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Top Science museums in North York, Canada
Top Rated Science museums in North York
Top Reviewed Science museums in North York
Reviews
A mixed bag.
I’ll start off by explaining that I haven’t been to the Science Center in well over a decade. But when I was a kid I would come all the time and would attend summer camps and would have some amazing experiences. But SO much has changed.
Start off by the bridge being closed for no posted reason which is really a shame because that entrance really immerses you in nature and starts your journey off right at the Science Center. Instead, you wait in line for a shuttle to take you down the hill to the rear entrance. (Is walkable, but we went in Mid November with a 4 year old and a 7 week old).
Walked in the rear entrance and the place seems empty. Lots of empty spaces and missing exhibits. The areas seemed unorganized except for the original Space and Living Earth exhibits. The way the exhibits were laid out really had so rhyme or reason and it was a really odd layout.
The food in the cafeteria is WAY overpriced. Bring your own food!
Now for the positives.
The exhibits themselves are great! Amazing information for all ages and lots to explore and get your hands on. My 4 year old loved the rainforest and the interactive Dino exhibit. And loves playing with other kids at the interactive floor in the lower level main hall.
I’ll start off by explaining that I haven’t been to the Science Center in well over a decade. But when I was a kid I would come all the time and would attend summer camps and would have some amazing experiences. But SO much has changed.
Start off by the bridge being closed for no posted reason which is really a shame because that entrance really immerses you in nature and starts your journey off right at the Science Center. Instead, you wait in line for a shuttle to take you down the hill to the rear entrance. (Is walkable, but we went in Mid November with a 4 year old and a 7 week old).
Walked in the rear entrance and the place seems empty. Lots of empty spaces and missing exhibits. The areas seemed unorganized except for the original Space and Living Earth exhibits. The way the exhibits were laid out really had so rhyme or reason and it was a really odd layout.
The food in the cafeteria is WAY overpriced. Bring your own food!
Now for the positives.
The exhibits themselves are great! Amazing information for all ages and lots to explore and get your hands on. My 4 year old loved the rainforest and the interactive Dino exhibit. And loves playing with other kids at the interactive floor in the lower level main hall.
I will say the content of this centre is very extensive and can really be enjoyable and informative to folks of all ages. However, having parts of the centre closed was not what I was expecting such as the outdoor area which was odd to me since a lot of people didn’t have issues walking outside to get to the rear entrance instead of taking the shuttle due to long lines, and having the space planetarium closed without an explanation posted was very disappointing since I was looking forward to it. The OMNIMAX movie experience is very neat and a cool experience for seeing a movie on such a big screen. There are also a lot of interactive exhibits which help you appreciate the science behind it. One last thing, I understand that this is place is mainly for kids, but parents please look after your kids, I have seen so many without supervision and causing a disturbance which made it hard to enjoy certain attractions and can really make the time there enjoyable with so much screaming. Overall, not a bad place to go for the first time.
Fun place, especially if you have a young child who needs stimulation- as a dad I had fun too engaging with my son. There were alot of things and they can find 1 thing they enjoy and stick with it for hours. Although the weekends can get busy with all kids running around, will feel like a daycare with no parental supervision. Other than that it is advisable to go on a weekday if possible.
Past the cafeteria and the rainforest area there's a physics rich exhibit that was quieter than the other areas, and I found that really enjoyable. The crochet coral area was gorgeous, and the moving dinos were really neat!
I went on a really busy weekday, when there were a lot of large groups visiting. The shuttle service took a while, and I quickly passed through the extra crowded areas.
I went on a really busy weekday, when there were a lot of large groups visiting. The shuttle service took a while, and I quickly passed through the extra crowded areas.
This is great place to spend a day, specially if you have kids. They, for sure will have an amazing experience. There are many interactive exhibits that will allow them, as well as you, to learn many things.
I recommend including one of the IMAX movies presented along the day.
Ensure to get there early to be able to go through all the exhibits.
There is a bus the will take you from the main building to one closeby. The waiting time might be an issue.
I recommend including one of the IMAX movies presented along the day.
Ensure to get there early to be able to go through all the exhibits.
There is a bus the will take you from the main building to one closeby. The waiting time might be an issue.
There are a lot of activities for small kids. My 5 year old and 4 year old kids loved the experience. We needed more than 3 hours to truly experience the whole place, which unfortunately we didn't have.
