Science Museum
Science Museum
4
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
About
Welcoming over 3 million visitors a year, the Science Museum is must-see for families and adults as part of any trip to London. The museum aims to make sense of the science that shapes our lives, inspiring visitors with iconic objects, award-winning exhibitions, beautiful galleries, hands-on workshops, science demonstrations and incredible stories of scientific achievement.
Duration: 2-3 hours
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AU$121.15
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The area
Address
Neighbourhood: South Kensington
With its ivied mews, row upon row of Poppins-esque white washed mansions, and placid garden squares, it's easy to see the charms of South Kensington. And with superb access to Hyde Park, Holland Park and Kensington Gardens, as well as the largely child-friendly and mostly free Museum Quarter (not to mention more major attractions like Royal Albert Hall) such charms are easy to make the most of. As welcoming and cosmopolitan as it is reserved and residential, South Kensington is always a hit with visitors.
How to get there
- Gloucester Road • 7 min walk
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See what travellers are saying
- PJF41 contributionsDisappointing - not hands on for childrenFirst time to the science museum and heard a lot of positive chatter about it in the past. We were expecting so much more ‘science’. It’s just a load of exhibits which grant you they are big space ships and planes etc, but I thought it would be littered with experiments and more interactive elements throughout. Instead it looks like that is all around a paywall in the wanderlab and aimed at 7 years and up.Visited February 2024Travelled with familyWritten 20 February 2024
- saidaLondon, United Kingdom1 contributionChiara (helpdesk)Thank you Chiara at the help desk for helping me make a group admission for my Year 2 class. You helped me make changes to the timings and kindly recommended fun, free and educational things for my students. I'm sure my class will have an incredible time next week (thanks to you)! SaidaVisited February 2024Travelled on businessWritten 21 February 2024
- 8427United Kingdom844 contributionsPower Up = thumbs upMy partner and I specifically came to the Science Museum to visit the Power Up attraction. I booked online, which was a very simple process. It cost £10 each to go to Power Up. But you must book a ticket into the Science Museum too. It is located on floor -1 and is simple to find. We arrived 5 minutes early at Power Up, and they scanned our tickets and let us through. Then, when we got to the desk after scanning, the lady said we weren't allowed to enter until a minute before our time slot. I am a big gamer and was so excited to visit Power Up and I've got to say, I was not disappointed! It was so much fun!! I could have spent hours in there playing the different consoles and games. There is over 150 consoles that cover 5 decades of gaming. They have organised the consoles/games into areas, such as multiplayer (2 player and 4 player), sports, sonic, fighting, VR bafta, Disney, arcade, Zelda, Mario, PC, physical and in the centre of the room a 16 player Halo ring, where you are connected in one game. This makes it easier to locate a game you are interested in playing. Along the backwall, they had a huge timeline starting from 1976 (first generation) all the way up to the 2000s. Under each year, the console was named and there was a paragraph of information about the console. Next to the console, there were the instructions for the buttons. We visited on a Saturday and it was fairly busy as expected. The Halo ring was very busy and people would be on that for a long time. So you do have to wait around to grab a seat. Wait time for consoles in general were not overly long. After all, people are there to play video games because they are interested in them and want to experience the game first person. It is a big space and there are a few seats for people that want to have a sit down without playing games. Inside is also a small bar that serves alcoholic and non alcoholic drinks and some snacks. All consoles were in good condition and thr area was clean and tidy. Staff members were regularly going round tucking chairs in, checking controllers. The only improvements I could give, is it would be nice to have info about some of the other consoles or games around the room and to have the instructions for buttons for people that are not familiar with the game. As said previously, I am a gamer and I had a great time. My partner is not a gamer but she also had a good time. I will definitely return multiple times. In my eyes, it was definitely worth the money.Visited February 2024Travelled as a coupleWritten 23 February 2024
- Joasi23South Yorkshire, United Kingdom2,096 contributionsZimingzhong4 star purely on the exhibition of zimingzhong . It’s a pay what you can system to book and was fabulous . We had no expectations and were blown away . So intricate and beautiful. The rest of the museum was very chaotic with lots of bored children running about .Visited February 2024Travelled as a coupleWritten 23 February 2024
