Easter egg hunt draws in scavenger thrills and history at two Kingston, Ont. museums

The Easter season is underway, and kids got the chance to hunt for eggs and learn a little history in Kingston, Ont. on Saturday.

Called 'Eggs-tream Easter Fun at the Museum', families who signed up went to two museums searching for eggs among the artifacts at each. When they found one, they marked it down on a card, and then handed it in for a prize.

At the Museum of Health Care, nine-year-old friends Eloise Bergeron and Kelly Flockton were moving from room to room. For them, it’s all about the thrill of the hunt.

"I like how you can just run around, find an egg, be like, 'Oh, look, there’s another one!' and then run around again," says Bergeron.

But Kelly’s mom Emme Dadurka says it’s just as much about what they find in between.

"They’re going around, they’re looking at all the displays and reading up on everything. It’s super interactive. They’re genuinely curious about what’s going on here,” she explains.

Emberly Doherty says she and her daughter Eloise have never visited the museum, and it’s a chance to try to something new.

“I didn’t know this existed here, so it’s really fun to get into a new space that I would not have come to before,” she explains.

When the kids are done at one museum, they move on to the next.

At the Murney Tower Museum, children can search among all three floors of one of the oldest military fortresses in Kingston.

This is the first time the event has been put on.

Claire Notman, the coordinator at the Museum of Health Care, says museums suffered during the pandemic and it was tough to get people through the door with closures and capacity limits.

"This is a celebration of opening up, the arrival of spring; and being in partnership with Murney Tower is an absolute bonus."

Simge Erdogan O’Connor, the curator of Murney Tower Museum, says it’s about creating a meaningful cultural experience for visitors.

"Two sites coming together means two histories and two cultural experiences coming together."

After all the eggs were found, and the hunt was complete, Eloise and Kelly say the event comes recommended.

"I like how there's some in high places and low places and medium places and all the places," says Eloise.

Easter Sunday is celebrated on April 9 this year.