was offered for FREE. If you can only do one free show, I’d probably pick this one.
There are usually a couple special free shows in the petting zoo area at the ark that are worth catching, especially if you’re taking children. We caught the snake show this time around, and it was actually really good. Last time we went, we got to watch the goat trick show. (The snakes were better IMO.)
Things worth spending money on.
Just getting to experience the Creation Museum and the Ark Encounter is so wonderful even if you don’t spend extra money on anything, but if you’ve got some money to spare, here are some things that are totally worth it.
- The Planetarium at the Creation Museum. We watched the Created Cosmos. And It. Is. Awesome! You will walk away feeling like a speck of dust and in awe of the amazing power of God!
- The Virtual Reality show at the Ark Encounter. It’s a blast! It’s also a little overpriced in my opinion, but worth the splurge. If you don’t like the chairs to move or you easily get motion sickness, you can ask them to adjust the intensity of the movement for you. It’s a cool show even with the chairs not moving. (Ask me how I know. Lol.)
- Panning for fossils and gems. The kids LOVED this, and brought home a nice big bag of fossils and rocks. E was in heaven doing this…and now we have more rocks for her overflowing rock collection. (Yay!)
- The Gift Shop. I don’t need to say this do I? I probably shouldn’t encourage you. Ha! But there are some fabulous resources here, and you might just be able to kill at least half a day in the shop.
Where to Stay.
This is personal preference, but we stayed about halfway between the Ark Encounter and the Creation Museum so both would be easily accessible. We had about 20-30 minute drive each day.
There are multiple options and suggestions on the Ark Encounter website, but it’s also really nice to use Priceline to get a better deal.
If you have extra time, you might want to hit up the Cincinnati Zoo as well. I hear it’s amazing, and I was disappointed that we weren’t able to fit it in this time around.
If you are interested in seeing more pictures of our trip, you can watch our YouTube video here.
Well, I think that’s about all I can think of! Let me know below if you have any other tips or if I missed anything important! Have you been yet? I’d love to hear your thoughts!
A note from Hannah: Just thought I’d share a few tips for parents with young children!
*So long as you have a stroller/baby-wagon, you can bring almost anything in, no questions asked.? Pack a cooler full, because we all know how beneficial snacks are with keeping littles happy.
*Definitely do outdoors first, wear the littles out, eat a picnic lunch, then plop them in their strollers and recline their seats. Once full and in the air conditioning, they knock right out and you can actually enjoy looking at exhibits and reading.?
*The 4D exhibits are AMAZING…but the Creation show absolutely terrified our then 4yr old. She had nightmares of dinosaurs for months.? I don’t recommend it for young/sensitive children.
*At the ark, getting on and off the busses, they have police/gaurds with dogs sniffing everyone for drugs. If you have a child who is scared of big dogs, it might help to know this tidbit in advance.
*For nursing mothers, there are quite a few designated private spots to use if needed.❤