Top 10 Nebraska Attractions - 2020

[ita]

Updated: Top 10 Nebraska attractions in a pandemic year

No. 10: Lincoln Children's Museum
The Lincoln Children's Museum attracted 36,744 visitors in 2020. That number dropped from 151,000 in 2019.

No. 9: Pioneers Park Nature Center
A bison forages for food in the bitter cold at the Pioneers Park Nature Center. In 2020, 38,956 visitors stopped by to take in the wildlife. Nearly 79,000 people made the trip in 2019.

No. 8: Omaha Children's Museum
The Omaha Children's Museum attracted 50,577 visitors in 2020. That number is down from 309,268 in 2019.

No. 7: Fontenelle Forest
Fontenelle Forest gave 86,662 visitors a chance to experience and enjoy the quiet wild of nature in 2020.

No. 6: Lauritzen Gardens
Omaha's botanical center attracted 104,903 visitors in 2020. In 2019, more than 270,000 visitors stopped by Lauritzen Gardens and Kenefick Park.

No. 5: The Durham Museum
The Durham Museum is Omaha's home to history and in 2020, 113,469 visitors saw it for themselves. That number was nearly double in 2019 at just over 220,000.

No. 4: Lincoln Children's Zoo
At the Lincoln Children's Zoo, you can see over 400 animals and even feed giraffes. In 2020, 170,230 visitors made the trip compared to the 345,915 in 2019.

No. 3: Chadron State Park
From hiking to mountain biking, 237,750 visitors took in the views at Chadron State Park in 2020. In 2019, just under 290,000 made the trip.

No. 2: Bakers Candies
Baker's Candies in Greenwood, which offers a variety of chocolate meltaways, saw 250,000 visitors in 2020. That number matched the total in 2019.

No. 1: Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium
The Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium in Omaha is the state's No. 1 attraction. More than 817,000 visitors toured the zoo in 2020. For comparison, the zoo saw 1.7 million visitors in 2019.

[Louie]

Really astonishing that Baker's Candies is second.

[swgiust]

I believe the Old Market is Nebraska's second most visited tourist attraction.

[Cermak]

And what about Mahoney state park in Ashland.

[Louie]

Actually I'm beginning to think these are fudged. You're telling me that Baker's Candies (which is closed on Mondays) sees 800 people a day? Even in the pandemic year? The parking lot only has space for ~30 cars.

[Greg S]

I am surprised the Safari Park didn't make it in 2020. It was packing people in while most other things were closed.

Greg

[skinzfan23]

I am surprised the Safari Park didn't make it in 2020. It was packing people in while most other things were closed.

Greg

You guys are absolutely correct. I hate articles like this that aren't accurate.

I found this story from the WH stating that the Wildlife Safari had over 400,000 guests

Wildlife Safari Park draws more than 400,000 visitors, surpassing attendance record set in 1998

The attendance record of more than 400,000, as of Tuesday, surpasses the previous attendance record of 246,500 set during the park’s inaugural 1998 season.

So this would make the Safari Park # 2

[ChadJK]

Actually I'm beginning to think these are fudged. You're telling me that Baker's Candies (which is closed on Mondays) sees 800 people a day? Even in the pandemic year? The parking lot only has space for ~30 cars.

I concur. That seems a little weird. I've been there a few times over the years and have never seen more than about 6 other people inside the place at a time.

[skinzfan23]

Actually I'm beginning to think these are fudged. You're telling me that Baker's Candies (which is closed on Mondays) sees 800 people a day? Even in the pandemic year? The parking lot only has space for ~30 cars.

By the way, was there a pun intended since its a candy shop.

[Louie]

Actually I'm beginning to think these are fudged. You're telling me that Baker's Candies (which is closed on Mondays) sees 800 people a day? Even in the pandemic year? The parking lot only has space for ~30 cars.

By the way, was there a pun intended since its a candy shop.

Oh wow, totally unintentional haha

[Omaha Cowboy]

Actually I'm beginning to think these are fudged. You're telling me that Baker's Candies (which is closed on Mondays) sees 800 people a day? Even in the pandemic year? The parking lot only has space for ~30 cars.

I agree..

Other than the Omaha Zoo, which is always clearly the #1 biggest attraction in the state of Nebraska every year..I take this list with a grain of salt…

Ciao..LiO…Peace

[nativeomahan]

Or, in the case of the 2nd busiest attraction, with a scoop of sugar…