FAQs

All visitors and members 12 months and older must make a reservation to visit the Museum – tickets are not available to purchase at the Admissions desk. Please visit our online reservation page to purchase general admission tickets or make a reservation as a Museum member.

After making a reservation, you will receive a confirmation email containing barcodes for each visitor registered. On the day of your visit, you must show this confirmation email to Museum staff on your mobile phone or printed on paper in order to gain entrance to the Museum.

If you need to make a change to your reservation, please email tickets@pleasetouchmuseum.org or call 215-581-3181. Tickets are non-refundable, we are happy to accommodate a change in reservation day based on availability within a 7 day grace period. If you are unable to use your tickets for your reserved date, you must contact us to within 7 days after the original reservation date to make a transfer.  We will not honor a transfer if we are not notified of the request within the 7 day grace period.

Clean and sanitized props are placed into the exhibits at the beginning of each morning. If a prop becomes dirty, please place it in a designated red bin or alert a staff member.

The Museum is cleaned with hospital-grade and EPA-approved cleaning products every day and a cleaning company sanitizes the Museum each evening we are open to the public. Clean and sanitized props are placed into the exhibits each morning and high touch surfaces and restrooms are cleaned throughout the day. Additional immersive cleaning occurs in the Museum on days we are closed to the public.

Memorial Hall boasts more than 60,000 sq. ft. of exhibit space with high ceilings. The Museum upgraded all HVAC filters, installing MERV-13 pre-filters and MERV-13 final filters (MERV: Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value). The ventilation system is properly maintained per the manufacturer recommendations and all filters are changed per manufacturer guidelines.

Beginning July 28, 2021, well-fitting face masks are required for everyone age 2+, regardless of vaccination status, during a visit to the Museum. This update is in accordance with the current recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the City of Philadelphia Department of Public Health.

If you are consuming a beverage or food, you must be seated in our Café or at designated tables. Consuming food and drinks in the Museum exhibit areas is not permitted.

To comply with the City of Philadelphia’s vaccine requirement for indoor dining starting on January 3, 2022, families who wish to purchase food and beverage to eat in our on-site Café during their visit must show proof of vaccination or proof of a negative COVID test for all guests in their party (ages 5 years and 3 months+) to our Café operator, Brûlée Catering, before purchase, through January 17. After January 17, only proof of vaccination will be accepted, per the City’s mandate.

Please Touch Museum will continue to allow all visitors to bring outside food and beverages to the Museum, which must be consumed at designated tables.

Children and their grownups do not need to show proof of vaccination or proof of a negative COVID test to enter and enjoy Please Touch Museum and its exhibits/programs.

The Playhouse Theatre, Torch and Monorail are temporarily closed.

Remember, we have three NEW exhibits to explore: Food & Family, Centennial Innovations and the Albert M. Greenfield Makerspace!

Yes! We have installed touchless hand sanitizing stations throughout Memorial Hall for use between handwashing.

• Properly fitting masks for everyone age 2+ (see mask policy above).
• Please bring bottled water or visit our Café to purchase a beverage. Our water fountains are temporarily closed, but filling stations are available.

The nursing room on the lower level is now available for use!

Unused general admission tickets that were valid as of March 14, 2020 will be honored until April 1, 2022, and gift cards/certificates never expire! If you feel it is best for your family not to visit prior to April 1, 2022, you may gift your tickets to another family member or friend to use.

Call 215-581-3181 or email us at tickets@pleasetouchmuseum.org to find out how to redeem unused tickets that were valid as of March 14, 2020 in order to make a new reservation, or how to gift your tickets to another family.

In order to use a gift certificate to make a reservation, you must email tickets@pleasetouchmuseum.org 

Per our policy, we are not able to refund tickets. We are honoring expired and unused tickets valid as of March 14, 2020 until April 1, 2022. If you feel it is best for your family not to visit once we reopen, you may gift your tickets to another family member or friend to use.

