Visiting The Royal Ontario Museum

The Royal Ontario Museum, also known as the ROM, is a world-class museum located in downtown Toronto (100 Queen’s Park). After a $30 million dollar donation by Michael Lee-Chin, the Lee-Chin Crystal renovation and expansion project was recently completed. Architectural firm Studio Daniel Libeskind won the bid to create the spectacular building, which opened to the public in 2007.

The new building, inspired by the ROM’s gem and mineral collection, embodies the museum’s mandate to build bridges of understanding and appreciation for the world’s diverse cultures and precious natural environments, and is a feat of engineering. Considered one of the most complex construction projects in north America, the Chin-Lee Crystal is composed of five interlocking, self-supporting prismatic structures that co-exist but are not attached to the original ROM building, except for the bridges that link them.

Inside, the ROM’s collection consists of 4 themed galleries:

• World Culture: with collections that focus on everything from Canada’s First Peoples, to ancient Chinese Temple art and architecture, spanning 7000 years of history; from the Gallery of Rome and the near East, to galleries covering the Byzantium and Bronze age.
• Natural History: young and old will enjoy exploring the galleries of biodiversity, mammals and birds. Children will absolutely marvel at the renowned Dinosaur collection.
• Hands-on: the ROM is pretty kid-friendly as far as museums go, with lots of hands-on activities including the Discovery gallery, an interactive space with dino dig stations, costumes to try including replica armour, and a large teepee to explore. Meanwhile the Hands-On Biodiversity space lets kids handle hundreds of objects, from bones and fossils to skins and pelts. Another not-to-miss for the brave kids on your list: the bat cave, creepy cool-stuff there!
• Exhibition: the museum has some state-of-the-art spaces that are reserved for changing exhibitions. So be sure to check out their website for info on visiting exhibitions.
The ROM recently dropped their admission prices and Friday afternoons after 4pm offer your greatest discount (though from time-to-time local discount websites offer amazing ticket prices, so sign up for these special offers). If you’re planning a move to the city or will be visiting frequently, a membership might also be right for you and your family.
Happy Dinosaur hunting!