- TravellingThelmaFelixstowe, United Kingdom135 contributionsMany changes!The museum has changed so much since my last visit, many years ago. As I am in a wheelchair, accessibility is paramount. I could see everything and really enjoyed myself. There were lots of youngsters on school trips which made it even more special.Visited February 2024Travelled as a coupleWritten 29 February 2024
- Saar GTel Aviv, Israel108 contributionsFree…with some expensive catchesThe free part of the museum was great. But it always seems they are trying to scam you out of money. Skip the Turn it Up music add on. Certainly not worth a 12 pound fee. Kids will probably beg for the Power Up game consoles …add another 12 pounds, and why not the imax film..oh, another 12 pounds. And then way overpriced food and souvenirs. May as well take them to Disney you may spend less.Visited March 2024Travelled with familyWritten 4 March 2024
- Kelly OLondon, United Kingdom22 contributionsLoads of school groups overwhelming for little one. Great staff supported us.My son (3) and I love the science museum and have been together a few times. This time I bought us tickets for the Wonderlab, as he will be going to Nursery after the holidays, so it was a little treat for the final week of our time together. Before going into the Wonderlab we were given warning that many school groups were inside and we could step out for air if we wanted. My son found it far more over overwhelming than I anticipated. It was very loud and chaotic, as you can imagine. All the stations were crowded and unapproachable for my 3yo. This of course, is no ones fault, but not ideal. A lovely member of staff noticed us and gave my son some ear defenders, which was very kind. However, it was all too much, so we left. We returned the ear defenders to the wonderlab front desk and the staff there were helpful and kind. They gave me a refund and recommended quieter times for us to visit (at opening times on weekends seems to be the answer). We absolutely will return at quieter times and really appreciate how well we were treated by the staff.Visited March 2024Travelled with familyWritten 21 March 2024
- AdamBurt🇬🇧🏴Leeds, United Kingdom1,114 contributionsWorth a VisitSure good muesum, worth a visit. It my second time, not as interesting copare to Narutal History Muesum and British Muesum. Just few things interest me and also they had a Dalek. Reason we there cos of Power Up Event, room full of gaming machine, consoles and PCs. I had good time and made muesum worth a visit. But it only around for few months.Visited November 2023Travelled with familyWritten 24 March 2024
- Koen MPutte, Belgium158 contributionsrecommendedInteractive museum of science, technology and medicine. Admission is free, but you must reserve tickets in advance via the website due to time slot. Given the size of the building, the crowd of visitors is not very noticeable, and the visit goes smoothly. Signage already well signposted at South Kensington tube station. Museum very suitable for teenagers and young adultsVisited March 2024Travelled with familyWritten 25 March 2024
- Kim P1 contributionDisappointedVisited the science museum April 2024, staff were accommodating with the hire of a wheelchair for myself who suffers with mobility issues. Disappointed with the amount of lifts to certain areas as so many people waiting for the lifts. I found the majority of people were able to use the stairs and people like myself in a wheel chair or with buggies were having to wait for ages as the lifts were always filled with able bodied people. Some people acknowledged I was waiting and even said to family members I was waiting and they continued to still go in when they could have walked. Some people gave up waiting and carried their buggies down the stairs but being a wheelchair uses you can’t do that. Also the disabled toilets are with the baby changing and having to wait along time to use the facilities. Maybe could have separate ones to save the wait time as some people with disabilities have poor control and wouldn’t have been able to hold that long for the wait time. There are ones on different floors but again with the lift issues waiting for a lift and then waiting to use the facility was a nightmare. I also found that there wasn’t as much interactive things as it portrayed on the internet. We paid £36 for 4 people to go in the turn up the music which wasn’t worth the money and wasn’t what is portrayed. Overall I wouldn’t recommend it and I wouldn’t go back.Visited April 2024Travelled with familyWritten 2 April 2024
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4.0
9,544 reviews
Excellent
4,547
Very good
2,842
Average
1,353
Poor
520
Terrible
286
Christina2001
Brighton341 contributions
Nov 2024 • Family
I recently visited the Science Museum with my children, including a 7 year old and a 10 year old, for the first time and we really enjoyed ourselves.
