What a great spot for kids and adults! Nice paths, lots of signage, cool birds, a bobcat, turtles, and lots of different trees and flowers. Even with school field trips, it was a relaxing area. The staff were super friendly and helpful, one even providing a bit of info on some of their owls while she tended to them. Parking is free but across the street, under the highway in a dirt lot. After a short hike, you get to the main building. The cost is cheap, but hopefully you feel compelled to donate more to help with their operating costs and improvement plans. There are a couple exhibits in the building, restrooms, and a discovery area (different rocks, fossils, small animal skeletons, etc). Outside, there are several play/picnic areas. Lots of benches on the trails, many in the shade. Simply a great place to spend a day.

Beautiful place. Great to come and explore. Although entry is free please donate to help keep places like this thriving! Pro Tip: if your child likes getting messy exploring, bring a change of clothes!

Family friendly. Stroller/wheelchair access mostly. Great outdoor and some indoor exhibits. Free admission. Donations appreciated. Park under the overpass. Love they have clean bathrooms and water dispensers. Definite recommend for locals and visitors.

Nice calm and relaxing place for visit, not as we expected as a scienze museum but I outside is exciting to see birds and some other animals as well. For sure in the summer it schools even more beautiful to see all the blooming trees! Recommend who loves science, nature and quite places.

I loved seeing the animals that were there and the beautiful plants. I would love to go there again. Its also a great place to bring your kids to learn a bit about wildlife. I recommend going, I'm sure others will love it as well. There are also some fun activities that you and your kids can do there as well.

The Austin Nature and Science center is a winner for FREE family fun both indoors and out. We ventured to the center on a Sunday when it was close to 100 degrees outside at our house in South Austin. We figured that if it were too warm at the center we could always pack up and head home. Luckily there was lots if shade at the center. Upon arrival we parked in a dirt parking lot under the freeway. There is ample parking and the bridge overhead provides shade for your car. If you just washed your car and dust bugs you, this isn't the place for you. There is paid parking on concrete just a short walk away. The center is located on the opposite side of Stafford lane just south of the parking lot. You'll wind your way through a wooded area following signs that lead to the main building of the science and nature center. Upon entering the center, the nature themed area is on the right with the science themed room on the left. Just about everything is hands on for with almost no guidance from docents. I personally never saw a docent of any type, just the occasional staffer doing paperwork or cleaning up animal exhibits. Kids are definitely front and center for the experiences to be had at the center. In the nature room, animal pelts and bones are our and readily available for kids to touch and experience. Such is also true on the science side of the building with small expirements for kids of all ages to try. The exhibits are in well used condition and are showing their age from foggy plastic to broken focus knibs in microscopes. There is no admission charge so the maintenance is a bit lagging. From the main building you can exit to the rear which takes you by several animal exhibits. They are all very nicely kept and the animals appeared well cared for. There is an area in the back of the property where partcipants can dig for dinosaur bones. Again, this experience caters to children is much like a large sand box. We stopped to look at it, but didn't participate because it was in the direct sun and way way too hot. I recommend the center for an afternoon of fun with the family. There are also several access points to Zilker park from the center, so if you are into a bit of hiking to accommodate your experience, you will not be dissapointed.

Really nice place with a small trekking for children. Kids can try to dig some fake fossil in the yard. Kids should come to workshop first to take a look on instruction how to find some “point” and exchange it to real things :)

Great place to take the family to kill some time without breaking the bank. Plenty of little activities and places to visit in this area that will keep kids entertained and adults enjoying the views. Definitely recommend it for anyone with kids.

Excellent place to visit, easy parking outside and trails are well maintained. A little noisy outside with the close proximity of mopac but doesn't distract too much from the visit. Good place to take children to explore a little bit of wildlife. Feel a little sad for some of the caged animals but releasing them back into the wild is not an option and explained on every enclosure. If you are in the area it's a good place to take a gentle stoll.

This place would be a great place to bring your kids! I wish we had more time there and the next time Im in Austin I will make sure I show up earlier. The staff that I met were very nice as well!

My son absolutely loved the dino pit, he could have dug for dinosaurs all day. I highly recommend if you have young children. It had many other activities and exhibits that could keep them entertained for hours.

A wonderful place to visit to see the natural side of Austin, perfect for kids and adults who love nature! There are multiple exhibits along the pond; insects, reptiles, birds, and local animals. You can also learn about all the native trees and flowers with beautiful gardens around every turn. There is free parking across the street and free to visit with donations coving the operating costs. In the main building, you can find restrooms and a discovery area with rocks, fossils, and multiple animal information stations.

The area is very clean and it has many birds and animals in it. Not only that, it includes a small playground for kids while also having many cool things in the buildings. I would most definitely recommend this at some point.

As a serious Science Center enthusiast I would say that this place is pretty great. Definitely more outside things than inside but it was nice.

You maybe are disappointed when you first drop by here, but there are many animals children liove. Most of all, staffs are extremely kind and they love kids. The programs they offer are not great but children like them because of instructors.

Great place to take small kids. There's a dino pit to dig for fossils in, some rescued animals, birds of prey, and a nice hiking trail.

What a wonderful hidden gem. So much fun and interactive exhibits to get my daughter interested in science and nature. The live bee hive especially was so cool to see. I also loved the tesselation puzzles and ferrofluids. This place has so much to offer for an afternoon of entertainment for parents and children. I can't wait to come back.

My son never gets sick of this place! The track is awesome and just the right size for scooters, bikes with training wheels or the like. The mini town with the little stores is super awesome and I've never seen anything like it. The track area is enclosed for extra security. And the playground is terrific too! It's a must- visit!

If it’s FREE, It’s my whole family! What a delightful experience for members of the whole family. The dinosaur dig pit is a bone in a haystack! The exhibits are modest but informative.

This is such a fabulous and free nature and science center in Austin! There were tons of hands-on activities for kids as well as exhibits suited for all ages. You’ll spend about an hour here (or more if you explore the trails). I could definitely recommend to anyone thinking about visiting. They also offer free parking under the bridge.

Hidden gem near downtown Austin. It's a nice venue to bring the kids or anyone interested in nature. There's a nice short trail to their various displays. At the Center, we saw a bobcat, porcupine, raven and many more birds in their Birds of Prey section.

My son loves it!! Great for families and children. Would definitely recommend it. Free to the public. They have a Dino dig pit, where the children can dig for Dino “bones”. They have a animal exhibits, a lot of educational interactive activities. They have a pond were you can catch fish and release of course. Over all a great experience would definitely recommend and come back.

Great place to visit for both kids and adults. So much to see, and so much to learn. A hidden gem, located very close to Zilker Park.

Fun place to see wildlife and the science behind it! They had birds of prey, honeybees, a dino sand pit, animal skeletons, and a nice walk around a pond!