Accessibility
The Museum strives to be accessible for everyone.
Our interactive science park is designed with barrier-free exhibit experiences, fifteen accessible parking spaces, accessible restrooms, and a spot on our train that accommodates one wheelchair at a time.
Accessibility Topics:
Transportation
Service Animals and Pets
Mobility
Personal Care Attendant
Resources for Visually Impaired
Resources for Autism Spectrum Disorder and Sensory Challenges
Cool Down
Sensory Friendly Kits
Restrooms
Nursing Parents
Food Allergies
Medical and Emergency Assistance
Portable Automatic External Defibrillators (AED)
Have additional needs or questions?
Transportation
Free parking is available in our main lot and overflow lot. Seven spaces in the main lot, four spaces in the overflow lot and two spaces adjacent to the picnic dome are designated for visitors with mobility needs.
Visitor drop-off and pick-up is permitted at the Museum’s main entrance.
All entry and exit doorways to and from the main building, as well as the Butterfly House and Insectarium, are automated.
GoDurham Connect is available at the Museum. GoDurham Connect, a free door-to-door microtransit service, now offers rides to the Museum of Life and Science. The program uses shuttles and vans to connect Durham residents to community hubs like schools, parks, and Duke Regional Hospital. The service runs daily, can be booked up to three days ahead, and operates like Uber or Lyft with curb-to-curb pickup.
Service Animals + Pets
Service animals are welcome at the Museum. Upon arrival, please inform the Admissions Desk if a service animal will accompany you.
Non-service animals are not allowed on Museum grounds.
North Carolina state law prohibits owners from leaving dogs and other pets unattended in a vehicle or in other conditions that are likely to cause suffering, injury, or death due to heat. Animal Control will be called if pets are noticed to be left unattended on Museum grounds and deemed to be in unsafe conditions.
Mobility
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- The Museum has five manual wheelchairs for loan on a first-come, first-served basis. Wheelchairs are available at the Admissions Desk in the main lobby. Visitors must leave a form of ID as a deposit.
- Elevators provide access to the second-floor exhibits and classrooms in the Museum’s main building and to the top floor of the Butterfly House for private educational programs and events.
- Our campus includes eighty-four acres of indoor and outdoor exhibits. If you need transportation assistance at any time, please ask a staff member.
- The Museum’s outdoor pathways, including those in Hideaway Woods, are accessible and meet ADA guidelines.
- The Ellerbe Creek Railway locomotive can accommodate one wheelchair per train ride. Tickets are available daily at the Admissions Desk on a first-come, first-served basis. Click here for more details.
Personal Care Attendant
Admission is complimentary for a Personal Care Attendant when accompanying guests with disabilities. This courtesy is extended to interpreters attending with sight- or hearing-impaired visitors.
Resources for Visually Impaired
The Museum offers audio-descriptive labels at each of our maps and outdoor interactives in Explore the Wild and Catch the Wind. Our indoor galleries offer a variety of touch and audio-focused interactives. Please ask at the Admissions Desk or call (919) 220-5429 for more information in advance of your visit.
Resources for Autism Spectrum Disorder + Sensory Challenges
Through a special partnership with UNC TEACCH Autism Program, the Museum offers resources designed for guests on the autism spectrum, their families, and caregivers. Visitors who have similar social-communication challenges, or even typically developing guests, may also find these resources helpful.
Cool Down Areas
A semi-private sensory-calming area is available in the Aerospace Gallery on the main museum’s first floor. Visitors may use this room at any time. The room contains sound and light controls, multisensory activities, comfortable seating, and printed autism resources.
Sensory Friendly Kits
Sensory-friendly Cool Down Kits are available to borrow at the Admissions Desk. Each kit includes a pair of sound-control headphones, sunglasses, fidget toys, and deep-breathing relaxation activities. Visitors must leave ID as a deposit.
Printed Resources
The Museum offers print resources to help visitors plan and enjoy their visit. They can be especially helpful if you read them before you arrive. Download them to your smartphone, print them at home, or check out a copy at the Welcome Desk when you arrive.
Visual Schedule
Visual schedules are picture cards used to plan the order of activities you want to try. Download, print, and cut out a hard copy, or view it on a smartphone or tablet.
Activity Systems
Activity systems use pictures to clarify “what I will be doing, how much I will be doing, and when I am finished with a particular activity.
Additional Information
Transitions
Transitioning between exhibits at the Museum can be difficult, especially activities like Hideaway Woods, which has no clear ending. Consider clarifying how long you will stay in Hideaway Woods by using a visual timer or visual countdown. A schedule and another exciting activity afterward may also help your family member transition more easily.
Cool Down Areas and Kits
The Museum has calm, quiet areas that may help overwhelmed visitors. Indoors, the first-floor Cool Down Room and the second-floor Terrace Gallery are calm and quiet places to go. Outdoors, Bird Viewing and Wander Away tend to be calm even on busy days.
Restrooms
Accessible restrooms are available on our Southside campus in the main building, Butterfly House, Café Plaza, Hideaway Woods, Explore the Wild, and Catch the Wind.
Two single-occupant restrooms are on the second floor of the main building, next to The Lab., these restroooms include an adult changing table. Everyone is welcome to use the restroom they feel comfortable using. Children changing tables are included in all restrooms on campus.
Nursing Parents
Designated Caregiver Areas offer semi-private nursing locations and a quiet place to rest, away from the main exhibit floor. Caregiver icons on the Museum map show these locations.
A private nursing/caregiving room is available on the main building’s second floor. This quiet, enclosed space accommodates one family at a time and features low lighting, comfortable seating, and changing amenities.
Food Allergies
Sprout Café and Solutions Coffee Bar can accommodate guests with food-related allergies.
While we do not use peanuts or peanut oil in the preparation of our menu items, we are not a ‘nut free’ campus. Please note that we feed some of our animals peanuts and other nuts as part of their normal diet.
Upon request, we can make some menu items without gluten, dairy, or eggs.
Allergy information from the packages of every food product used in Sprout Café is available for review by guests upon request.
People with severe allergies should alert staff when placing a food order.
Guests may also call in advance to request food preparation in a separately sanitized area, away from other food.
View our Sprout Café menu here.
Medical + Emergency Assistance
Museum staff are trained in basic first aid; they are not medically trained. First aid kits are available throughout campus. Please see the nearest staff member for assistance. Common over-the-counter medicines are available for purchase in the Elements Museum Store.
For medical and emergency assistance, find the nearest staff member and dial 911.
Portable Automatic External Defibrillators (AED)
Two Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) are located on campus. Museum staff are trained in their use.
Have additional needs or questions?
Please contact us or call (919) 220-5429 during business hours, Monday through Friday, to speak with Museum staff.