Celebrate the Holidays with Jolly Days at the Indianapolis Children's Museum

You don't have to be a parent for very long before you realize that the winter months can be so long when it comes to children. Stuck indoors, children become bored, rowdy and restless. That's why I love the Indianapolis Children's Museum. And I especially recommend it during the holidays when in addition to being stuck indoors, the kids are hopped up on sugar. The museum's annual holiday event, Jolly Days is full of fun indoor activities to wear off some of that caged energy.

While the Children's Museum stays fresh with exciting exhibits, this holiday favorite offers something for everyone. Below are some of the exhibits you can expect:

Yule Slide
Without a doubt, the highlight of Jolly Days is the Yule Slide. The slide takes over the staircase of the Sunburst Atrium and drops an entire floor. Visitors sail down the slide on mats which accelerate the speed, ensuring a thrilling ride for kids and adults alike.

Photos with Santa
Check out your naughty or nice status with Santa while visiting Jolly Days. Santa is on hand for photos. The North Pole display is beautiful and even though the lines to Santa can be fairly long, there's plenty of things in the exhibit to look at while you wait. It should also be noted that the Santa at the museum is very realistic and the photos are good quality.

Pretend Play
Children can stretch their imaginations while visiting Santa's reindeer. Journey into the North Pole stables to groom and feed the reindeer before they go out for the big night. Bake up a batch of cookies in Santa's kitchen.

Snow and Ice Fun
The Snow Castle is perfect for infants and toddlers. The castle includes a slide and several tunnels for the youngest visitors to crawl in and hide. Older kids will enjoy "ice" skating in their socks on the pretend ice pond and ice fishing.

Other Activities

The museum theater features holiday-themed performances

Holiday-decorated train in the All Aboard exhibit

Event Information
Jolly Days is included in regular museum admission. The exhibit opens the day after Thanksgiving and runs through the first week of January.