Scienceworks (Museums Victoria)

Adult couple , we enjoyed our time here but better suited for kids. Highly recommend bringing your kids. We visited the planetarium for both adult and kid shows, we enjoyed watching Tycho Goes to Mars (kids) more than the adult star themed show. We also went to the lightning show, it was very interesting, but for a Lightning show there wasn't much lightning.

We visited Scienceworks Museum and had an amazing time. The permanent exhibitions, Think Ahead and Sportsworks, were really fun and interactive. The planetarium was super interesting and educational. Our 6-year-old absolutely loved amd had a blast at the temporary exhibition, Tinkertown. The museum also had two out door playgrounds. There's ample open space for kids to run around and families to have a picnic. Visiting the pumping station and seeing the restoration of the Great Melbourne Telescope were great added bonuses too. The only downside was the waiting time (20mins) to get tickets as their operating systems had crashed. But the staff was really amazing through it all.

A full day is not enough. Great for kids of all ages. Many high quality interactive exhibits, the shows are great to keep the fun element high. Don't miss the lightning theatre. We will need another full day to cover the remaining shows and exhibits. Although tickets may be available on the spot, always better to buy in advance online. They speed you thru the check-in process, if you do. One of those places where you feel the staff 'love their job'. Edited to fix typos

Went to Scienceworks for a special Valentine's Day adults only night at the planetarium! If you ever get a chance to do these sorts of special events, it's well worth it! So much fun! There were snacks and drinks available. Photobooth and a DJ 🕺🪩 Well done to the museum staff for setting up a fun night out 🩷

We went for a themed night. Valentine's under the stars. Got to be in the auditorium and saw a show. Also because it was in the evening and a special event we got to see the whole museum. There was music and little other displays added to the night. Wonderful arrangement and wonderful night. The staff was very knowledgeable and great!

Fantastic spot! Definitely worth a trip out! Great for kids and adults!!! So much to see and do! The little kid area was wonderful, full of sensory activities like light board and a car wash with gears that the adults played with more than the kids! Lots of seating for adults as well. Also a soft play area kids can climb and slide. This was my toddler's favourite along with the boat and surf board you could balance. We also did the planetarium which was fantastic. The only downside was the amount of school groups, might be better on a weekend.

Great for the price and great for kids! Just call up for the times as some shows are only good for some age group. But otherwise it’s a great place to visit and good for kids to have some fun. Not too much choice for food there, but there’s some outdoor small playgrounds for kids to have fun too.

The Scienceworks Museum in Melbourne is one of those places you walk into thinking you’ll stay for an hour, and suddenly half the day has disappeared. It has this fun mix of nostalgia and discovery that makes it just as entertaining for adults as it is for kids. The exhibits feel hands‑on in the best way — you’re not just looking at things behind glass, you’re pushing buttons, testing ideas, and accidentally learning while you’re having a laugh. The Lightning Room show is a standout. Even if you’ve seen it before, the crack of that giant Tesla coil still gives you a little jolt of excitement. The sports science area is another favourite, especially if you like the idea of racing Cathy Freeman or testing how high you can jump. It’s playful, a bit competitive, and surprisingly informative. What I love most is how approachable everything feels. Scienceworks doesn’t try to overwhelm you with complicated explanations. Instead, it breaks things down in a way that feels natural and fun, like a friend showing you something cool they just discovered. If you’re in Melbourne and want something that’s equal parts educational and genuinely enjoyable, Scienceworks is absolutely worth the visit.

Great place. I took our 14month old in for free as newborns receive a family 6month entry for free membership. Very hands on - plenty of spaces to explore and be adventurous. Best to get there about 9:45am to avoid waiting in queue, especially in school holidays. We'll be back! We have more sections to explore.

This is a great place to bring primary school age kids (or younger) for a full day of fun, especially when there are special exhibits such as the Explore-a-saurus Exhibition. Where else can kids see moving roaring dinosaurs in Melbourne? Furthermore, the Nitty Gritty Super City upstairs offers many fun activities, such as a mock construction site. There's even a realistic Lego model of Melbourne. Unfortunately, there is nothing for adults to do other than accompany the kids. In this respect, the use of the word Museum is somewhat misleading. Play-centre would've been a much better description. Adults will learn little from the exhibits. For example, the dinosaur exhibition skips over the origin, geological periods, evolution or demise of these animals. They are not arranged in any chronological order, and not even to scale. For example, the T-rex is roughly half size. And nothing from the Triassic period. Again I have to remind myself it's for KIDS ONLY. The cafe is disappointing, offering mostly pies, sandwiches, chips but no healthy cooked food. At least there is real coffee. In summary, adults with no kids should stay away. But I'll probably bring my kids back here for more.

