I visited the Museum of Ice Cream NYC—here’s the scoop

Woman smiling in Sprinkle Cave at the Museum of Ice Cream NYC.

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You know that moment when you see someone enjoying a good scoop of ice cream? You know the moment I’m talking about.

When you’re walking on a city street and you spot someone with a colorful, swirly cone of ice cream. It’s like the crowds part and the sun shines right on them and their cone.

Rainbow sprinkles twinkle in the light on top of a fluffy cone of ice cream. You can see joy and pride beaming from the person’s face, in their eyes, and peeking out their smile. Gazes in the crowd follow the joyous cone and then seek its source.

Suddenly, you have a craving for a sweet scoop of ice cream.

Standing in line for your dessert, you’re curious and ready to sample new flavors. Then, when you walk out of the shop with your cone, the cycle continues. Now, you’re the one with the cheeky grin holding a cone topped with joy and childhood nostalgia of sticky fingers and waffle cones.

It's an experience worth savoring every time, right?

Well, what if I told you there’s a place where you can step into the world of ice cream? A whole place where ice cream comes to life. You can sample ice cream to your heart’s content while exploring with curiosity, joy, and imagination.

The Museum of Ice Cream (MOIC) experience is ready to serve you fun and flavorful adventures.

I had a great time visiting MOIC’s New York City location in SoHo. Continue reading to get a feel for the experience and tips to prep for your visit.


Get Ready for Your Sweet Escape

Slide at Museum of Ice Cream NYC

Before you dive into this dessert wonderland, here are a few things to know:

  • Tickets Must Be Reserved Online: You’ll need to snag your tickets through their website or a partner like Viator before you arrive.

  • Location Specifics: The Museum of Ice Cream has several locations (NYC, Chicago, Singapore, and Shanghai). Just keep in mind that offers and operations differ slightly across cities, so make sure you select the specific location you plan to visit when reserving tickets and reading FAQs.

    P.S. A new location is coming soon in Las Vegas!

  • Ticket Types in NYC: The NYC location offers General Admission (timed entries every half hour, with varying prices), Anytime Tickets (more expensive but offer the convenience of entering without pre-scheduling), and VIP Tickets (bypass pre-scheduling, skip the entry line, and indulge in a complimentary milkshake!).

  • Waiver: Fill out your waiver in advance to cut down on wait time to enter the experience.

Stepping into a World of Pure Imagination

I felt like I was visiting Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory from the moment I entered MOIC.

Walking in, you first see the lobby, which features the Museum of Ice Cream’s café. If you’re craving something sweet (like an ice cream hotdog!) on your way in or out, you’re all set.

There, you’re also greeted by MOIC’s giant slide. It’s a great peak into the whimsy waiting for you inside the experience.

When you head inside, you start by imagining your own ice cream name and jotting it down on a name tag. It’s a fun way to start getting creative with how you think about your connection to ice cream.

You go down a bright hallway that looks like something straight out of Candyland, the board game.

And then, you head into your first tasting room, the Crosby Lounge. Inside, it looks like an old-school ice cream parlor. There are a few booths and seats to sit down and enjoy your first scoop.

Crosby Lounge at the Museum of Ice Cream NYC.

Inside the Crosby Lounge

Ice cream offerings are unlimited throughout the experience, so enjoy however much you'd like.

What to Expect

Now, the ice cream flavors in the installation rooms were not heavily milk-based (at least on my visit).

MOIC had lighter flavors and textures, almost like a sorbet.

Staff were frequently mixing and refilling ice cream stations throughout my trip, so I assume it’s easier for them to prep and freeze those lighter blends than heavier, creamier flavors.

There were lots of fruity scoops to try, plus popsicles and cotton candy. I enjoyed trying them all.

Just a heads-up, the café offers more indulgent options if you're looking for something beyond the free samples in the installation rooms.

Exploring the Interactive Wonderland

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A blend of a selfie museum, art exhibit, and a playground, MOIC is great for kids and kids at heart. Move at your own pace through 13 rooms of frosted fun.

Be silly and explore with curiosity.

Take a dip in the Sprinkle Pool. Slide down the three-story spiral slide. Play arcade games in the Carnival room. Snap a selfie in the Sprinkle Cave. Get hands-on with craft activities. Strike a pose in the wonderland for a memorable photo.

It took my family and me over an hour walking through the Museum of Ice Cream. We were being silly, stopping for pictures, and trying all the ice cream flavors.

I’d say give yourself at least an hour. The more you engage, the longer the experience will be.

What to Bring

Woman smiling in Rainbow Hallway at Museum of Ice Cream NYC.
  • Bring your camera! I recommend the Rainbow Hallway and the Celestial Subway for fun pics to add to your feed.

  • Be creative with fashion. I wish I had dressed in even brighter colors and accessories for my visit. Every room is so colorful, and wearing fun hues or sweet accessories would be the cherry on top for your Instagram photos.

  • Wear socks and sturdy shoes for playground fun. You have to wear socks in the Sprinkle Pool. If you forget to grab socks, MOIC sells them in the lobby gift shop. You'll also want comfortable shoes for the Playspace room's jungle gym equipment and the spiral slide

What Else to Expect

Celebration Room at Museum of Ice Cream in NYC.

MOIC is more of an experience walk-through than a museum in the traditional sense. In one of the installation rooms, you can learn ice cream facts and history.

Overall, the Museum of Ice Cream is a very interactive, creative, and Instagrammable space. It's more about exploring ice cream delights with all your senses, rather than reading information like in a traditional museum.

Sweet Takeaways

The Museum of Ice Cream gave me a scoop of joyful adventure.

It was a fun way to cool off and step back into a world of play and fun. It’s a great reminder to slow down and savor life the way you savor a good scoop of ice cream.

That feeling of joy and awe you had as a kid when you eat an ice cream sundae is how it felt exploring this place. It’s always great to spark that playful spirit and just have fun for a while.

I left there full of cheer, creativity, and ice cream (of course!).


Ready to jump into your own sweet adventure? Here’s a link to Viator to get your ticket to the Museum of Ice Cream next time you're in New York!

This is an affiliate link, so if you purchase from this link, I'll earn a small commission, which helps support my blog. Thanks for your support!

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Woman smiling in Sprinkle Cave at the Museum of Ice Cream NYC.
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