CERN Science Gateway
CERN Science Gateway
4.5
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
CERN Science Gateway is a place to explore CERN and science through authentic, innovative and inspirational experiences. Through immersive multimedia exhibits, hands-on lab workshops, science shows, events that blend science and culture, innovation-prototyping workshops and tours of authentic CERN places – all guided by CERN people – visitors of all ages and backgrounds can engage in the discoveries, the science and the technologies of CERN.
Duration: 2-3 hours
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listingTours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
What is Travellers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Revenue impacts the experiences featured on this page, learn more.
Top ways to experience CERN Science Gateway and nearby attractions
The area
Address
Reach out directly
Best nearby
We rank these restaurants and attractions by balancing reviews from our members with how close they are to this location.
Restaurants
225 within 5 kms
Attractions
259 within 10 kms
See what travellers are saying
- MervynShrewsbury, United Kingdom3 contributionsWell worth a visitThis is a great place to visit, and it is free! We were guided by a PhD student on placement there so he was able to explain the technical and scientific background, he was very enthusiastic and keen to share his undoubted knowledge, even I, as a non scientist, understood it. Since we visited they have opened new visitor centre, so maybe they might, like other visitor attractions, end the tour with a cafe and a shop!Visited October 2022Travelled as a coupleWritten 20 October 2023
- Despoina V3 contributionsBeautiful experience.A visit to CERN in Geneva is an exhilarating plunge into the fascinating world of particle physics. The sprawling facility, home to the renowned Large Hadron Collider, offers a captivating journey through the history and forefront of scientific discovery. The guided tour provides valuable insights into complex concepts, making them accessible to a broad audience. The interactive exhibits and simulations add a dynamic element to the experience, allowing visitors to grasp the intricacies of subatomic exploration. Witnessing experiments in progress and touring the Control Centre underscore the dedication and precision involved in unraveling the mysteries of the universe. While the sheer technicality may be challenging for those without a scientific background, the overall impact of CERN's commitment to advancing human knowledge leaves an indelible impression, making this visit a must for science enthusiasts and curious minds alike.Visited November 2023Travelled with familyWritten 18 December 2023
- kiana b2 contributionsGood day tripLoads of interactive activities are available in many languages. One of the staff Kevin was especially helpful at explaining concepts to us and giving advice on activities for our time in Geneva so thank you Kevin ! We also had the Geneva transport card so the entire experience was free from GenevaVisited December 2023Travelled as a coupleWritten 19 December 2023
- Suzanne177 contributionsFun day outThe way in is not clearly signposted from the tram stop (we joked if you weren't smart enough to find the way in you weren't smart enough for the exhibits!) There were a number of exhibits not working, but very polite signs explaining that it was new and they were having teething problems. If we hadn't been able to get on a tour I might have been a little disappointed- but it was completely free so can't complain too much! The cafe does reasonably priced and quite good food. The website says the tour booking opens 1hour before the timeslot but that wasn't the case, it was 2 hours before, its frustrating but they do explain why you can't book in advance. But, it was a very fun time anyway!Visited December 2023Travelled as a coupleWritten 29 December 2023
- Alien CovenantLisbon, Portugal188 contributionsInteresting display of scientific aspects of physicsInteresting display of scientific aspects of physics, worth a visit near Geneva. The permanent exibitions are quite interesting and insightful. The admission procedure makes little sense, and is a waste of time, since you need to register online to receive a code that is then not used at all, and you just walk in towards the exibitions.Visited December 2023Travelled as a coupleWritten 31 December 2023
- Jerry TSaint Louis, Missouri7 contributionsSuper Interesting!I went on the tour with relatively low expectations but someone in my party wanted to go. The tour was incredibly fascinating - highly recommended to anyone. CERN does a great job of explaining incredibly complex science and has interesting interactive exhibits that gives you an understanding of the research happening.Visited February 2024Travelled with familyWritten 4 February 2024