I love coming out to Scienceworks, it's a short drive from the city and a great activity for all ages. I came here a few months ago with my partner and we had a really fun time, there are lots of activities and challenges to do. Activities include; Reaction test, fitness test, strength test, coordination test, balance tests and much more. Each station has information and facts about the challenge, I always leave here with a little bit of extra knowledge. They also have a needle bed (where you lie on a flat surface and needles rise up), and a sprint against Cathy Freeman. This is place is great as a family activity, it mashes learning with fun and majority of the activities are child friendly. The garden in Scienceworks is also quite fun, there is a sound wall- where you can experiment with noise vibrations. Fascinating stuff! Make sure you visit the planetarium too!

Great example of science at work for kids however, I think Sartre said it best "Hell is other people. If you get here at 10am and leave by 11am it fine but after that droves of people with their kids arrive and they let them loose and basically ignore them...like it a play centre! My Daughter and I waited 5 mins to use a exhibition and just before our turn a bunch of idiot kids just barged through. I spoke to their father and he just shrugged his shoulders. This was repeated for the rest of our duration. I would say that your kid needs to read the actually enjoy the place. We will be back...In 4 years.

I had pretty high expectations of Science Works, having had many people suggest I take my children there and raving about how much I'd love it. Well they were right. It IS great. The exhibitions are simple but fun. It is all about doing rather than just looking. The "super city" upstairs was particularly fun for my kids. The pumping station (outside past the lawn) and the old steam engines (near lawn) were popular with my FIL and DH. The cafe was clean and food what you would expect but fine. Sandwiches, hot chips, packaged sushi rolls. My children had a dinosaur themed "happy meal" style box filled with a ham and cheese sambo on white bread, a box of sultanas and a fruit drink box. Prices what you might expect - so take your own if don't like thinking you are paying around 10% more for food and drinks. The Dino boxes are $6.95 each. Muffins $3.30, small yoghurt tub $3. Children are free as are concession card holders. Entry for adults is $10. Exhibitions are extra but you can easily enjoy a few hours here without needing to spend the extra money on those. Toilets are clean and well maintained. Outside the toilets downstairs is a water fountain and tables with coloring pencils etc if you need to wait for others in yor group. The toilets near the entry are unisex (multiple cubicles for me or women). The ones downstairs are not. There are staff around everywhere to answer questions and give you hints and tips when exploring the museum. Overall, a relatively inexpensive play day that is a guaranteed hit for the kids and a pleasant way to pass the time for adults. You might even learn a thing or two. We will be coming back. Soon. If I was rating it as entertainment for adults without children I would not give it 5 stars, perhaps 3. But for a family with kids, 5 from me.

I've read the bad reviews and I think they are expecting too much. IT'S FOR KIDS!!! It's free for kids (adults pay - less than ten bucks) and it keeps them entertained for at least two hours! Not great for kids over ten (my opinion) but I think it's still a good and cheap few hours to entertain the kids.

One of my favorite places - Scienceworks! Saw the Wallace and Gromit exhibition, and they had a solar car race challenge for school kids. Great fun watching the kids efforts. For some of them it was too sunny and their cars spun out, then others almost stopped when a cloud came over. 11 out of 10 for effort and enthusiasm. Make sure to see the old pump out the back in the Pump House. There is a lot of historical information and exhibits on how Melbournes sewage system was built and works. One of the pumps runs (all be it on compressed air rather than steam) and I spent half an hour talking to the volunteer about its mechanisms and history. Plenty for an inquisitive mind (young or old) to explore.

Find some kids, and take them to here! Kids love this place! It won't take too long, just a few hours so stand back and let them loose! It is a great morning out!

Went to the Little Kids Day In which im was advertised as a fun day for kids aged 6 yrs or under. Granted I took my 8 MO there but I expected a bit more. We visited the Big Blue Bathtub which was advertised as "Watch babies shake, rattle and roll as they explore our brand new paddling pool filled not with water, but with homemade sensory toys!" Homemade? I think not - it's plastic balls and rings and maybe one or two bags filled with lids and scrunchie stuff. I paid $12 for this?! I could have stayed home and just dump all the baby's toy in the bathtub and call it a sensory tub! There was a story time session and the guy was great but once again I could have visited the library for a free storytime session. This might be better advertised as Little Kids day out for kids ages 3-6.