There were two optional sections available you could pay for in addition to the main free museum bit, and I am glad we did them both as the main museum itself has changed from what I remember in the past to being more informative rather than hands on... which is not so interesting for kids!
As you have to prebook everything in advance, it was tricky to work out what time slot to go for though. The first section on the top floor - Wonderlab - is where all the hands on bits can be found, and includes regular talks from the different scientific areas inside. We were advised to allow 1.5 hours around here, but we spent 2 hours before we had to move on and I felt as though we could have done with another 30 minutes or so.
The next section - Power Up - in the basement, we were also advised to allow 1.5 hours to see, which I would say is about right, though you could easily spend the whole day here if you are a gamer. At least from this section we did not have to move on to another prebooked section. I really liked the concept - you can play games on just about any games console you can imagine has existed over the years, and I think that many parents were there to relive their youths (anyone else remember Chuckie Egg?). For me, however, the downside was that the really popular consoles (the virtual reality one, for example) had queues that never seemed to get smaller, so you could not really try out everything. Also, a couple of the games we tried did not work. All in all though, for nostalgia purposes alone it was money well spent.
The rest of the museum, we were told to allow 3-4 hours to view, but we did not need anywhere near that length of time and felt most of it could be walked through fairly quickly.
If you are wondering where to stash your belongings, there are lots of lockers in the basement of varying sizes (and costs). You purchase the locker for the day, so you can come and go as you need without worrying about having to pay again after opening it.
We didn't eat at the museum itself, but there were a number of options dotted around and, whilst they were busy, I felt as though we could have got a table if we had really wanted to.
You are about 2 minutes walk away from the Natural History Museum once you leave (also needs prebooking), but I don't believe it is possible to do both museums justice in one day alone. If I had to choose though, I felt more time would be needed at the Science Museum.
There were two optional sections available you could pay for in addition to the main free museum bit, and I am glad we did them both as the main museum itself has changed from what I remember in the past to being more informative rather than hands on... which is not so interesting for kids!
As you have to prebook everything in advance, it was tricky to work out what time slot to go for though. The first section on the top floor - Wonderlab - is where all the hands on bits can be found, and includes regular talks from the different scientific areas inside. We were advised to allow 1.5 hours around here, but we spent 2 hours before we had to move on and I felt as though we could have done with another 30 minutes or so.
The next section - Power Up - in the basement, we were also advised to allow 1.5 hours to see, which I would say is about right, though you could easily spend the whole day here if you are a gamer. At least from this section we did not have to move on to another prebooked section. I really liked the concept - you can play games on just about any games console you can imagine has existed over the years, and I think that many parents were there to relive their youths (anyone else remember Chuckie Egg?). For me, however, the downside was that the really popular consoles (the virtual reality one, for example) had queues that never seemed to get smaller, so you could not really try out everything. Also, a couple of the games we tried did not work. All in all though, for nostalgia purposes alone it was money well spent.
The rest of the museum, we were told to allow 3-4 hours to view, but we did not need anywhere near that length of time and felt most of it could be walked through fairly quickly.
If you are wondering where to stash your belongings, there are lots of lockers in the basement of varying sizes (and costs). You purchase the locker for the day, so you can come and go as you need without worrying about having to pay again after opening it.
We didn't eat at the museum itself, but there were a number of options dotted around and, whilst they were busy, I felt as though we could have got a table if we had really wanted to.
You are about 2 minutes walk away from the Natural History Museum once you leave (also needs prebooking), but I don't believe it is possible to do both museums justice in one day alone. If I had to choose though, I felt more time would be needed at the Science Museum.
