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Visiting the National Air & Space Museum – Udvar-Hazy Center

Museums can be hit or miss with kids but a family can never go wrong with a visit to any of the Smithsonian Museums in our nation’s capital.  We loved exploring the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum – Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia.  The Smithsonian actually has two Air & Space Museums. This museum opened in 2003 and was named in honor of its major donor.  It was built as a sister museum to the National Mall location and to accommodate many of the aircraft that could not fit in the other museum.

Smithsonian udvar-Hazy Center sign

This huge hangar was filled with aircraft of all sizes. Standing on the entrance platform and looking out into the hangar was an aviator’s paradise. Many planes were suspended in mid-air but many more were on the ground floor. The hangar had three levels displaying about 120 types of aircraft from different time periods.

Air & Space museum Udvar Hazy Center hangar

For my husband and son who are both space exploration and plane enthusiasts, watching them was like watching kids in a candy store. This museum was very impressive and was laid out so well. As a person who doesn’t know too much about planes, it was a bit overwhelming but I was excited to learn the history and see these aircrafts up close.

Udvar Hazy Center planes

One of the the first things that caught our eye was the massive and sleek looking SR-71 Blackbird.  One of its features is a titanium composite airframe.  It was designed by Lockheed in the 1960s as a “long-range strategic reconnaissance aircraft” with speeds of up to over three times the speed of sound.

Udvar Hazy Center SR-71 Blackbird

Known as one of the most impressive aircrafts in aviation history, it served the military from 1964-1998.

Udvar Hazy Center SR-71 Blackbird

The museum’s main attraction is the Space Shuttle Discovery. Located in its own wing and hangar, we instantly saw the space shuttle upon entering.

Udvar Hazy Center Discovery shuttle

It was an incredible feeling to see one of the most important marvels of the space program.  The Discovery space shuttle was huge and seeing it up close was beyond impressive

Udvar Hazy Center Discovery space shuttle

Discovery served the longest of all the shuttle fleets with 39 Earth-orbital missions, 365 days in space and traveled almost 150 million miles (240 million km).  It flew its 133rd mission and its last one in 2011.

Udvar Hazy Center Discovery Space shuttle

Seeing its panels up close and its discolored body was evidence of its many diverse missions that lasted almost 30 years.

Udvar Hazy Center Discovery Space shuttle

The Discovery space shuttle was amazing to look at from behind too.

Udvar Hazy Center Discovery shuttle back

This space section had various exhibits of rockets, satellites and cabinets of interesting artifacts like astronauts’ food, clothing and special gear. There is supposed to be 140+ major space artifacts on display here. We got to see what the astronauts brought into space to help them cope and live including personal hygiene items.

Udvar Hazy Center astronaut suits

Various other space related exhibits included the Apollo 11 Flotation Collar. After the historic moon landing in 1969, this was the custom-made flotation collar attached to the command module, Columbia, after it splashed down in the Pacific Ocean carrying three astronauts.

Udvar Hazy Center Apollo 11

There was also the Gemini VII space capsule. In 1965, this was part of a mission that showed humans were able to live in weightlessness for 14 days.  It was part of the world’s first rendezvous with Gemini VI-A which were important steps that paved the way to landing on the moon.

Udvar Hazy Center Gemini VII space capsule

One of the museum’s other attractions was the Enola Gay. This was the Boeing B-29 super fortress that dropped the first atomic weapon in Hiroshima, Japan.  It was difficult to explain to the kids what the historical significance of this plane was and its massive impact in something they could easily understand.

Udvar Hazy Center enola gay

With so many planes to see, we let our kids lead the way and see which ones caught their attention and interest.  My daughter was drawn to the colorful, small planes while my son was more interested in the larger planes.

Many of the aircrafts had informative tablets near them with descriptions and historical facts.  One of my favorites was seeing the Air France Concorde which flew New York to Paris in 3.5 hours compared to the average eight hours by other commercial planes.

Udvar Hazy Center air france concorde

It was interesting to see the technological progress of aircrafts and what they have accomplished.  Seeing many of these massive and historical aircraft was quite a learning experience.  You don’t have to be flight enthusiasts to enjoy a visit to these engineering marvels.

