Nicole O.
Yelp
The Telus World of Science has gone through many name changes over the years (I still call it the Edmonton Space and Sciences Centre), but it still remains as one of the best places in Edmonton to have fun indoors year round. I have always been a science nerd, and have many fond memories of visiting here as a child, and also now enjoy visiting as an adult who is a scientist by profession. Bring comfortable shoes, and hand sanitizer; there is a lot to see, and a lot to touch and do.
The TWoS has a number of permanent exhibits, as well as a two sections for travelling exhibits and two theatres. The IMAX theatre is the largest in Alberta (so the advertisements claim), and recently underwent a renovation to update the screen, sound and seats. IMAX tickets are purchased separately from general admission, so if you want to see a movie, you'll pay extra, and on the flip side, you can go see a movie without paying for admission. The second theatre is the Margaret Zielder star theatre, and is a completely domed screen. Shows in this theatre are included in general admission, and are delightful - being surrounded by a screen is a neat experience.
The permanent exhibits are starting to show their age a bit, but are still fun. There is a weather and nature gallery, a space gallery, a human body gallery and (my favorite) mystery avenue, where you get a sheet and collect clues to solve a crime. The crime changes every few years, but they are usually lighthearted and very kid friendly.
I went recently for the Harry Potter Exhibition and will add my thoughts here as well. The exhibit was fun, but really just movie props and clothing. There wasn't a large interactive component, and we were done in under an hour. We tried out a couple of audio tours and found the sound bytes to be short, and in most cases, uninteresting. I wouldn't recommend bothering, but if you do, bring your own headphones, or a headphone splitter if you want to share. The Harry Potter gift shop was incredibly expensive. I have been to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando, and found the gift shop with this exhibit to have lower quality merchandise at 2-3 times the price. Example: $6 for a box of approximately 15 every-flavor jellybeans, or $35 for a metal pen. If you aren't able to go to Florida though, it's worth the visit.
The admission prices for the "special" exhibits are high, but there is plenty to do and see with general admission, and it's hard not to have fun checking everything out.