Written 14 December 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Nathan&Gemma
Kent, UK234 contributions
Sept 2024 • Family
I last visited the Science Museum many years ago when i was a child and remember it vaguely. The museum is free, as with most Museums in London, however i do see this as an iconic site.. many people attend and often queues outside, this why i will start this review with Security.
When we arrived we walked into the security bag search area. I noticed a staff member walk out with a crate of beer, some scissors and a knife and i suspected they had just completed a test to ensure that items were being found, which is good, however we approached security who wanted to see into my partners handbag to which she opened and allowed. He looked in, sort of, and nodded he was happy. We then asked him about the rucksack under our pushchair and if he wished to see inside to which the guard shook his head and said “No that’s fine you can go in”. Whilst i am not an international criminal, surely that defeats the object of a bag search? I think you may need to speak to your security..
After passing security we then walked into the foyer area whereby immediately you are faced with the large shop containing various “scientific” toys which are all overpriced. You also have the staff members throwing the toys around to entice the children in. I couldn’t help but notice aswell the amount of cafes/restaurants dotted around the museum which i thought was strange.
The museum itself is interesting with many things from Space to modern day technology. Some of the artefacts appeared to lack information simply just telling you what it is and that was it. In the basement there is a “garden” which was crawling with children and is a sensual kind of atmosphere which was good for my little one to burn some energy.
The museum you could complete in two hours, however you do have The Natural History museum next door which you can also visit after. Remember to pre book tickets online aswell.
When we arrived we walked into the security bag search area. I noticed a staff member walk out with a crate of beer, some scissors and a knife and i suspected they had just completed a test to ensure that items were being found, which is good, however we approached security who wanted to see into my partners handbag to which she opened and allowed. He looked in, sort of, and nodded he was happy. We then asked him about the rucksack under our pushchair and if he wished to see inside to which the guard shook his head and said “No that’s fine you can go in”. Whilst i am not an international criminal, surely that defeats the object of a bag search? I think you may need to speak to your security..
After passing security we then walked into the foyer area whereby immediately you are faced with the large shop containing various “scientific” toys which are all overpriced. You also have the staff members throwing the toys around to entice the children in. I couldn’t help but notice aswell the amount of cafes/restaurants dotted around the museum which i thought was strange.
The museum itself is interesting with many things from Space to modern day technology. Some of the artefacts appeared to lack information simply just telling you what it is and that was it. In the basement there is a “garden” which was crawling with children and is a sensual kind of atmosphere which was good for my little one to burn some energy.
The museum you could complete in two hours, however you do have The Natural History museum next door which you can also visit after. Remember to pre book tickets online aswell.
Written 10 September 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
DunelmArts
Aberdeen, UK1,214 contributions
Jan 2025 • Solo
I visited the Versailles exhibition which was well worth the small admission fee, and undertook the accompanying guided tour. It was fascinating to see how the courts of Louis XIV, XV and XVI contributed to the world of science. After the tour, I spent more time in the exhibition studying the exhibits before lunch at the cafe and a wander through the other museum galleries. It’s best to book a ticket before you visit, but I was still able to get a ticket for both the museum and the Versailles exhibition on the day. It’s a popular museum with families, but the Versailles exhibition was quite quiet in comparison.
Written 7 January 2025
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Curiosity54164384182
5 contributions
Oct 2024 • Family
What happened Science Museum?!
In a time when STEM is such a key point in education, on entering the museum, what is there to entice the future generation of scientist?! On entering the museum, after being greeted by some very miserable security guards checking bags, there is very little to get excited about or grasp interest except a café, a shop, a large entrance for a respite after visiting The Natural History Museum. It was more like an airport.
The spinning earth/sun in the Space section caught our 8 and 11 years old interest for a couple of minutes and the interactive medical intervention table in the Medicine Gallery was ok but aside from that there was nothing else to do, unless we paid over £30 for the Wonderlab, which I'm guessing is where all the interactive science is now hidden.
