Find out how fun science can be when you’re learning through interactive exhibitions, fun activities, and immersive shows at Scienceworks Melbourne. Kids and kids at heart will have a blast watching planetarium shows about Mars, playing hands-on games to learn about light, and fascinating workshops on robotics.
Ready to channel your inner scientist? Read on to discover everything there is to know about one of the best family activities in Melbourne.
Where is it?
Want to leave the car behind? You can ride a bike along the Maribyrnong River and reach the museum. Credit: chefdeparty_au
Scienceworks Melbourne is located at 2 Booker Street, Spotswood, Victoria, 3015. There are several ways to get to the museum:
- By car - From Melbourne CBD, take the M1 to Hudsons Road and turn right to Booker Street. Parking costs $5 from Monday to Thursday and $6 from Friday to Sunday. You can pay by card or PayStay.
- By train - Take the Werribee and Williamstown Lines to Spotswood. From the station, it’s about a 10 minute walk to the museum.
- By ferry - Board the ferries from Southbank – Williamstown Ferries or Fisherman's Bend – Westgate Punt.
- By bicycle - Follow the trails along the Maribyrnong River, Hyde Street, the Yarra River, or Hudsons Road. You can park your bike in front of the Scienceworks building.
Klook tip: As one of the most popular Melbourne attractions, Scienceworks is busiest on Fridays and weekends. If you can’t find a parking spot at the car park, you can park your car along Hudson Road and Simcock Avenue.
Wondering what else to do on a rainy day? Here are Melbourne’s best indoor activities for some inspiration.
What are the opening hours?
Channel your inner astronaut during your visit to the Think Ahead exhibition. Credit: starkidnico
The museum is open from 10am until 4:30pm every day, except on certain holidays like Good Friday and Christmas Day. To avoid long queues, it’s best to book your Scienceworks Museum tickets online and in advance.
Here are the best things to do at Scienceworks Melbourne for the ultimate experience:
Lightning Room
Discover impressive displays like the Tesla Coil and Jacob’s ladder, designed to teach you all about electricity.
One of the most unmissable features of Scienceworks Melbourne is the Lightning Room. Step inside and find impressive displays of an electromagnetic can crusher, a high voltage pickle onion, and a massive Tesla Coil, which can produce lightning bolts that are three metres long!
During your visit, make sure to catch the Lights, Energy, Action! game show. Through three rounds, you’ll watch awesome displays of energy, explosions, and other electrifying demonstrations. Even better is that everyone aged five and above can watch the show, so feel free to bring the kids.
Can’t get enough family fun? Check out our list of the best kid-friendly things to do in Melbourne.
Planetarium
Catch one of the planetarium’s various shows, like the Tilt and Starlight, during your visit.
No visit to Scienceworks Melbourne is complete without spending time at the Planetarium. Inside, you’ll be welcomed by the massive 16-metre domed ceiling, comfortable reclining seats, a state-of-the-art surround sound system and video project. Perfect for watching the stars twinkle at the night sky—no matter the time or weather!
There are also different shows at the Planetarium that’s geared towards kids, adults, and entire families. All of them last for 30 to 45 minutes and they’ll take you on an immersive journey to discover more about celestial bodies like the moon, black holes, stars, and the solar system. Before you go, you’ll learn how you can stargaze effectively from home.
Workshops
Bring the entire fam to the museum. Kids up to age 15 go free! Credit: scienceworks_melb
The museum has two upcoming workshops that are all about technology. From 30 April until 5 June, you and the kids can work together and find out how to control robots in the robots and coding workshop. By creating simple commands, you can make the mBots move and react to conquer different challenges.
The second workshop, Explore AI, will start on 18 May until 18 June. You and your kids will learn all about artificial intelligence, do experiments, try hands-on activities and even train your own AI robot. This workshop is recommended for children aged eight to 10 years old.
After your day of learning all about science, let the creative juices flow and discover great art with a visit to Artvo Melbourne.
Exhibitions
Kids will enjoy learning all about light at the Illuminate exhibition. Credit: scienceworks_melb
Scienceworks Melbourne boasts heaps of fun exhibitions that will keep you on your toes. One of the most famous ones is Think Ahead, which urges visitors to imagine what the future will look like through technological advancements. At the exhibition, you’ll create your own green city, evolved bodies, and even futuristic cars.
Younger kiddos can join in on the fun, too! At Ground Up: Building Big Ideas, Together, kids five years old and below can make their own flying devices, solve puzzles, and a giant car wash that they can experiment with.
Shows
Meet Tycho the Dog when you catch his show during your visit. Credit: huginn.muninn
Besides the Planetarium’s out-of-this-world shows, the museum also stages informative shows about different fields of science and technology. From 9 to 25 April, the show revolves around water and its magical properties that you may not have heard of before. Catch the Tricky Sticky Water! Show to learn tricks and impress your friends.
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