Think a place called the Fenimore Art Museum can’t possibly be kid-friendly? Think again. This intimate art museum in Cooperstown, New York, offers interactive stations for kids (called “art carts”), plus kid-specific traveling exhibits, with past programs including Elephant and Piggy! The museum also offers two different scavenger hunts for kids, summer art camps, and Preschool Tuesdays with story time and crafts.

The majority of the museum’s American paintings were amassed by Stephen Carlton Clark, an art collector, newspaper publisher and founder of Cooperstown’s National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Check out an assortment of permanent exhibitions, including 18th and 19th century American genre paintings, portraits, scenery and landscape, as well as the American Memory exhibit and the Eugene and Clare Thaw Collection of American Indian Art.

The museum stands as an old neo-Georgian mansion, perched on a beautiful chunk of land right on the edge of Cooperstown’s famous Otsego Lake. It’s also right across the way from the Farmers’ Museum. With so much to see and do in and outside of the museum, it’s perfect for a family day trip or as a stop on a longer excursion.

Before you leave, don’t forget to check out the museum’s exhibit on James Fenimore Cooper, complete with personal items like paintings, portraits, books and furniture owned by the famous American writer and the man responsible for Otsego Lake’s nickname, “Glimmerglass.”

Hours
The museum is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the summer, with varying hours the remainder of the year; check the website for more information.

Admission
The Fenimore Art Museum offers free admission for kids under age 12. Admission for adults is $12 and for seniors, $10.50. Tip: You can save by purchasing a combination ticket to The Farmers’ Museum and/or The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Combo tickets can be purchased at any of the museums.