Children were hugely disappointed and extremely bored after a quick walk around and asked to go back to the bit we missed at The Natural History Museum, which is a shame as my husband and I remember how exciting the museum used to be. They summed it up by saying "this is just a science history museum...we've seen that car at Beaulieu, that light at Portland Lighthouse, that plane at the Aviation museum. It's nothing, we haven't seen before.
The museum should be making hands-on science fun, engaging and accessible science to ALL children from all economic backgrounds, not just to those whose parents can afford The Wonderlab; the part of the museum that will ignite young minds and forward thinkers. Otherwise, for many children, their experience and interest in science after visiting you, will just remain stuck in the past with only the findings of historic scientists and their historic exhibits on display in your museum.
In a time when STEM is such a key point in education, on entering the museum, what is there to entice the future generation of scientist?! On entering the museum, after being greeted by some very miserable security guards checking bags, there is very little to get excited about or grasp interest except a café, a shop, a large entrance for a respite after visiting The Natural History Museum. It was more like an airport.
The spinning earth/sun in the Space section caught our 8 and 11 years old interest for a couple of minutes and the interactive medical intervention table in the Medicine Gallery was ok but aside from that there was nothing else to do, unless we paid over £30 for the Wonderlab, which I'm guessing is where all the interactive science is now hidden.
Children were hugely disappointed and extremely bored after a quick walk around and asked to go back to the bit we missed at The Natural History Museum, which is a shame as my husband and I remember how exciting the museum used to be. They summed it up by saying "this is just a science history museum...we've seen that car at Beaulieu, that light at Portland Lighthouse, that plane at the Aviation museum. It's nothing, we haven't seen before.
The museum should be making hands-on science fun, engaging and accessible science to ALL children from all economic backgrounds, not just to those whose parents can afford The Wonderlab; the part of the museum that will ignite young minds and forward thinkers. Otherwise, for many children, their experience and interest in science after visiting you, will just remain stuck in the past with only the findings of historic scientists and their historic exhibits on display in your museum.
Written 18 October 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Rachel G
Church Stretton, UK10 contributions
Oct 2024 • Family
We were really disappointed with the science museum. Nothing like what we expected it to be. Only a few interactive bits in the main museum, mainly computer screens which would have been more fun if they weren't so slow. The giving of information is in a bitty, text message format, not dyslexic friendly at all, and the "texts" come through slowly so my son kept getting bored. Only programme he managed to complete was the robot sorting arm, and that was only because I was interested in it and kept him there, he did love that the final programme was uploaded to the real robot arm.
We paid £12 each to go into the video games exhibition, which was his favourite bit. I found paying really weird, as I went into the pay on the door section and had to actually ask if we could buy tickets, was just being stared at as we walked up, then the guy selling them was very vague, gave us the price, I said it was fine, I'd like to buy them, then had to say can I buy them? Then he asked how many despite us being the only people stood there, just a mum and son, then I had to ask again to buy them and waited ages for him to actually put it into the computer, paid, then got left there a while longer before he told the woman on the "already have tickets" line to print off the tickets. Then as I went past to go in he asked if I wanted to sign up for the newsletter, I decided it might be nice to so said yes, he looked very confused and then I got told to go in. Very very odd. We were all English, no strong accents.
The rest of the museum seemed geared towards adults rather than kids, we just walked around everything, I tried to read the information out to my son, but even I struggled to understand some of it. We were excited for the mathematics section as we are both really into maths, it just showed items that required maths but no explanations of what maths were required, seemed a very lazy display. Hardly any information.
My son wanted to go into the gardens, but he's over 6 so couldn't. The section geared towards over 6s is an extra cost again, the wonderlab. £15 each after we'd already paid £12 each for the video games wasn't going to happen! If not for the video games section we would have been in and out within an hour, covering all the floors. Looked up the wonderlab afterwards and thought maybe another time we could go just for that knowing what we were paying, but my son is entirely uninterested now, he's completely off the science museum. Wants to go back to the natural history museum, that was definitely well worth the visit!