- cphlor136 contributionsAn Interesting ExperienceI had read various mixed reviews before coming, but was pleasantly surprised! Although perfectible, the combination of exhibitions, laboratory experiences and site visit gave a good overview of what goes on there. Fundamental particle physics is not necessarily the easiest of subjects to present to a mixed public. For those expecting to descend 100m underground to see the LHC, expect to be disappointed. But if you're happy with getting to go on-site, and seeing some of what is going on then it is worth the visit. One improvement though - the registration "procedure" needs reviewing. As you enter the building you find yourself in a sea of anxious visitors, busily tapping away on their phones trying to work out what is going on. Even to get into the (albeit free) exhibitiom you have to register and take your code to the welcome desk to exchange for non-existinh wristbands, and you are waved in regardless. Not the best advert for how the place functions.Visited March 2024Travelled with familyWritten 9 March 2024
- Karen MMilton Keynes, United Kingdom598 contributionsLove it!Been twice now.. obviously heard about CERN, but to go and visit was great. Informative and lots of fun. You can spend hours learning whilst enjoying yourself. If you are in Geneva visiting, it’s a must.Visited March 2024Travelled with friendsWritten 16 March 2024
- Adrian BBakewell, United Kingdom631 contributionsA fascinating experienceA short tram ride from central Geneva is this extraordinary place. Superb exhibits to help an understanding of the hadron collider. Sign up for a free tour if you can, but you can't do this until you get there. Truly one of the most fascinating places I have ever visited. Café good too.Visited March 2024Travelled soloWritten 19 March 2024
- Mary MEugene, Oregon83 contributionsAbsolutely goGot there early, the reception was open. Scanned a QR code to make my reservation on the 10:30 guided tour. Great experience, the tour was led by a guy with a PhD in particle physics. Very informative. Get there before 9 to snag the first guided tour of the day. Easy to get to on the 18 tram.Visited May 2024Travelled soloWritten 8 May 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
We perform checks on reviews.
Tripadvisor’s approach to reviews
Before posting, each Tripadvisor review goes through an automated tracking system, which collects information, answering the following questions: how, what, where and when. If the system detects something that potentially contradicts our community guidelines, the review is not published.
When the system detects a problem, a review may be automatically rejected, sent to the reviewer for validation, or manually reviewed by our team of content specialists, who work 24/7 to maintain the quality of the reviews on our site.
Our team checks each review posted on the site disputed by our community as not meeting our community guidelines.
Learn more about our review moderation.
4.5
1,683 reviews
Excellent
1,033
Very good
420
Average
129
Poor
60
Terrible
41
RonaldSR
Amstelveen, The Netherlands37 contributions
Aug 2021 • Family
Very old fashioned way of visitor treatment. Hourly guided tours with limited capacity and no reservation option so you come to CERN and you are either lucky or not to join into a tour. We travelled there on Saturday morning only to find out the next 3 tours (3 hours) were fully booked. Not a good experience at all. They should either hire more tour guides of arrange for on-line reservation I believe….
Written 14 August 2021
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.
Meenakshi50
Manchester, UK51 contributions
Jan 2020 • Family
What could have been a fascinating tour ended up feeling dull. The lack lustre presentations from staff didn’t help (maybe get actors) and it’s almost impossible to get a guided tour and when we enquired at reception about these the person was very unhelpful and off putting and discouraged us from putting our names on the waiting list. What struck me were there no people of colour represented anywhere on any of the pictures. Are there no black physicists in Europe? Maybe HR at Cern has not heard of Diversity. I am not sure what this museum wants to tell us as it’s not well organised. Maybe just read about the universe and don’t waste your time traipsing around here. This museum needs an overhaul and some dynamic input and at least arrange more tours for those of us who have travelled miles to visit and were unable to see underground.
Written 12 January 2020
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.
Ghislaine S
Bristol, UK7 contributions
July 2022 • Family
We haven’t been on the guided tour yet but it would have to be an out of this world trip to make up for the travesty so far.