The exhibit halls have to be accessed from the rear entrance, and there are frequent shuttle busses that run between the main and the rear entrances.
The family center was really fun and engaging for us. It's a great learning experience.
The exhibit halls have to be accessed from the rear entrance, and there are frequent shuttle busses that run between the main and the rear entrances.
The family center was really fun and engaging for us. It's a great learning experience.
Since my family and I have a membership, we decided to come and visit the museum today. The bus ride was about 20 minutes. We walked instead of taking the shuttle bus because the line was too long. Previously, we have had experiences of food poisoning from the cafe, so we packed our own lunch and were able to get seating. This museum is amazing. There are exhibits for all- from deep water exploration to bat caves to the reproductive system. Came with kids and explored the play area on the second floor. Had a blast. Overall a great experience and would come back again.
Was very excited to come here, we arrived later in the day due to other plans having been priority.
The main entrance- we realized we needed to take a shuttle to the exhibits as the bridge is closed? We didn’t have to wait long for a ride thankfully (each way).
The exhibits don’t seem to have an order to follow and sometimes we found ourselves a little turned around.
There’s some on different floors as well. Probably should’ve done research on areas to see prior to going but usually museums
and things like this have a better flow.
we used a city pass to get tickets which was well worth it since this experience wasn’t our favourite.
It’s aimed more so at children and families. It has a lot of fun experiments but it seems very dated in some ways and a lot of things were out of service which was sad.
I enjoyed the Moderna exhibit- maybe because I’m in health care. I didn’t learn too much- but what I did was fun little tidbits and I really liked seeing the models and human body in action.
We didn’t try food court.
Parking was 12$ on entry.
It’s a lot of walking as well but they have a lot of accessibility options.
A little underwhelmed and disappointed, it seems if you plan your day to do the live experiments and events with the staff it would be better. Also staff was super involved and fun.
The main entrance- we realized we needed to take a shuttle to the exhibits as the bridge is closed? We didn’t have to wait long for a ride thankfully (each way).
The exhibits don’t seem to have an order to follow and sometimes we found ourselves a little turned around.
There’s some on different floors as well. Probably should’ve done research on areas to see prior to going but usually museums
and things like this have a better flow.
we used a city pass to get tickets which was well worth it since this experience wasn’t our favourite.
It’s aimed more so at children and families. It has a lot of fun experiments but it seems very dated in some ways and a lot of things were out of service which was sad.
I enjoyed the Moderna exhibit- maybe because I’m in health care. I didn’t learn too much- but what I did was fun little tidbits and I really liked seeing the models and human body in action.
We didn’t try food court.
Parking was 12$ on entry.
It’s a lot of walking as well but they have a lot of accessibility options.
A little underwhelmed and disappointed, it seems if you plan your day to do the live experiments and events with the staff it would be better. Also staff was super involved and fun.
Loved my first visit to the science centre! We could not even complete the ground floor in three hours and aim to go again! Highly interactive with the kids experiencing sound by playing on drums or just going into a silent zone! Excellent exhibition on the developing embryo inside a mothers womb! Fascinating actually !
The small rainforest with its colourful frogs etc etc
kids can have their run recorded and test their rowing skills as well !
Enough said.. go experience
The small rainforest with its colourful frogs etc etc
kids can have their run recorded and test their rowing skills as well !
Enough said.. go experience
I haven't been back here for a while (a decade +) and forgot how fun and educational this place is! It's definitely a great place to spend the day with kids. There are plenty of interesting things for the adults as well. Did you know there's a big plant called Tulip Tree? I didn't. I like it that the entire place is spacious with high ceilings. There are so many interactive & interesting things strategically placed not too far from each other so visitors don't crowd into one place. Can you spot the dragon lizard?
I took my 6 year old boy, but I am trying to assess from the lens of all kids from 6 to 66. I can agree with the opinion I hear a lot, which is that the place could use some revitalization. The exhibits are good - they really are. But I don't think they have the initial appeal to hook in the youth who have so many distractions and other things competing for their attention. Same for the adult who will readily assume they know what the exhibit is about on a surface level, not realizing there may be more there, just a little deeper. The fact that it has stayed mostly the same for so long plays well to the nostalgia of the 30+ crowd; that makes us better tour guides for the next generation. Hoping to see things evolve with the times, regardless of the address of the Ontario Science Centre.