harrell house of natural oddities

The kids (5 and 6.5) grabbed a brochure at the hotel interested in the butterflies so we decided to try it out on one of our non-skiing days. I was not sure what to expect walking in as it is pretty small, but ended up being very impressed with the collection. The kids loved it and the wife and I had a great time as well. They have hundreds if not thousands of mounted insects on display including scorpions, spiders, beetles, butterflies, and many more from all around the world. They also have live insects, snakes, lizards, scorpions, frogs, etc. to look at. Once you are done exploring, they pull out and let you hold about eight different creatures, although my kids wanted nothing to do with that.

On a break from snow skiing, I took my 10-year-old daughter to the Harrell House. I HIGHLY recommend for anyone! It is amazing, interesting and VERY educational! At the end of our tour, Mr. Harrell allows you to touch about eight different "living things."

This tiny exhibition hidden behind a novelty store has an impressive display of bugs and insects, The colorful display of butterflies is beautiful and the other collections are fascinating.I wouldn't make a major detour to this place but if you're in the vicinity it's worth a visit.

This is a wonderful museum, of sorts, that's in the middle of a mall. It started as a small little store front and has grown into a more comfortable location down the hall. The owner is great with kids (and with adults) and knows so much about bugs and spiders. My son had a birthday party there and he loved holding the millipede and who knows what other live critters. Reasonably priced, great location, nice people working there.

This is the perfect place for young kids with curious minds. I loved their glow-in-the-dark t-shirts too!

There's a store in the front with cool stuff (rocks, live insects, activity kits, etc). then, you pay a little fee (like $5 for adults and $3 for kids) to go in the back room which is the bug museum. There are hundreds of mounted bug displays and lots of live insects as well. We even got to hold about 5 cool insects with the owner. It was an awesome experience!

Took some time away from snow fun to stop here. Glad we did! All sorts of insects and more to look at both living and non-living. Hands on with tarantulas and more. Well worth the small fee for all ages!

If you have kids that are scared of creepy crawlies they might shed their fear here. The man who runs this place is very knowledgable about the habits of bugs and gently coaxes little ones to touch and stroke exotic spiders, cockroaches, millipedes, and other things that even adults might be wary of. The displays of mounted insects in glass cases are works of art and will introduce visitors to a profusion of things they have never before come into contact with, while living specimens can be appreciated up close in other containers. This is a small hands-on facility attached to a commercial store in the De Vargas Mall. There is no pressure to buy the games and other items stocked by the store though they are fascinating in their own right. My seven year old granddaughter overcame her aversion to bugs here and permitted many of them to crawl about on her hands. It's great to see confidence and tolerance building in kids whose normal reaction is Uggh! Adults might even learn a thing or two about nature and themselves. Well worth making time for.

A very interesting display and quite unexpected in a Santa Fe mall. First time visitor. Will recommend to others.

If you are into insects, bugs, scary critters, critters of all kinds, this is the place...it is a unique place as you will also learn a lot about these bugs and such from the Owner who is happy to talk about "his" collection of critters and such...good place to take your kids. It is located in the DeVargas Mall, Paseo de Peralta andNorth Guadalupe Streets.

It was cold in Santa Fe, and it was a Monday afternoon (read: most museums closed). My kids were getting restless, so we decided to give this place a try. I was a little skeptical, but it ended up being great!The proprietor is very knowledgeable, and after viewing the mini-museum (behind a storefront in the mall), he will let you handle some really cool bugs and give you more information about them. My little boys loved it, and I was glad that we went. I would definitely say this is a great stop for people with children to break up a visit to Santa Fe.

I highly recommend this to anyone who's visiting Santa Fe regardless of your age. Not only is the Harrell House really cool it's also very informative. I promise you won't regret it!

We enjoyed seeing all the specimens and speaking to the very imformative employee. Every science buff would enjoy a stop at this facility !

My family and I stopped by the Bug Museum at the recommendation of a friend. We were not disappointed. They have insects and spiders and from all over the world. Our 12 year old daughter had a really good time and even got to hold some bugs in her hand!

We went with our two girls (7 & 3) not expecting much. Wow!! We spent over 2 hours exploring, holding bugs and listening to the owners explain their passions for alive and displayed bugs. It was well worth the visit!!