Wondering what it’s like to visit the Canadian Museum of Nature with the new COVID-19 protocols in place? I checked it out recently, and here’s the scoop on what’s new—and what’s reassuringly familiar.
Update from the museum, October 9, 2020: “In response to the latest government directive, interactives requiring direct touch will be closed. Vending machines will be removed, so no food will be available on site. The museum will continue to follow public health and government recommendations and will make modifications accordingly.”
Enter through a tent
First of all, you need to reserve tickets for a specific time online. Print them out and bring them with you, so you can show them to the check-in staff in the white tent just outside the main entrance on McLeod Street. They’ll also ask you all the usual questions about your health before letting you through the big main doors. Tip: Don’t show up more than 10 minutes before your reserved time.
Everyone over the age of 2 must wear a mask, unless they cannot wear one for medical reasons or require accommodation under the Ontario Human Rights Code.
Bring a water bottle
The water fountains are switched off, but you’re allowed to bring a water bottle from home. The cafe is also closed, and no outside food is permitted. As of October 9, 2020, the vending machines have been removed in response to the latest Ontario government rules.
Look down
Throughout the museum, there are green-and-white arrows on the floor indicating the direction to walk. Note that visitors will be directed up the west side of the museum, then back down along the east-side staircase. The elevators are available, too, but the museum is asking everyone who can use the stairs to do so, to make social distancing easier for guests (such as people with disabilities) who need the elevators.
Look up
One of the biggest changes at the Canadian Museum of Nature has nothing to do with COVID-19. Seven metres in diameter, Gaia is an enormous inflated sculpture of the Earth suspended high above the building’s central Atrium. Every centimetre of the meticulously scaled artwork represents 18 kilometres on the real Earth’s surface. It was created by British artist Luke Jerram, who also created Museum of the Moon, the striking sculpture inside the illuminated Queens’ Lantern tower at the front of the museum.
Gaia was originally scheduled for unveiling on Earth Day in April, but the pandemic-related closure delayed that plan. Made of woven nylon and lit from within, it features high-resolution NASA images of the Earth taken from space.
Look around
To encourage visitors to explore the whole building, the museum has devised a scavenger hunt that will take you into every nook and cranny in search of artifacts to photograph. You can download and print the game before leaving home or pick up a printout at the museum.
Check the numbers
A museum staffer at the entrance to each gallery tracks visitor numbers and can answer questions you may have. Above each gallery door, a video screen displays the gallery’s maximum capacity and the number of people currently inside. The maximum number of visitors permitted in the entire building is 250.
Be patient at the washrooms
The restrooms are open. Almost all of the museum’s washrooms are now unisex, and capacity is restricted. A light outside lets you know whether the restroom is occupied.
Enjoy!
While some exhibits and activities—such as The Cave and the Bird Care Clinic—are closed for physical distancing reasons, most of the museum’s best-loved attractions are still accessible. The grizzly bear diorama, the enormous whale skeleton, the creepy-crawly stick insect in its glass enclosure—they’re all still here. And on September 25, the museum will unveil its newest exhibition, Planet Ice: Mysteries of the Ice Ages. It will take you across 80,000 years of history and show you how animals adapt to the cold.
More information
The Canadian Museum of Nature is located at 240 McLeod Street in Ottawa’s Centretown neighbourhood. It is currently open from Wednesday through Sunday from 10am to 4pm (the first hour on weekends is reserved for museum members only). Admission is free from 3pm to 4pm on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, but you still need to reserve a (free) ticket online before arriving. You can borrow a wheelchair, but not a stroller. See the museum’s visitor information page for more details.
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