Creation Museum – Review

So I was excited that I was finally going by myself where I could actually sit through all the mini-films and read all the displays and plaques. Bolstering my excitement was my knowledge that he last time that I was at the museum it was undergoing its first major remodel.

It was a dreary, cold, sleety-slushy Thursday, which was good for me but bad for the museum as the attendance would be down.  Camera playing time for me (actually, the only time since mid-November 2019 until even now that I have taken any pictures).

The main entrance ticket sales had been changed and moved further back to make room for more souvenir sales.  Ticket sales and souvenir pictures are near each other now at the beginning of what I call the Foyer.  The planetarium was closed for remodeling, which was a bummer for me because I like planetariums.  But its an extra fee to attend so I can’t say that it detracted from the overall experience.  If it was included in the price of admission and was closed, I would be more disappointed.

I didn’t go in the upstairs restraint to see if any changes had been made there but nothing about it or anything else in the Foyer caught my eye as different from other visits.

The 4D theater feature has finial been changed.  The “Men in White”, which was really, really good, has been replaced with portions of movie “Genesis; Paradise Lost”, which the full movie is available for purchase at all of the souvenir shops; even in 3D.  Being a 4D theater, the seats move and other little virtual things happen making presentations more entertaining.  Though the 3D/3D animation and special effects of the movie is good, I didn’t like it as the movie for the 4D theater. It wasn’t fun, entertaining or informative.  It was overly loud, the narrator talked way to slow, and the film moved to slow.  However, as I am a student of 3D, my attention was held not by the material being presented but by how they did what they did in the move.  I hope that the Answers in Genesis people are looking for a replacement soon as I don’t feel this move wasn’t fun or entertaining nor do I feel that it will be a draw to the younger audiences.

Even though the attendance was low for the day, I made an error in stopping at the 4D theater first thing as did most other people as the theater is essentially the first exhibit in the museum.  So on exiting after the movie, I ended up being in with the small crowd of other people as we made our way on around museum and through the exhibits.  Half way through the museum, it dawned on me to exit out and start over, which left me alone to go at any sped I wanted and not have to peek around anyone or step out of others way so they could see.

As we started into the “museum circuit”, I finally noticed some of the remodel.  Gone was the split entrance where younger folks split off to walk through a cave and boring people walked around the cave (there was no age limit in the cave or anything but you could tell it was designed for kids or youth at heart).

Gone also is the archaeology room and the Lucy exhibit.  Granted, even most secular scientists have agreed for many years that Lucy was no Lady, just an ape.  But unfortunately, the she’s our ancestor has been engrained in so many minds that the truth still needs to be put up in big bold lights because so many still believe that it is our ancestor.  But the exhibit is gone and I’m not knocking that.

But the archaeology, Lucy and another room or two of sciency stuff has been replaced a few large poster board sized displays with verbiage and some images.  Nothing eye catching any more in my opinion.  And nothing that I believe would be of interest to the younger audience.  This part of the remodel continues until you enter the Garden of Eden and mostly features displays concerning portions of the Bible.  So this first portion of the museum (and remodel) is very sheik looking and makes it look on par with classy museums.  But I think it has lost its “Creation” mantra that it had been known for as well as its appeal to children.  My thought is that the science had been exchanged for art gallery appeal.

Most of the rest of the museum remind the same except they may have squished some of the exhibits together to make room for the expanded emphasis of what Sin has done to and in our world.  This is actually quite well done and themed well enough that it could hold its own in a secular art gallery (if a secular art gallery would let an exhibit in that criticized liberal views, alternate life styles, drug and alcohol miss use,  and ignored downside of evolution).

The Garden of Eden, and the exhibits up through Noah’s Ark are still there, applicable and though it would be neat to see them modernized with move animatronics, very well done.  This area will also attract and entertain the younger audience, something that was taken out of the older museum.

The remainder of the museums indoor exhibits talk about reasonable speculations of what happened after the flood.  And it’s pretty much the same exhibits as they had before the remodel.  This stuff is sciency (cool word, or at least it should be a word), which is how the first portion of the museum used to be.

The downstairs portion of the museum holds a eating area with several different types of food you can get.  It was closed the day I was there which I would again imagine due to the low attendance.  The basement also holds stuff that is going to hold the attention of the younger audience better.  There is a room full of dinosaurs, bugs and old Bibles (OK, maybe that won’t hold their attention).  There used to be a dinosaur that kids could climb on and most everyone got their pictures with.  It’s gone now though.

I’ve gotten a little bit out of order now for the reminder of the indoor stuff.  Somewhere along the way, probably about mid-point in the museum, the tour leads you into a souvenir shop.  Of course, the very end of the tour drops you right into a souvenir shop.  And I attended a seminar that had a mini souvenir shop on wheels rolled into the room.

The Creation Museum and Ark Encounter uses many of its “Educated” people to host free seminars thorough out the day.  The day I attended Dr. David Milton presented on the Dinos to Birds myth.

Two side notes here.  The first is I say “Educated” because secularists often say that creationists are not educated.  These people have science degrees from secular schools, most taught at secular schools, but all either didn’t buy the evolution mantra while going to school or through their studies abounded evolution and became creationists.  The Second side note is that Dr. David Milton is an excellent, knowledgeable and entertaining speaker and I have most of his DVD’s.

Ken Ham has made mention several times that the Creation Museum world class animatronics and I guess he took other ideas from those theme parks by having multiple souvenir shops thrown at you over the campus.

As I mentioned at the start of this review, the weather was not good and even if it was, the exterior of the Creation Museum would not compare to what it does in the summer.  The summer admission costs the same but you get to enjoy the gardens, the lake and exterior dinning.  The Zip Lines weren’t going when I was there but was they didn’t have closed for the season signs on them, I assume they weren’t running due to the weather.

You may have deduced that I am a hard critique of the Creation Museum (and Ark Encounter and the movie/documentary The Red Sea Miracle Part 1) and though I may come across that way, I want to convey how well these sites and exhibits are.  I was hoping for a remodel that would further the science of creation especially after around 10 years of running the museum.  I was also hoping that the remodel might have been geared more toward the high school and young adult crowd.  I think it went the opposite direction.  It also seemed to me that there is less to keep young people’s attention as families go through the exhibits.

I also realize that ticket sales don’t reflect the actual cost to operate the museum (or likely doesn’t) and its ministries.  So donates are taken to supplement this as well as a portion of the souvenir sales.  This helps to keep ticket prices down and affordable for people to attend the Museum and Encounter.  But I feel like that the Ark and Museum are trying to suck every penny they can from you, like secular theme parks, by having them in your face frequently.  It’s a pet peeve of mine at the parks and at the museums (secular and Christian).

And if you want families to attend, and reattend(?) and not dread attended these sites, they have to have more for the young audience to do or to keep their attention.  It isn’t much fun for the parents if the children are complaining that it isn’t any fun to hear the repetitive cries of their children of “when are we going to leave!

But there is good information to be had the Creation Museum, especially if you are not up much of the Creation movement.  It’s not a cheap day trip for a family.  In fact, you’ll probably spend about the same amount as you would to go to a regional theme park (and probably no complaints from your kids).  I myself wouldn’t make this part of my week long vacation as there isn’t anything else to do around Cincinnati for the most part.  But the Creation Museum (and Ark Encounter) are great targets for a weekend or long weekend trip.