The Austin Toy Museum

This past Sunday was Austin Museum Day, where many Austin area museums opened their doors to the public for free.    Being new to Austin I didn’t want to miss out on a free museum so we headed downtown to check out the Austin Toy Museum.   The museum opened in March 2016 and will soon be one of the largest toy museums in the world (according to their website).

The museum has over 40,000 toys and cannot display them all due to limited space so they rotate exhibits often.   The museum was small.  It only had two rooms and took us less than an hour to go through.   There were a lot of people there and it was hot inside.  Not sure the AC was working.   The majority of toys were from my childhood era the 80s.  While it was a blast from the past for me my kids were not that impressed.  We started by walking past a large Bart Simpson collection and then a Star Wars toy installation.   We checked out Star Trek toys. Smurfs, Cabbage Patch dolls, GI Joes, Ninja Turtles, Thunder Cats, a Teddy Ruxpin and of course Pokemon. Most were set up and no touching was allowed but some stations allowed and welcomed touching.  

In the back was my husbands’ favorite area.  There were video games, the original Nintendo, Sega, Atari, Pong and Intellivision.   As well as a Wii with Mario kart.  Some of these are even set up and you can play with.   There was also a section of arcade games.   We tried Donkey Kong and Q-bert, but trying to explain to our kids the rules of the game and how to use the buttons and joysticks was difficult.  Plus short kids can not see the game board.   They were not amused so we kept on moving. The arcade games all are free with admission no quarters needed which was a bonus.  There even was my favorite a Ms. Pacman cocktail table to play, maybe with older kids or ones that like video games this section might have gone over better. 

Since we were there on Austin Museum day they had a balloon twister and face painter. We stopped and both my kids had their faces painted.   They also have a few toys for sale as well as t-shirts in the front.   I purchased my 2 kids some Shopkins as a souvenir of course.

 

While I enjoyed the museum it was very small with too many people you feel rushed and have to wait in line to try out the games.  Maybe checking this museum out on a cooler day when there is less traffic it could have been more enjoyable.  The full price admission is a bit steep as well but it is tax deductible so save your receipt.   The museum is on a busy street and you have to circle a neighborhood to park.   I would recommend visiting the toy museums website for upcoming specials so you do not pay full price. 

Price

Adults $8

Children $3

Seniors / Military $6

Hours

11:00am to 7:00pm Wednesday through Sunday

Closed Mondays and Tuesdays