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If you like planes or just have an appreciation for anything that can fly, you must check out The National Museum of the US Air Force in Dayton,Ohio and Air Zoo in Kalamazoo,MI.

The National Museum of the US Air Force is totally free and and you could spend hours there easily. This place is HUGE. Wear comfy shoes because you will be doing a lot of walking.My family went with my dad two summers ago and we really enjoyed it.

The first tip I have is to get there early and put your name on the list for the presidential plane tour. The tour is also free but fills up fast.

 

You get to see planes of ex presidents, including the plane that they brought back JFK’s body on and that President Johnson was swore in as president.

 

Those hangers also had really cool concept planes.

Walking thru the museum is like walking thru pages of history. All of the wars, space and anything you can think of in between.

There are also simulators that you can pay to get a taste of a wild aviation adventure.

 

 

My kids did really well in the museum because there were so many interesting planes and interactive exhibits to view. We also did one of the simulation rides.

 

 

We won tickets for our trip to Air Zoo in Kalamazoo,MI. Air Zoo is also a museum that displays planes thru the history, has interactive aviation and space exhibits and also has rides and simulators.

One of the first things you notice as you step into Air Zoo are the beautiful murals everywhere. They are bright and meticulously detailed.

 

I kept on walking up to the different walls for a closer look to really take it all in.

We looked at a few planes as we entered and then were persuaded to check out the kid’s rides.

 

There are several rides that you can ride with your kids. We really enjoyed the hot air balloon themed ride.

We also rode the Ferris wheel ride and I rode the paratrooper plunge with the boys.

 

They do also have simulators but we opted to not to upgrade our tickets. We let the kids ride each ride a few times before we started touring the museum. The boys loved seeing the planes. We also really enjoyed the exhibits that told stories of women in aviation,

 

various wars, and also the stories of the African Americans who fought in the war.  There were so many stories to be told. We tried to read as many as we could before the kids grew impatient.

We checked out another hangar with huge planes and the boys got to take pictures inside a little blue devils plane.

We transitioned into the space area where there were a lot of interactive displays and demonstrations with workers.

We also found inspirations quotes all over the museum.

 

We made our way back to the other side of the beginning of the museum to see more planes and displays.

Then we headed to the kids room with little rides and puzzles and toys to plays with.

 

Once again great murals everywhere we turned.

 

We closed out our visit with a few more rounds on the rides and we were on our way.

 

 

Both museums are definitely worth seeing. You can’t beat free a museum or one where you can entertain the kids in between exhibits.

If you would like to plan a visit to either museum click on their name above to get more information for your next trip.