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Lego Castle at the Henry Ford

My family visited the Henry Ford Museum on New Year’s Eve. We wanted to see the Lego Castle Exhibit before it closed on January 3, 2010 and that was our first free opportunity. This was our first trip to the Henry Ford, although we have been to Day Out with Thomas at Greenfield Village.

We decided to purchase a companion membership on our trip instead of admission tickets. A companion ticket allows the named adult (me) to bring in a guest on every visit. Children 4 and under are admitted free, so we have another year before needing to pay for our daughter. This ticket allows me to bring my husband or a friend. The companion membership is an excellent value, at $79 and covering both the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village. The single day’s admission for us would have been $35 including parking.

We entered through the IMAX entrance. There is a large lobby where you can purchase your admission or memberships. The lobby featured a few large Lego displays. Her favorite was the Meijer horse Sandy replicated full-size in Legos. She loves to ride Sandy at Meijer, so this was quite a treat. There is a generous coat room in this area so you do not have to carry your coats with you. I wish we had known this as we ran in from the car without coats so we would not have to carry them. As we entered the museum, the first thing we saw was the Oscar Mayer Weinermobile which my daughter thought was so funny. We stopped for a few minutes, but she was determined to see the Legos.

In the display cases outside the Lego Castle exhibit, were numerous assembled sets of Legos going back to ones we remember having as children. They included the space monorail set, buildings such as Empire State Building or Sears Tower or Eiffel Tower. There was also a set of castles built by local children as part of a contest. The Lego Castle exhibit was very interactive. There were several building areas with blocks ranging for 6″x12″ to Duplos, to regular Legos. Although it was crowded, we never had a problem finding a place to build. They also had a castle with a slide which was a huge favorite. There were also costumes and the ability to joust, play video games, and many other things some of which were better for older children than my daughter. I was expecting it to be less interactive, and more displays of built castles, knights, etc. While it wasn’t what I expected, we still had a great time. My daughter requested to return to the Lego area before we left.

The museum is heavy on cars and industrial machinery as you might expect. There is also a large aviation area, a display of daily life through the 20th century, a civil rights display, and several others that are of interest. Thee definitely enjoyed the life through the 20th century exhibit as we saw things that we had grown up with. She loved seeing the presidential limousines, requesting a picture with the Reagan limousine. 

From Lego Castle at the Henry Ford

There are interactive areas for kids throughout the museum. My daughter made a paper airplane in the aviation area, built and raced a K’nex car, and did a few rubbings. There was also a large Lego city with a train. She loved standing there watching it. Unfortunately, this was a special display for the holiday and will likely be gone by the next time we visit.














We had lunch at the Michigan Cafe. While the food was good, I thought some items were on the pricey side. For example, the kids meal was $5.95 for a hot dog, two sides, and no drink. A sandwich and side was $6.95, but so was the pulled pork or meatloaf entree which was a much better value. When the weather is nicer, we may pack a sandwich and have a picnic outside. There is also the Weinermobile Cafe which features hot dogs.

We are planning to return for Macy’s Second Mondays which has kids activities from 10a-noon on the second Monday of each month. We also plan to visit Greenfield Village in the spring or summer, possibly for Day Out with Thomas.

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