No booking and CERN provided an explanation for this. You are advised to turn up 2 hours early to get a spot on a guided tour.
Arrived before 11am and queued for 45 minutes before we realised that the desk was closed, the 1 pm tour was full. Staff fully expected all of the queue to stand there for 2 hours until they opened the booking for the 3pm tour. The staff were absolutely ambivalent about kids, elderly and the rest standing in 35C heat for what ended up being 21/2 hrs just to book a tour. Got to go back and get in the queue again later to pick up the ticket.
No cafe, no food, no water (although there is a vending machine)
We are sticking it out because my 13yr old is physics mad and wants to work here.
Feeling very cross about the whole experience- and these people are in charge of this phenomenally expensive peice of equipment.
No booking and CERN provided an explanation for this. You are advised to turn up 2 hours early to get a spot on a guided tour.
Arrived before 11am and queued for 45 minutes before we realised that the desk was closed, the 1 pm tour was full. Staff fully expected all of the queue to stand there for 2 hours until they opened the booking for the 3pm tour. The staff were absolutely ambivalent about kids, elderly and the rest standing in 35C heat for what ended up being 21/2 hrs just to book a tour. Got to go back and get in the queue again later to pick up the ticket.
No cafe, no food, no water (although there is a vending machine)
We are sticking it out because my 13yr old is physics mad and wants to work here.
Feeling very cross about the whole experience- and these people are in charge of this phenomenally expensive peice of equipment.
Written 25 July 2022
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.
CK1890
Lincoln, UK65 contributions
Aug 2022
The exhibition and tour are really interesting and great. The organisation of getting booked onto a tour has no online booking and you must turn up in person and wait in a queue until you reach the front and a tour has space for you. Then you will wait another 30 min or so until the start of that tour, so don't get there too late to avoid disappointment. The exhibitions can be visited on their own without queuing and are worthwhile in themselves. There is a shop but no refreshment facility, which can make the visit less accommodating. The tour and exhibitions are very worthwhile though and they are building a new facility which will open in the next couple of years that will expand their ability to cater for tourists. You need to remember that this is primarily a scientific establishment and that the tours/exhibition are free.
Written 5 September 2022
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.
Jim R
Southend-on-Sea, UK222 contributions
Dec 2019
I used to love Physics at school, but this left us both totally bewildered 😳 it’s not explained in layman’s terms to start your basic understanding and then progress and build on it.
We tried to book a tour, but they sell out fast. The website is a mess, so confusing to use.
Unless you love Particle Physics,this will bore you.
We tried to book a tour, but they sell out fast. The website is a mess, so confusing to use.
Unless you love Particle Physics,this will bore you.
Written 1 January 2020
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.
Kaiser_sd
Washougal, WA31 contributions
Aug 2021
The free exhibition allows you to know enough about CERN. The one-hour guided tour was really not necessary especially that we waited 2 hours for it. Conclusion, scientists might not be the best type of tourist guides. The guide was a scientist from Argentina. He was very friendly but his English was a bit hard to understand, especially when he did his science talk :)...Also, he wasn't prepared for the guided tour at all. He said he had not entered the site that we were supposed to visit for 2 years. We saw the first generation of the collider, it was a 30 mins amazing video show. After that, he tried to paraphrase all that was explained in the video....all in all, its worth visiting exhibition and may be the 3 hour guided tour if you are a big fan of physics since it says it will take you underground..but we don't know... BTW, Its all free! The Globe was closed for renovation.
Written 24 August 2021
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.
Jarka
London, UK3 contributions
June 2023 • Family
Tickets can be obtained for the tour a maximum of one hour before the tour. There can be a maximum 24 people in each tour.
We arrived at 10:30 for the tour at 11:00. Tickets for this tour were gone and there were people already queuing for the next tour at 12:30.
So we joined the queue which was very quickly growing. All new comers were making first their way to the receptionist and then walking around the queue counting number of people.
