Museum of Ice Cream Review and Tips: Going with a Toddler

The entrance to the Museum of Ice Cream
The exterior of the Museum of Ice Cream. If you look closely, you can see Little Leia and her "Dada."

Before I went to the Museum of Ice Cream, I read a few reviews from other moms in one of the Facebook mom groups that I frequent. They weren’t shining reviews by any stretch of the imagination, so I was a bit nervous about going with Leia and my husband.

The first thing I took note of was that parking was a pain. The installation is in Miami Beach, so that means that only street parking is available.

So here’s the first tip...

1. Get there early to look for parking, but not too early!

We got tickets for December 22nd. My husband took the day off of work, and we left our house an hour and a half before the time on our ticket (11:30am). We got there an hour early (10:30am), and found parking two blocks from the building. We tried to enter the museum early, but they explained that they couldn’t let us in until 20 minutes before our ticket time.

So we went across the street and took a leisurely stroll down the beach, then explored the Faena Hotel (Wowza! What a beautiful/expensive hotel!). At 11:10am, we made our way back to the museum.
Shadow of two adults and one child in the sand at Miami Beach
Our shadows in the sand at Miami Beach across the street from the Museum of Ice Cream.

 We also noticed plastic sprinkles all along the sidewalks for several blocks around the museum.
plastic sprinkles of various colors on some bricks
See article linked later in this post to learn more about plastic sprinkles on the sidewalks outside the Museum of Ice Cream.

2. Tickets are only sold online. Buy them as soon as you know you want to go because they sell out fast.

 We stood in a short line and witnessed a family in front of us attempt to buy tickets at the door. They were turned away and informed that the tickets for December were all sold out and that they might be able to purchase some online for the beginning of January.
Little girl standing in front of a potted pink palm tree
Leia waiting patiently to enter the Museum of Ice Cream.
Little girl kneeling and smiling at a bench full of sprinkles
Leia was fascinated by this bench full of real sprinkles in the entrance lobby. She looked at me and asked if she could eat them.

We were welcomed into the museum and waited in a short line to reach an ice cream fortune teller.

 3. You can skip the fortune teller if it’s not your thing.

 We thought it was cute, so we let the fortune teller read our ice cream-related fortunes. I got the rainbow, which she said meant that I have a vibrant personality that attracts people around me.
Fortune teller with cards in front of her standing at a countertop full of sprinkles
The ice cream fortune teller at her booth that had a countertop full of sprinkles.

Then we walked into the first official room, and it was a 1950’s diner! We were served the most delicious miniature chocolate shakes topped with pink whipped cream and a pink cherry. I loved this room. It was definitely my second favorite in the whole museum. I wish I’d stayed in this room longer. They were playing fun music and it has several Instagram-worthy photo ops. 
A clear plastic cup filled with mall golden pencils next to a receptacle filled with pink paper placemats
You could take one of these placemats and a pencil and do some fun activities.

A family of three in front of a pink wall with white letters reading, "Shake your Bunns!"
An employee was nice enough to snap a few pics of us in this room.

We each sat on a bench at a counter to enjoy our milkshakes.
A family of three sitting at a 1950s-style diner counter
Leia is eating a cup full of whipped cream because she didn't like the chocolate milkshake. It was "too cold."

Toddler and her dad enjoy small milkshakes in front of a small jukebox

A small pink cup with pink whipped cream and a pink cherry on top
So delicious.

We left the diner to enter an open area in the center of the building where met the “Stairmaster” (instead of Ringmaster). 
A mass of multicolored balloons float several stories above the photographer
The Stairmaster stands below this mass of balloons. Aren't they striking?

The Stairmaster stands on a short platform to announce the rules of the museum...

 4. Stay in a room as long as you like because they do not allow you to go back to any room. 

 5. The ice cream melting off the walls and other props hanging from the walls are not to be touched.

 6. There are interactive exhibits, and those that you can touch and interact with will be obvious.

 7. There are 4 floors and there is one bathroom on each floor. Careful on the stairs, as you will be going up a lot of them!

 8. They have an elevator…

 But in a review I read on my Facebook mom group, a mom had gone with a stroller on a day when the elevator broke down, so her stroller was a total nuisance.

 We always take our stroller everywhere, but this museum is not exactly stroller friendly, so my next tip is…

 9. Don’t bring a stroller. You can bring it, but I don’t recommend it.

 We went upstairs into a room with colorful walls and these fun Ice Cream windmills.
Ice cream in a cone shaped windmills and mother and daughter posing for a photo
The ice cream windmills look good enough to eat.

Toddler with a shirt that has an ice cream cone and has her hands in the air in front of a colorful wall
The walls in this room were so colorful and fun!

 Then, we moved on to the tropical room.

You can read the rest of this post at ellanewriter.com.


Location: 3400 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33140, USA

Comments

  1. Dana IvyJanuary 12, 2018 at 12:21 PM

    What a great review!! Loved reading and adored all your photos!!! I would have to agree with most everything you stated about the museum! Loved it!!

    Xo Dana Ivy // www.iadorewhatilove.com

    ReplyDelete

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