Please call 215-581-3181 or email us at tickets@pleasetouchmuseum.org so we can create a reservation for you or transfer the unused tickets.

Yes! You can apply the cost of your tickets to a 12-month membership on the same day as your visit. Just see one of our friends at the front desk to convert your tickets to a membership before you leave.

If you plan to visit the museum more than twice in a calendar year, the best way to save is to become a member! Learn more about memberships here. We also offer several discounts on general admission tickets:

• Military Discount: We offer a discount of $2 off of up to 6 tickets, with valid military ID
• ACCESS Art Reach: ACCESS cardholders are eligible for $2 tickets for up to 4 tickets, with ACCESS card & photo ID. For more info, visit our Ways to Save page.
• Association of Children’s Museums: If you’re a member of another children’s museum that is a member of ACM, you are eligible for a 50% discount on up to 6 tickets, with proof of membership card. To reserve your tickets, call the front desk, or email us at tickets@pleasetouchmuseum.org.

Learn more about Ways to Save on your visit to the Please Touch Museum.

All active memberships as of March 14, 2020 were frozen with no time lost during the extended closure.  Memberships were reactivated once the Museum reopened and you will have the same amount of time left on your membership that you did when we closed in March 2020. Should you have questions, please call us at 215-581-3181 or email membership@pleasetouchmuseum.org.

We are not able to refund memberships. If you feel it is best for your family not to visit the Museum, you may transfer the remaining time on your membership to another family of your choice. Please send an email to our membership team at membership@pleasetouchmuseum.org and we will be happy to make that transfer for you.

You may transfer the remainder of your membership to another family of your choice. Please send an email to our membership team at membership@pleasetouchmuseum.org and we will be happy to make the transfer for you.

Yes. We provide Family Plus and Family Deluxe level memberships for those who wish to include more than 2 card holders. A named or listed card holder must be present with a valid photo ID at the Admission desk upon arrival.

Yes. If you bring guests beyond what is covered by your membership, the cost per guest is $13.

By making a reservation and visiting the Museum, guests voluntarily assume all risks related to potential exposure to COVID-19 in or around Please Touch Museum for everyone in your party. The Museum reserves the right to disclose the identity and contact information for all guests to government-authorized entities for the purposes of contact tracing as required.

Refunds cannot be made on admission tickets, memberships, or gift cards once the transaction is completed. In the event of an emergency closing by the Museum, the ticket purchaser will have the option of an exchange. Replacement tickets will not be issued for any ticket that has been damaged, lost, stolen or destroyed.  For Ticketed Programs, the tickets sold are nonrefundable, but most tickets are transferable, subject to Museum policy.

Additionally, there are no refunds for donations or group visits, and tickets may not be resold or traded for more than face value. PTM reserves the right to revoke or refuse to honor tickets that have been resold for more than their face value.

Please refer to the refund and cancellation policy for event and building rentals.

Please Touch Museum wants to ensure a positive experience for all visitors.

Please visit our Museum Visitor Policies page to learn about our Visitor Code of Conduct, and policies regarding photography and video, parking in our gated lot, restroom access and more.

Please Touch Museum appreciates the importance of special events as a way to raise funds for worthy causes. Due to our extended closure, the Museum is unable to donate tickets and/or other goods and services at this time. We appreciate your understanding.

Generally, the Museum is best for children from about six months through age 8. We have created fun learning environments for infants, toddlers, preschoolers and early elementary-age children. Slightly older children often have fun acting as “teachers” for their younger siblings and playmates.

Since opening in 1976, Please Touch Museum began collecting objects for exhibits and programs. Many of these items were donated by staff, visitors and friends of the Museum. Others were purchased at stores, auctions, flea markets and garage sales.

Please Touch Museum maintains special collections storage and workspace area with supplies, equipment, research and reference material and more to take care of all the Collections. When necessary, specialized consultants review specific objects and collections categories for conservation.