We paid £12 each to go into the video games exhibition, which was his favourite bit. I found paying really weird, as I went into the pay on the door section and had to actually ask if we could buy tickets, was just being stared at as we walked up, then the guy selling them was very vague, gave us the price, I said it was fine, I'd like to buy them, then had to say can I buy them? Then he asked how many despite us being the only people stood there, just a mum and son, then I had to ask again to buy them and waited ages for him to actually put it into the computer, paid, then got left there a while longer before he told the woman on the "already have tickets" line to print off the tickets. Then as I went past to go in he asked if I wanted to sign up for the newsletter, I decided it might be nice to so said yes, he looked very confused and then I got told to go in. Very very odd. We were all English, no strong accents.
The rest of the museum seemed geared towards adults rather than kids, we just walked around everything, I tried to read the information out to my son, but even I struggled to understand some of it. We were excited for the mathematics section as we are both really into maths, it just showed items that required maths but no explanations of what maths were required, seemed a very lazy display. Hardly any information.
My son wanted to go into the gardens, but he's over 6 so couldn't. The section geared towards over 6s is an extra cost again, the wonderlab. £15 each after we'd already paid £12 each for the video games wasn't going to happen! If not for the video games section we would have been in and out within an hour, covering all the floors. Looked up the wonderlab afterwards and thought maybe another time we could go just for that knowing what we were paying, but my son is entirely uninterested now, he's completely off the science museum. Wants to go back to the natural history museum, that was definitely well worth the visit!
Written 28 October 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Rosina T
61 contributions
June 2024 • Solo
Great museum, has a lot of interactive things to do - applicable for all ages and knowledge - people from the museum is very nice and explain things if you ask. I am a scientist and it was very interesting!!
It is free, you can get the free tickets on their webpage, and if you cannot meet the time, you will be able to get inside after that day too.
Very noisy, and it is not easy to go to some levels - a map of the place with stairs and how to get from one exhibition to another would be great.
Great giftshop!!!
It is free, you can get the free tickets on their webpage, and if you cannot meet the time, you will be able to get inside after that day too.
Very noisy, and it is not easy to go to some levels - a map of the place with stairs and how to get from one exhibition to another would be great.
Great giftshop!!!
Written 7 July 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Djmel30
Preston, UK145 contributions
Sept 2024 • Family
The Science Museum London was a great place to visit, for anyone interested in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. It had a vast collection of exhibits and historical artifacts. The museum offered an experience for visitors of all ages.
One of the highlights of my recent visit was the new planes exhibition on the top floor. The collection featured an array of aircraft, from vintage biplanes to modern jet fighters. It was fascinating to learn about the history and development of aviation through these impressive exhibits.
The museum's space area was equally impressive, showcasing some of the most significant milestones in space exploration.
The Apollo 10 Command Module, Russian Soyuz Capsule and a replica of the Soyuz spacecraft. The Moon Lander Mock-up offering a full-scale replica of the Lunar Module used by the Apollo astronauts to land on the Moon.
I found the museum offered a wealth of information, I would suggest increasing the number of staff available around the exhibitions to offer insight and answer questions and share knowledge. There was a lot outside but I only saw security inside. It would also be interesting to learn more about the logistics of transporting large equipment into the museum and preparing it for display.
We spent three hours exploring the Museum and could have easily stayed longer if we had more time. I would highly recommend this museum to anyone interested in science and technology. There did seem to be less interactive exhibitions than I expected.
Overall, The Museum was a fantastic place to explore. It is free entry to the Museum however they do ask for donations where possible.
One of the highlights of my recent visit was the new planes exhibition on the top floor. The collection featured an array of aircraft, from vintage biplanes to modern jet fighters. It was fascinating to learn about the history and development of aviation through these impressive exhibits.
The museum's space area was equally impressive, showcasing some of the most significant milestones in space exploration.
The Apollo 10 Command Module, Russian Soyuz Capsule and a replica of the Soyuz spacecraft. The Moon Lander Mock-up offering a full-scale replica of the Lunar Module used by the Apollo astronauts to land on the Moon.
