By Jennifer Glickel
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
UPPER WEST SIDE — New York City kids will have the opportunity to live out the hit movie "Night at the Museum" beginning this Saturday at the American Museum of Natural History.
"A Night at the Museum," the AMNH’s popular nocturnal adventure now in its fourth year for children ages seven to 13, gives kids the chance to sleep under the famous big blue whale after a night of playing games throughout the museum.
"There are 466 people signed up for this weekend’s sleepover, so we’re completely booked," said the museum’s sleepover manager Leslie Martinez.
The program features seven more sleepover dates through December, including separate Boy Scout and Girl Scout nights in November.
"We’re lucky that we get such a great response, but the kids just really love the experience," Martinez added.
The sleepover consists of a fossil fact finding mission by flashlight, exploration of the museum’s live animal exhibitions, an IMAX movie showing or a space show, and the chance to sleep in one of the world’s most famous museums. Every sleepover features a different guest visit from a curator or a scientist.
Kids sleep either in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life under the big blue whale, beneath the dioramas in the Hall of North American Mammals, or among the geological formations in the Hall of Planet Earth.
"There can be more than 10,000 people who pass through the museum on an average Saturday, but we are usually the only ones here at night, so the kids really feel like the museum belongs to them" Martinez told DNAinfo.
While the sleepovers are kid-centric, the museum requires that one adult participate for every one to three children, making the event very family-oriented.
"We have a handful of repeat customers," Martinez said. "One family in particular that I’m thinking of has attended at least four sleepovers."
While one wouldn’t expect that children would want to spend their summer free time at a museum, Martinez said that the kids genuinely love to learn during the experience.
"It’s so important for kids to be exposed to natural history, nature, and the sciences in an informal light," Martinez said. "It’s so different than going to an amusement park or a zoo, so it’s a really special experience for the kids and they all love it."
Generally the kids’ favorite aspect of the whole experience is the very unique opportunity to sleep amongst the exhibits in this New York City museum.
"There really is nothing like being underneath that whale at night with the lights out," Martinez said.
"Looking up from your sleeping bag at that 94-foot animal hanging from the ceiling is both a beautiful and unmatched experience."
The sleepovers cost $129 per person, but Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and museum members are eligible for discounted tickets.
