SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — Kids home from school? Relatives in town? Time off from work?

There’s lots of indoor activities in Sioux Falls and surrounding area to keep people entertained. With the cold temperatures this week, it may be nice to be inside. Even if it warms up next week, the indoor options can still be a choice.

There are links to most websites for the sites in this story are included. Because of the weather forecast for this week, it’s a good idea to check the venue websites to make sure nothing has closed or hours haven’t changed.

Some of the venues charge admission while others are free. This list is includes traditional non-profit venues. So, an axe-throwing business or a winery won’t be found on the list.

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The Washington Pavilion can be a haven in the cold this week and even when the weather warms up next week. The Pavilion and all of its venues inside are closed Christmas Eve Day and Christmas Day.

Kirby Science Discovery Center & Visual Arts Center is open other days except for Mondays. It’s also open on Dec. 26 and Jan. 2, which are considered holiday days for some this year. It’s open 10 a.m. through 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and noon to 5 p.m. on Sundays.

The Wells Fargo CineDome at the Pavilion has a slate of movies from Wednesday, Dec. 21, through Saturday, Dec. 31. The CineDome is closed on Saturday, Dec. 24, and Sunday, Dec. 25.

Movies include “The Polar Express,” “Train Time,” “Dinosaurs of Antarctica,” and “Superpower Dogs.” The schedule of start times for each move varies by day. The Pavilion has a movie schedule and prices on its website.

In general, the movie ticket is include in the price for general admission to the Pavilion. But you can also buy movie tickets only for $7.

The Pavilion also has galleries, the South Dakota African American History Museum and other activities.

There’s a butterfly house and aquarium indoors in Sertoma Park at 4320 S Oxbow Ave. in Sioux Falls. The butterfly house and exhibits are open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday-Sunday. Some exhibits have specific hours.

The Pacific Tide Pool is open from 10 am. to noon, and 1 to 3 p.m. from Wednesday-Sunday as staffing allows.

The venue is closed on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

There is an admission fee that is scaled by age.

If you venture out, there are two miles of trails at the Outdoor Campus.

Two museums in Sioux Falls are free to the public.

The Old Courthouse Museum at 200 W 6th St, is open daily except for Dec. 24, 25 and 26. It’s open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursday and noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

The Pettigrew Home & Museum is open from noon – 5 p.m. daily but it’s closed on holidays. It’s located at 131 N. Duluth Ave.

This is an indoor and outdoor option: Great Plains Zoo and Delbridge Museum of Natural History. The Delbridge Museum has about 150 mounts of animals from six continents on display and are grouped geographically and by habitat. 

The zoo and museum are open 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily. It is closed Christmas Eve Day and Christmas Day.

The Stockyards Ag Experience is typically open from noon to 4 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Holidays could change this weekend schedule. The venue explores the stockyards’ influence on history, economy and society.  The website said that group tours can be scheduled. The Stockyards Ag Experience is in the barn at Falls Park.

Have a future nurse, doctor or other medical professional in the family? Or an existing medical professional? Here’s a museum to try.

The Sioux Empire Medical Museum is located on the lower level of the Sanford USD Medical Center at 1305 W. 18th St. It is free and open to visitors from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday. It is closed on holidays. 

Students are on break at Augustana University and the University of Sioux Falls but the Center for Western Studies will have some open hours during break.

The Center for Western Studies has roughly four major art exhibitions in the Madsen/Nelson/Elmen Galleries of the Fantle Building every year, according to the Augustana website. “Voices of the Northern Plains” is one of the permanent exhibits. Other galleries have exhibits on the Ingalls Family in South Dakota and WWI veterans of Sioux Falls and more.

The CWS has limited hours for the next two weeks. It’s open through Dec. 21 when it closes. It will be open on Dec. 28 and 29 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. It will be closed from Dec. 30 to Jan. 1. It will re-open on Jan. 2 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. It’s on the campus at 2121 S Summit Ave.

The visitors center at Good Earth State Park near Sioux Falls is open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesdays through Saturday and 1 to 4 p.m. on Sundays. Holidays could change these hours.

The visitors center has an exhibit on the Oneota culture. The park is the largest Oneota site discovered to date in the upper Midwest. The park is at 26924 480th Ave. in rural Sioux Falls.

The Midco Aquatic Center in Sioux Falls is open from 5:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays and 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. It is closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. The pool is located at 1601 South Western Ave.

The center has three pools including a recreation pool.

A short drive from Sioux Falls

The South Dakota Agriculture Heritage Museum in Brookings will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Dec. 22. It will be closed from Dec. 23 through Dec. 26. It will open again at 10 a.m. on Dec. 27. It is open from Monday through Saturday. Admission is free.

The museum features a variety of permanent and traveling exhibits on the history of agriculture in South Dakota. The museum is located on the campus of South Dakota State University at the corner of Medary Avenue and 11th Street in Brookings.

The South Dakota Art Museum in Brookings showcases the artistic legacy of South Dakota, according to its website.

Current exhibits include “Flocks and Flights: Paul Goble Illustrations of Birds” and “When Trees Dream,” curated by Rina Yoo and John Schuerman.

The Children’s Museum of South Dakota in Brookings is open Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. The museum is closed Mondays and Sundays. It will also be closed on Dec. 24 and Dec. 25.

The museum features lots of hands-on activities for kids.

The W.H. Over Museum in Vermillion features “natural history items as well as cultural items related to the history of inhabitants of South Dakota and the Upper Northern Plains,” according to its website.

The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday-Saturday but it’s closed on holidays.

The Mead Museum in Yankton is under restoration but parts of it are open to the public. It houses the Yankton County Historical Society and the Yankton College Alumni office. The museum is located at 82 Mickelson Drive. It is closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day but open from noon to 4 p.m. Monday – Saturday. It is also closed on Sundays.

The Dakota Discovery Museum in Mitchell is located at 1200 West University Ave. It’s open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Exhibits include “New Land New Hope. African Americans in South Dakota.”

The Carnegie Resource Center in Mitchell has a collection of mural and prints by Oscar Howe and a permanent collection of Corn Palace memorabilia from 1892 to the present. Hours listed on the website are 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday. The center is located at 119 West 3rd Ave.

Stop at the Corn Palace in Mitchell and see the indoor art. The venue is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday through Dec. 31. It is closed on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Jan. 1 and Jan. 2. The venue is located at  604 N. Main St.

The Terry Redlin Art Center in Watertown at 1200 33rd Street S.E. features a collection of 160 of Redlin’s paintings of wildlife and Americana. The center is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday -Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. Holidays may change those hours. The center has a Facebook page. The phone number is 605-882-3877.