I found the museum offered a wealth of information, I would suggest increasing the number of staff available around the exhibitions to offer insight and answer questions and share knowledge. There was a lot outside but I only saw security inside. It would also be interesting to learn more about the logistics of transporting large equipment into the museum and preparing it for display.
We spent three hours exploring the Museum and could have easily stayed longer if we had more time. I would highly recommend this museum to anyone interested in science and technology. There did seem to be less interactive exhibitions than I expected.
Overall, The Museum was a fantastic place to explore. It is free entry to the Museum however they do ask for donations where possible.
Written 10 September 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Northern Traveller
1 contribution
Jan 2025 • Family
We recently visited for the Astronights experience with 2 classes of school children.
Positives
- excellent workshops
- IMAX 3D Space Film
- Wonderlab
- staff guides were friendly
Negatives
- appalling organisation by the Science Museum
- all groups left outside of the building queuing to get in on a busy London street in the dark for 30 minutes
- no pedestrian crossing outside the museum and a very busy road so difficult to cross
- a chaotic registration process with all groups trying to get their welcome pack and keep their children separate from other groups (it was impossible and so stressful)
- the unnecessary need to take all food out of bags and hand it over. This meant snack time took a long time to find everyone's snack out of the large blue sacks they had been stored in. This meant snack time was a mad rush and they didn't get time to really eat anything.
- sleeping areas weren't allocated to each group, so the first school to arrive spread out in the exhibit and didn't leave any room for any other group to set up together. We had to ask them to move so we could have enough space to put our children in one area for safe supervision.
- activities end at 11pm then lights come on and alarm sounds at 6am. Very little time to get the children settled for bed and try to get some sleep.
- mats were so thin adults couldn't sleep
- lots of bright lights left on all night
- powerful cold air vents so freezing
- we were on the ground floor and after very little sleep had to climb 3 double flights of stairs with all our luggage just to store our bags in a different exhibit. Then go back down to the same floor we had slept on to have breakfast. The children were exhausted.
There was no need to take store our bags as the event ended before the museum opened. They would have been safe where they were.
- breakfast was a snack at best. A croissant, snack bar and piece of fruit. The children were asking for more and adults were starving.
- no water bottle top up point in the exhibit we were sleeping in so no access to drinking water over night.
How they could improve
- allocate areas in the exhibit for each group to set up their beds in so that they have the appropriate amount of space
- staggered arrival times so that groups can be brought into the safety of the museum quickly and processed
- allow groups to keep their snacks with their beds so they can collect quickly at snacktime
- provide enough food for breakfast
- allow school groups to wait somewhere in the museum until the event begins
- allow bags to be stored on the ground floor
- turn off air vents and lights over night
Positives
- excellent workshops
- IMAX 3D Space Film
- Wonderlab
- staff guides were friendly
Negatives
- appalling organisation by the Science Museum
- all groups left outside of the building queuing to get in on a busy London street in the dark for 30 minutes
- no pedestrian crossing outside the museum and a very busy road so difficult to cross
- a chaotic registration process with all groups trying to get their welcome pack and keep their children separate from other groups (it was impossible and so stressful)
- the unnecessary need to take all food out of bags and hand it over. This meant snack time took a long time to find everyone's snack out of the large blue sacks they had been stored in. This meant snack time was a mad rush and they didn't get time to really eat anything.
- sleeping areas weren't allocated to each group, so the first school to arrive spread out in the exhibit and didn't leave any room for any other group to set up together. We had to ask them to move so we could have enough space to put our children in one area for safe supervision.
- activities end at 11pm then lights come on and alarm sounds at 6am. Very little time to get the children settled for bed and try to get some sleep.
- mats were so thin adults couldn't sleep
- lots of bright lights left on all night
- powerful cold air vents so freezing
- we were on the ground floor and after very little sleep had to climb 3 double flights of stairs with all our luggage just to store our bags in a different exhibit. Then go back down to the same floor we had slept on to have breakfast. The children were exhausted.
There was no need to take store our bags as the event ended before the museum opened. They would have been safe where they were.