For one hour we were staring at the receptionist who was staring at the clock to make sure she will start her “next please” no more than 1 hour before the next tour starts.
We were lucky enough to get tickets to the next tour, but there were lots of disappointed people behind us. I am not sure if they had the will to stay in non-moving queue for the tour that started 2.5 hours later. I would not.
The guide himself was excellent. What a shame that I had to listen to his really interesting talk tired, annoyed and humiliated.
CERN, people are coming by to see you from all over the world. Surely you can do better than this!
We arrived at 10:30 for the tour at 11:00. Tickets for this tour were gone and there were people already queuing for the next tour at 12:30.
So we joined the queue which was very quickly growing. All new comers were making first their way to the receptionist and then walking around the queue counting number of people.
For one hour we were staring at the receptionist who was staring at the clock to make sure she will start her “next please” no more than 1 hour before the next tour starts.
We were lucky enough to get tickets to the next tour, but there were lots of disappointed people behind us. I am not sure if they had the will to stay in non-moving queue for the tour that started 2.5 hours later. I would not.
The guide himself was excellent. What a shame that I had to listen to his really interesting talk tired, annoyed and humiliated.
CERN, people are coming by to see you from all over the world. Surely you can do better than this!
Written 30 June 2023
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.
AdeLange
Willemstad, Curaçao5 contributions
Nov 2023 • Family
CERN is an amazing Institute.
Unfortunately the visit experience is not so amazing. Due to cancellations in the past they have decided to not allow any reservations. The result is a system where you have to compete with the other 400 visitors for 24 available spots on the guided tour. Both times it was completely booked up in 10 to 20 seconds after opening.
Please allow people to make a reservation, charge €25 per person which is refunded when people show up and kept when people don't show up.
There will be no no-shows and a whole lot less dissapointment going round. Remember the mission of the visitor center is to make people love CERN for the speadhead of science and innovation it really is!
At the reception they told us about 1800 people visit per day. With only 100 being allowed in the tours.
1700 people therefor leave, just like us, slightly dissapointed.
Unfortunately the visit experience is not so amazing. Due to cancellations in the past they have decided to not allow any reservations. The result is a system where you have to compete with the other 400 visitors for 24 available spots on the guided tour. Both times it was completely booked up in 10 to 20 seconds after opening.
Please allow people to make a reservation, charge €25 per person which is refunded when people show up and kept when people don't show up.
There will be no no-shows and a whole lot less dissapointment going round. Remember the mission of the visitor center is to make people love CERN for the speadhead of science and innovation it really is!
At the reception they told us about 1800 people visit per day. With only 100 being allowed in the tours.
1700 people therefor leave, just like us, slightly dissapointed.
Written 5 November 2023
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.
Lynne T
Newcastle upon Tyne, UK180 contributions
July 2023 • Friends
Really interesting tour, which was not too complex for anyone who wasn’t a scientist. It takes you to see the original collider, and gives you lots of interesting information and history. The only downside was the dreadful queuing system. You cannot book tickets in advance and have to queue for tickets in an hours time (by which time we had already been queuing for one hour). You then have an hour to wait and there are no facilities close by. The small museum takes 10 minutes and there is no cafe. We ended up buying a sandwich in a petrol station and eating it on the forecourt. I can’t believe that all the reviews that mention how bad the system is has not made CERN change the system.
Written 10 July 2023
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.
Menno
Amersfoort, The Netherlands1,261 contributions
July 2023 • Couples
It’s quite hard to find the parking space due to all the construction works around CERN. The free exhibition next to it is very small and a visit takes 20 min. at most.
We tried a guided tour, but didn’t manage. We arrived around 10 am, when we heard the next tour was full. For you can only make a reservation an hour in advance, we had to stay in line for another hour with only the hope of getting on a guided tour.
We lost our morning trying to visit CERN, but left disapointed.