Scienceworks can be summed up into one word for me: Disappointment. Speaking as someone actually incredibly interested in science/passion for Biology/etc, Scienceworks seems to be less focused on the academia portion and more at "look at this". Let's dissect this bit by bit... ~ Sports Section I learned absolutely NOTHING from this. Oh cool, I get to race in wheelchairs? Awesome, it shows how fast I sprint? Oh cool, I can block soccer goals... Yeah. I came out of that section learning absolutely nothing. There were no real fun science bits to it such as maybe learning about what muscles or what part of the brain you're using to do those activities. It is LITERALLY just like "PLAY WITH THIS THING!" ~ Home Section This section just shows some basic history and whatnot of things in your home such as history of a steam iron or something like that. A little bit closer to science, but not really science more like History of Small Technological Innovations. ~ Misc Section I don't know what to call this because there's just a whole bunch of activities and things like looking through strange lenses and whatnot. This is a little bit closer to science, but they don't have enough explanation - just barely touches on what's supposed to happen, what's going on, etc. ~ Planetarium I've been to much better Planetariums, but I can't say that this wasn't half-decent. I wish they spent less time teaching about constellations and more about science of space - nebulae, black holes, etc and not "Here is the constellation Southern Cross. Here's how you find it." --- I probably sound bitter... that's because I am. I absolutely adore science but I came out of Scienceworks learning absolutely nothing new not because I'm pretentious and think I know everything - but because they just teach you absolutely nothing. I understand that it's focused on children, but isn't this supposed to be a learning experience? What kind of learning experience is knowing if you can block goals against some soccer players. I have to admit though, some things were fun to do and I had a good time but maybe it's because I came with my friend and it was just good company and not the actual venue. Basically. Go to Scienceworks for everything but the science.

I highly recommend going to Science works with children. Not because the kids will love it - thats true though, they will - but because having the excuse of 'playing with the children' allows you to have a whole ton of fun with all the interactive games and exhibits, without inhibitions! If the name doesnt give it away, Scienceworks is an interactive science and technology museum. But rather than look at everything behind glass windows and trying to be interested in things that make you yawn, here you will spend your time racing a digital Cathy Freeman, making electricity, building structures, and fast bowling. There is a cafe on site, but they also have a lawn if you would prefer to bring a picnic and make a whole day of it. And be sure to check their website before you go to find out about special exhibits and shows are happening on the day of your visit.

Scienceworks was one of my favourite places when I was growing up. It really does make science fascinating. When I was eight I remember we made videos and got to take them home and we had to crawl along the floor holding onto a rope in front of a bluescreen, the video was then turned to the side and it showed us climbing up the side of a mountain. It's no surprise that I kept going back. There are many different rooms that focus on particular subjects - the lightning room, where they stimulate what looks like real lightning, the sports room, where you can learn about your body and challenge yourself against Cathy Freeman in a running race or try virtual snowboarding. They have a giant house where you can discover what's behind the couch and what's in the vacuum cleaner. There's also a kid's only area and the Melbourne planetarium, which is so cool you sit back in reclining chairs and watch the display with a museum expert hosting the show. All amenities are provided and there is good disabled access, but car really is the best way to get there.

We took kids (3 and 5) there this morning (Friday), arrived at 10.30am and left at 2pm having seen most of the exhibits. There are a lot of interesting exhibits, the kids loved the sports section and nitty bitty city. Mummy and daddy liked the future section. Alot of exhibits are interactive, which kept them interesting. There were a lot of school kids there today... And we found the volume of school kids made it quite difficult for our younger kids to see and interact with some of the exhibits. It would be interesting to know if there was a day of the week that has less school kids as I would recommend going when there were less schools there. Or perhaps an afternoon visit would mean less time with the schools.

WHAT. AN. EXPERIENCE. To be honest a 5 star review does not do justice to the galaxies that I experienced during my trip. As a student with a sub-zero bank account the general admission was enough to fill an afternoon with fun. The first floor was the true heart of the exhibition- Neil Armstrong would be quaking in his space booties. The 'beyond perception' projections were truely a work of art and should really be more suitable in the National Gallery of Victoria. Staff were nice. Gift shop was cosmic. Sewerage pump gave welcomed historical identity. Would go again and probably again after that. 10/10

Excellent place. My only major concern is that it's just a bit of a turn off that the buttons and gadgets are really grubby and germy. Maybe Science Works should consider hand Sanitizer stations ( like other places around the word) and making it compulsory before use of gadgets as people could pick up any sort of germs etc especially if they/child has a low immune system due to an illnesses or so on.