- breakfast was a snack at best. A croissant, snack bar and piece of fruit. The children were asking for more and adults were starving.
- no water bottle top up point in the exhibit we were sleeping in so no access to drinking water over night.
How they could improve
- allocate areas in the exhibit for each group to set up their beds in so that they have the appropriate amount of space
- staggered arrival times so that groups can be brought into the safety of the museum quickly and processed
- allow groups to keep their snacks with their beds so they can collect quickly at snacktime
- provide enough food for breakfast
- allow school groups to wait somewhere in the museum until the event begins
- allow bags to be stored on the ground floor
- turn off air vents and lights over night
Written 23 January 2025
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
jacqui k
30 contributions
Aug 2024 • Friends
Free entry booked online beforehand but once inside most exhibitions have to be paid for and not cheap either. Visited in school summer holidays so appeared to be a place to dump your kids and let them run round unruly, very few staff, toilets filthy, take your own tissues and very expensive cafe with uncleared tables. Stayed less than an hour.
Written 19 August 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
KJMcS
Craigavon, UK47 contributions
Oct 2024 • Family
First trip to the science museum with our 11 year old and whilst he really enjoyed the power up section I was disappointed that when I booked a time slot online for free entry it wasn’t made obvious that most of the better areas have to be paid for and end up making it an expensive visit, unlike other Uk museums we’ve visited. As it was half term many areas were also incredibly busy and it was difficult to access exhibits. And the toilets were appalling, could be smelt before you enter, really foul. I wouldn’t return.
Written 30 October 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Is the museum open all year? Website doesn't specify. Looking to visit in November/December.
Written 18 July 2022
Hi Sally,
We’re now open 7 days a week, 10:00-18:00. The museum is closed each year on 25th and 26th December, although we recommend checking our website for further information closer to the time of your visit.
We do require visitors to pre-book free admission tickets, if you would like to be the first to find out when these are available to book for November and December you can sign up to our what’s on newsletter on our website.
We look forward to welcoming you to the museum soon! – Science Museum team
Written 27 July 2022
I did see a couple, but did not use them myself.
Written 29 June 2021
Hi was thinking of visiting with two girls 9 & 11 but all tickets for the tickets for the interactive Wonderlab the equinox gallery have all sold out. Are there still other interesting/interactive exhibits ? Is it still worth visiting without being able to visit the Wonderlab ?
thanks
Written 18 October 2020
Hello,
Sorry to hear you weren’t able to book Wonderlab: The Equinor Gallery tickets, it is very popular during half-term.
However, lots of our other galleries and exhibitions do have fun, interactive elements. A good place to find some inspiration for a visit is on the ‘family trails’ page on the Science Museum blog. We will also be running free activities throughout the week, including the science show ‘Curious Cures’ and workshop ‘Heartbeat Heroes’ which you might find interesting (details are on our website).
We hope this helps to answer your question, please do ask if you have any more - The Science Museum Team
Written 23 October 2020
Is there food available at this museum
Written 30 October 2019
yes there are snacks and drinks available
Written 30 October 2019
Sorry for the delay - missed your question. Answer: I have no idea - I wasn't carrying luggage. I cannot expect a charge to be more than voluntary and maybe no more than £2-3
Written 13 December 2019
Hi, I am taking my son to the science museum (primarily for Wonderlab) and can come either friday 25th (when some schools have started half term but not all) or saturday 26th. Either way, we will be there at opening. Any ideas on which is lo likely to be busier? My son is really interested in all this stuff, but not pushy at all so if there are loads of other kids in there he won't get a look in.
Written 17 October 2019
We went two days running during the school summer holidays.the wonder lab had a very long queue to pay before you went on , very disheartening for our granddaughter. So we went back to the hotel and booked on line for following day ....on staffs advice ,we booked for the afternoon,and it was definitely quieter then than the morning .
Written 19 October 2019
Would you recommend Wonderlab for a 1 year old?
Written 28 May 2019
No, probably not suited to a one year old, I would say 5+ imho
Written 28 May 2019
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