We tried a guided tour, but didn’t manage. We arrived around 10 am, when we heard the next tour was full. For you can only make a reservation an hour in advance, we had to stay in line for another hour with only the hope of getting on a guided tour.
We lost our morning trying to visit CERN, but left disapointed.
Written 1 July 2023
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.
Ciao come posso prenotare una visita? Siamo in 2… c’è un contatto mail? Basta andare lì?
Written 22 April 2024
Hi, My husband and I intend to visit CERN in late April. We understand completely the process for getting a place on a guided tour and simply don't have the time for for that.
1. What I would like to know is how much time it takes to explore the Universe of Particles and Microcosm exhibitions. Is one hour enough as one person has said oris a bit longer better.
2. Would morning or afternoon have less people. I am thinking afternoon would probably be best?
Written 28 February 2023
¿Que controversias surgieron a raíz de la construcción del LHC? ¿Alguien estuvo en contra de llevar a cabo cabo proyecto? ¿Por qué España al inicio se opuso? ¿Qué opinaron los científicos de el cierre de otros proyectos para continuar con el LHC? ¿Cuáles repercusiones económicas supuso el LHC?
Written 1 November 2021
Hello, what date of a week is the best time to visit? how far is it from Geneva? i wonder if we travel in the morning will we have a better chance to get a guided tour? i'll be travelling from UK, i have heard that our QR test vaccination is not recognized in Switzeland. ? thank you for your answer
Written 13 October 2021
We went on a Saturday morning, took the trams (takes about 1 hour from the city centre), arrived at 9:10 at CERN and found out it was fully booked till 13:00… Guess you have a better chance during the week and off-season…
Sorry, do not know about acceptance of QR codes in Switzerland…
Written 14 October 2021
I would like to book a tour for the 11th of April 2020 as an individual. But the tour booking page wouldn't allow to book any tour for beyond 11th March as of today.
Is this their rule that individual tours couldn't be booked more than 15 days in advance?
Written 25 February 2020
We enjoyed the visit even without a guided tour. Lots to read and good app for self-guiding.
Written 1 March 2020
Renzo S
Milan, Italy
Ci sono organizzazioni scientifiche o agenzie che fanno viaggi organizzati al Cern nel 2020? Faranno visitare LHC e/o CMS?
Se si, posso avere i nominativi? Grazie e saluti Renzo
Written 14 January 2020
Quando sono andato non mi sembrava ci fosse qualcosa del genere. Noi abbiamo fatto tutto online dal sito del Cern.
Written 16 January 2020
Where is best to stay if you are visiting CERN within a weekend in Geneva.
Written 14 October 2019
We stayed in Geneva close to the lake caught the bus to the train station then trained it to CERN didn’t take long. public transport very easy to use. All hotels will tell you the best bus to get on and give you a timetable for buses and trains.
Written 17 October 2019
It is said that "CERN does not allow luggage in guided tours or exhibitions. No luggage storage facility is available." I will arrive from Zurich (by train) and need to carry my backpack. Is there any other place where I can store the backpack and then come to CERN?
Thank you!
Written 12 October 2019
As the other two people have said, store your back pack at the train station, plenty of lockers, visit the main information centre in the train centre to get your Swiss travel pass May save you some money on things you want to do. Enjoy Cern
Written 13 October 2019
We just booked an individual tour for 2 people on a Saturday. The time listed was for 1-3 pm. The confirmation stated our application was complete for the date requested , followed by "8:45". This was the approximate time we sent our application through. Is it possible that there is an 8:45 am tour as well? Thank you
Written 14 August 2019
There is very likely an 0845 tour. Check their web page, but I would also confirm the time with them by email.
Written 16 August 2019
Delphine W
Strasbourg, France
Quel est le prix d’entrée ? Et le prix pour la visite guidée svp?
Written 10 August 2019
…
Showing results 1-10 of 74
Revenue impacts the experiences featured on this page, learn more.
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing