New KC children’s book museum opens soon. What to know about the interactive attraction
After nearly eight years of waiting, Kansas City area residents can finally go down “The Rabbit Hole.”
A new attraction in North Kansas City is opening Tuesday and will allow families to immerse themselves in 100 years of American children’s literature. The 165,000-square-foot building at 919 E. 14th Ave. in North Kansas City will include interactive exhibits featuring characters from “Curious George,” “Frog and Toad,” “Strega Nona” and more.
Rabbit Hole co-founder Pete Cowdin told The Star in 2018 that he and co-founder and wife Deb Pettid were envisioning the museum as an immersive attraction similar to the City Museum in St. Louis or Meow Wolf, which has locations in Denver, Las Vegas, and Santa Fe, New Mexico.
“I don’t want The Rabbit Hole to be a place parents bring their kids to run around so they can sit with their phone,” he said. “Hopefully it will be so compelling on a visual and creative level that age will disintegrate and everyone will experience it on an equal level.”
Here’s what to know about the opening of what founders have dubbed the Explorastorium.
What can I see inside The Rabbit Hole?
The Rabbit Hole will have galleries that bring storybooks to life, plus a printing press, theater, a cafe and a bookstore.
Cowdin told The Star in 2018 that the museum’s ever-changing exhibits will be fabricated by local artists and inspired by beloved books.
Cowdin and Pettid previously owned Brookside’s Reading Reptile bookstore, which they closed in 2016 to focus on The Rabbit Hole. They are bringing a key decoration from the bookstore back for the museum, they said in a Facebook post.
“You may remember the large monster from Zabajaba Jungle that adorned the entrance to the bookstore,” they wrote. “At The Rabbit hOle you can once again walk through its gaping mouth and find yourself in our cafe.”
Other featured stories in what the website calls a “radical literary wonderland” include “Harry the Dirty Dog,” Amelia Bedelia, “Where the Sidewalk Ends,” “Goodnight Moon” and “Bread and Jam for Frances.”
How much are tickets?
Admission for opening day starts at $16 for people ages 2 and over, and you can buy tickets on the museum’s website.
Guests will receive a wristband when they arrive that may be used for same-day re-entry, according to the website. Wristbands must be intact and cannot be used after they have been removed.
The museum’s hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday. It is closed Mondays.
