The Ark Encounter and Creation Museum

We spent a full day exploring the museum and its grounds (https://arkencounter.com/). The museum represents the viewpoints of Answers in Genesis, which is led by Ken Ham. Throughout the exhibit, the individual displays explain a literal global flood perspective where Noah, his wife, three sons, and their wives were the only inhabitants left on earth after being rescued by God on the Ark in a global flood. God’s grace manifested in the Ark saved both this family and mankind. They unashamedly take a literal view of Genesis 6-9 while designed to answer your questions about the biblical account of Noah’s Ark.

• Quality: Everything in the museum represents exceptional quality. It will not disappoint you in any way. Built for large crowds, the exhibits have plenty of space around them. My children would have enjoyed a section of the museum to be a full section without the “museum space” so that they could get a sense of how crowded the Ark truly was for Noah, his family, and the animals. Other than that, in every way, the Ark Encounter was outstanding. Part of the exceptional quality includes their informative, helpful and friendly staff.
• Cost: For 2021, ticket prices vary ($49.95 adults, $39.95 seniors, $24.95 youth, and all children through age 10 are free with one paying adult admission). With children free, the costs are more than reasonable. Combo passes are available for admission into both the Ark Encounter and Creation museums for discounted prices, including an annual combo family pass.
• Extras:
  • Ararat Ridge Zoo – my youngest thought this was the best part of the day (free). We enjoyed the goats who are named after the tribes of Israel. Further, enjoy petting a kangaroo in the walkabout display – they are surprisingly very soft. You will want to plan an hour or so for this part of the adventure. There are a variety of animals plus for an additional fee you can ride a camel (not operating the day of our visit, call ahead to check on schedule or prices).
  • Playground – outstanding playground big enough for hundreds of children at a time – highest recommendation for younger children (free). If you are traveling with younger children, you will need to plan time here.
  • Special Presentations – throughout each day there are special presentations in the Welcome Center and Gift Shop area (free). We enjoyed a 20-minute presentation highlighting various animals. Check out upcoming special presentations at this link.
  • Truth Traveler Virtual Reality Experience – our family did buy passes for this ride. The ride cost $14.95 for adults and $9.99 for children under 10. If you are on a tight budget, pass on this experience. Although interesting, we could have saved this money for other parts of our trip.
  • Zip line – although this looked fun, the zip line remained closed the day of our visit (extra cost – zip lines begin at $49 each, free fall begins at $9, and aerial course at $29). Plan ahead using this link as a guide if you want to consider the zip line for your family adventure.
  • All You Can Drink Cup Refills – you can buy a $19.99 refillable cup for the day, which for our family was well worth it.
  • Food and Snacks – there are multiple options for full meals or snacks at typical theme park prices. You can get further details here.
  • Parking: They have plenty of parking with great shuttle service to the main event. The ticket booths are at the parking lot. Once you get on a shuttle, all ticketing is completed. It costs $10.00 per vehicle to park, although parking is included in some combo ticket prices.
• Advice: I totally recommend this all-day trip to the Ark Encounter. The life-sized version of the ark brings the Bible’s account to life. If you arrive early enough in the day, you have unlimited time anywhere in the park. If you want to look around, go outside and participate in events there, and then go back into the museum, you can do so. We were given the advice to start at the top floor (level 3) and work our way down instead of starting at the bottom and working ourselves up through the three decks of the ark. We started at the top where there is much to read and interact with and were very pleased. This may not be for everyone but worked out well for us.

The Creation Museum –

We spent a full day exploring the museum and its grounds (https://creationmuseum.org/). The museum represents the viewpoints of Answers in Genesis, which is led by Ken Ham. Throughout the exhibit, the individual displays explain a literal 6-day creation perspective. They unashamedly take a literal view of Genesis 1-11 while designed to answer your questions about dinosaurs and other issues related to Creation.

• Quality: Everything in the museum represents exceptional quality. Our family enjoyed exploring the various exhibits. My youngest really enjoyed learning about the dinosaurs in the Dinosaur Den. The exhibit Fearfully and Wonderfully Made created a great opportunity for a family discussion. You can check out some of the various exhibits at this link. My wife especially enjoyed the biblical history exhibit as it emphasized the Bible’s timeline and clothing style through the ages. I really enjoyed Dr. Crawley’s Insectorium with my youngest. Part of the exceptional quality includes their informative, helpful and friendly staff.
• Cost: For 2021, ticket prices vary ($39.95 adults, $34.95 seniors, $24.95 youth, and all children through age 10 are free with one paying adult admission). With children free, the costs are more than reasonable. Combo passes are available for admission into both the Ark Encounter and Creation museums for discounted prices, including an annual combo family pass.
• Extras:
  • Eden Animal Exhibit – all three of my children who visited with us enjoyed this area (free).  Animals to see include alpacas, coatis, donkeys, goats, wallabies, and more.
  • Playground – although this is a smaller playground than the Ark Encounter, this playground still provides plenty to do with the same quality – highest recommendation for younger children (free). If you are traveling with younger children, you will need to plan time here.
  • Special Presentations – throughout each day there are special presentations (free). Check out upcoming special presentations at this link.
  • 4D Special Effects Theater – our family enjoyed this presentation In Six Days (free with general admission). The Special Effects Theater is a state-of-the-art 4D theater, complete with comfy seats that rumble, shake, and deliver other surprises. The cinema projector generates 34,000 lumens, giving you a bright, crisp image on the big screen.
  • Stargazer Planetarium – our family chose not to take advantage of this event while attending as it did not fit in our day’s plan. You can learn more about this planetarium program at this link. This 23-minute program runs throughout the day ($9 for adults and teenagers – with additional programs at $6, $6 for children 5-10 – with additional programs at $3).
  • Botanical Gardens – although our visit was in the early spring, the botanical gardens were still a joy to walk (free). The Creation Museum’s themed gardens and three-acre lake provide an enjoyable mile of paved and accessible trails. Our entire family enjoyed crossing over multiple bridges and exploring all the sights.
  • Zip line – the day of our visit at this museum it was raining so we chose to not try the zip lines (extra cost – zip lines begin at $39 each, free fall begins at $9.95, aerial course at $24.95, and team building at $69). Plan ahead using this link as a guide if you want to consider the zip line for your family adventure.
  • All You Can Drink Cup Refills – you can buy a $19.99 refillable cup for the day, which for our family was well worth it.
  • Food and Snacks – there are multiple optifons for full meals or snacks at typical theme park prices. You can get further details here.
  • Parking: They have plenty of parking close to the entrance of the museum. It costs $10.00 per vehicle to park, although parking is included in some combo ticket prices.
• Advice: I totally recommend this all-day trip to the Creation Museum. As with the Ark Encounter, you can come and go freely throughout all the exhibits, buildings, gardens, zoo, and playground. In the museum, there is a lot of reading so a quick break outside may not be a bad idea with your younger children.

In the Botanical Gardens at the Creation Museum

At the playground at the Ark Encounter

At the front of the Ark

Inside the Creation Museum