Getting ready forthe Chihuly Collection and Morean Arts Center.
Dale Chihuly's glass art in downtown St. Petersburg, with a Distract Pak of headphones, sunglasses and fidgets at the front desk on request, social stories for the Chihuly Collection, the Morean Arts Center galleries and the Morean Glass Studio, and a live glass demonstration included with your ticket.
Sensory supports. The Chihuly Collection lends a Distract Pak on request and has social stories for three of its sites; it doesn't list sensory hours or a quiet room.
Hours
Chihuly Collection: Monday to Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm; Sunday, 12 to 5 pm. Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas Day; closes at 3 pm on Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve, Easter, Memorial Day, July 4th and Labor Day. Morean Arts Center: Monday to Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm; closed Sunday; closed New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Morean Glass Studio: Wednesday to Sunday, 12 to 5 pm; closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and Labor Day; closes at 3 pm on Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve, Easter, Memorial Day and July 4th. Glass demonstrations: Wednesday to Saturday at 12, 1, 2 and 3 pm and Sunday at 1, 2 and 3 pm, though the museum also lists 1, 2, 3 and 4 pm; call 727-822-7872 ext. 2220 to confirm.
Chihuly Collection, 720 Central Ave, St. Petersburg, FL 33701 (Morean Arts Center across the street at 719 Central Ave; Morean Glass Studio at 714 1st Ave N)
“A Distract Pak with sensory-regulating items is available at the front desk by request”
“The Distract Pack has headphones and sunglasses that I can use.”
“The collection is low sensory, but the main medium is glass; the no-touching policy is strictly enforced”
The museum offers the Distract Pak at the front desk, on request, for visitors on the autism spectrum. The social stories, made with the USF Center for Autism and Related Disabilities, also mention a fidget from the Distract Pak.
There are social stories for the Chihuly Collection, the Morean Arts Center galleries and the Morean Glass Studio; the Morean Center for Clay story is coming soon. Your Chihuly ticket includes a 45-minute glass blowing demo at the hot shop and access to the Morean Arts Center, and the hot shop's main entrance is through a retail space full of glass for sale.
At the glass demonstration, you sit on bleacher benches in a covered, open-air workshop behind a chain-link fence and don't cross the orange lines on the floor. If the light bothers your kid, they can close their eyes; if the sounds bother them, they can cover their ears.
In the Chihuly gift shop there is a small drawing desk and a little library with a big comfy chair. Personal attendants of visitors with disabilities get in free, one attendant per visitor.
For a full-size copy your child can use, open this page at squaredsteps.com, tap Make it yours, then print.
Ask before you go
whether the Distract Pak costs anything
stroller rules
whether outside food or drinks are allowed
where first aid is
whether you can leave and come back in
Call 727-822-7872More about Chihuly Collection and Morean Arts Center
Louder or brighter, in the museum's words
The neon room (Chihuly Collection) (very bright, with a buzzing sound that gets louder the closer you get)not stated
The small hallway with glass above the ceiling (Chihuly Collection) (can get crowded when the collection is busy; a fire code door to the left of the entrance goes around it)not stated
Glass blowing demonstration (Morean Glass Studio) (hot from the furnaces, intensely bright glow, and loud equipment including fans)not stated
Everett and John Kirk Stanley Galleries (Morean Arts Center) (can be loud because a Caribou Coffee shop is on the other side of the iron gate)not stated
Chihuly Collection tickets: adults $22; seniors 65+ and military $20; students 6 to 18 or with a valid college ID $16; Museums for All (EBT or WIC card) $3; children 5 and under free; Morean members free. ID may be required at entry for senior, military and student tickets. Buying online is recommended; tickets are also sold at the Chihuly Collection front desk, and you can show them on your phone. Online tickets are not timed and can be used on any date the museum is open; Chihuly Collection tickets do not expire.
Chihuly Collection admission includes a live glass demonstration at the Morean Glass Studio. The studio also lists demonstrations at $12, free for Morean members; if you are unsure what your ticket covers, call ext. 2220. The Morean Arts Center gallery is free and open to the public.
Museums for All: show your EBT or WIC card when you arrive for $3 admission. Personal attendants of visitors with disabilities are admitted free, one per visitor.
Parking: street parking downtown, free for 2 hours, plus the 4th floor of the Publix Parking Garage during business hours. Accessible parking is in front of the Chihuly Collection (spaces limited), in the lot next to the Morean Arts Center and in front of the Glass Studio (spaces limited). The City of St. Petersburg offers all street parking free with a handicapped parking permit, with no time limits.
All four locations have accessible restrooms and button-operated front doors. A wheelchair is available at the Chihuly Collection front desk, first come, first served, and can be used at the Morean Arts Center and Glass Studio too. Service dogs with identification are welcome; emotional support animals and pets are not. Free WiFi at all locations.
Questions: 727-822-7872, or info@moreanartscenter.org; administrative offices are open Monday to Friday, 10 am to 5 pm.