Udvar Hazy Center helicopters

It has been several years since I’ve visited the National Mall Air and Space museum but the Udvar-Hazy Center was less crowded, much more spacious and definitely worth the detour. It was family- friendly and offered many engaging and interactive activities. For aviation fans, this showcase and living historical museum of aircrafts from different eras is a must visit.

Udvar Hazy Center hangar

 Visiting the National Air and Space Museum – Udvar-Hazy Center Basics and Tips

  •  As with most of the Smithsonian Museums, admission is FREE.  Parking is $15 but free after 4 PM.
  • Hours: 10 AM – 5:30 PM.  Open everyday except Christmas Day.
  • Get a kids scavenger hunt type activity at the Visitor’s Center desk by the entrance.
  •  Amenities inside include an IMAX theater, flight simulators, gift shop and a McDonald’s.
  • Free Docent led tours available daily.
  • No direct metro service from Washington, DC.  It is located near Dulles airport in the Virginia suburb of Chantilly.  We had a rental car and flew into Dulles so it was a great stop along the way.
  •  There is a 164-ft Observation Tower that is open to watch air traffic of planes taking off and landing at busy Dulles Airport.

*Have you visited either of the Smithsonian Air and Space Museums?  Are there similar aircraft museums you’ve visited in your travels?

Udvar-Hazy Center

36 thoughts on “Visiting the National Air & Space Museum – Udvar-Hazy Center”

  1. This place is on our bucket list of places to see before the kids leave home. It looks so amazing! We visited the Air & Space Museum in San Diego this summer, where my 8-year-old was in heaven. And hopefully, we’ll see the Space Shuttle Endeavor at the California Science Center very soon.

    1. Thanks Debi! We haven’t visited the San Diego one yet :) Your boys will love this one in DC. We’re hoping to see Endeavor soon too which reminds me to check when it’ll be there.

  2. I’m hoping to see the shuttle trainer in Seattle sometime soon, but I can’t wait to see one of the real shuttles up close. DC is a little far away from Vancouver, but your pictures are making me think it’s worth the trip!

    1. DC is worth the trip with school age kids. Endeavor space shuttle will be at California Science Center in LA soon which is closer to you than DC. Hope you get to see the shuttle trainer soon.

  3. Debbie Beardsley @ European Travelista

    I love the Smithsonian Museums but have not made it out to this one! My husband and son would also be like kids in a candy shop here. They are pretty amazing beasts, aren’t they (the planes)

  4. This museum is awesome. But the best thing about Smithsonian Museums is that for families they are a risk-free activity. They’re free. So try any museum you’re interested in. if they kids get bored quickly or hit their tired time of day you can just leave and try again another time.

  5. What a great museum. I didn’t know that there were actually two Smithsonian air & space museums. Such treasures we’ve got in Washington DC. I’d love to see the space shuttle — next time, hopefully.

  6. Read about the Smithsonian museum in Dan Browns novel!! This looks huge and so very interesting. Especially the space shuttle, so very exciting to see that!! Thanks for the captures Mary :)

  7. This would definitely enthrall my kids. We’ve visited the Museum of Flight in Seattle, and their grandparents have a house just a few minutes away from Space Center Houston. I had to study up on aviation in high school, and getting to visit the National Mall Air and Space Museum right after that while all the info was still fresh in my head was great.

  8. I just posted about kids and museums this week too – I wrote about visiting the Louvre with kids. Anyway, I don’t think I’d be very interested in the Air and Space Museum, but my son and husband sure would! I think if I was there I would just try to get an answer to why they can’t make planes more comfortable and why more planes can’t get us to Paris in 3.5 hours like the Concorde. ;)

  9. I went to the space center near Houston and found that museum fascinating. Planes not so much but anything space like blows my mind. I remember my son thoroughly enjoying the visit too.
    Merry Christmas Mary. It’s been a pleasure getting to know you.

  10. Thanks for a great article about this part of the Smithsonian. I haven’t visited Washington yet but I do intend to in the future, and the two aircraft parts of the Smithsonian are definitely on my list of places to visit.

  11. The space museum would definitely be of interest to me. The other, I could probably give a miss. However, I say that, but if I was in the area I probably would take a look :)

  12. Oh my god! This has serious potential for becoming my favourite museum. Being a big fan of flying and Star Trek, I would absolutely love to see the stealth plane (because it’s almost like having a cloaking device … :) ), the space shuttle Discovery, and the capsules. Great post!

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