The London Science Museum For February Half Term 2019!
Ooh we love The Science Museum in London, it’s one of the things I actually miss about living in the capital actually. It was nowhere near where we were in Leytonstone, in fact it was a real mission to get to as it was completely the other side for us and the tube station… Well, let’s just say South Kensington is NOT the best for buggy pushers but man that place is special and SO worth the trip. I used to take the big two every week when they were pre-schoolers and we would just spend all day playing in the basement which is utterly fabulous for the under fives. Sensory play and science experiments all rolled into one big soft play of a giant meant once we were actually there it was a relatively easy afternoon for me and then on the way home we’d walk through the park to the Princess Diana Memorial Playground which was closer to the Central Line and made sense while being the perfect break up of a long journey home!
Some say they prefer the Natural History Museum next door or the V&A over the road but while the Grand Hall IS rather spectacular in the Nat His, and the fountain outside wonderfully fun in the summer over at the Victoria and Albert, it’s The Science Museum which holds my heart! I often want to whisper to the mammoth queues next door that they’re missing out because the Science Museum is SO much better but hey… They can read my bog for that kind of info huh!
Now, my love for the place, where did it come from because believe me I’ve been going since I was a kid and even visited as an adult pre my own children so it must have begin somewhere and it might just be because my Grandmother, a crotchety old soul who rarely had a good word for anyone but who loved me and in turn I loved her right back (we were… probably quite kindred) donated an old vacuum cleaner to the museum many years back and they still hold it on display now. It might be because of that… We DO love going to visit it and seeing her name, or… rather that of my Grandfather, who had little to do with the darn hoover but that was the era, on a plaque next to it. I mean it IS very exciting always to see ‘Donated by Mrs F.R. Davies’ (her name was Jeanette and she was FIERCE and fire and didn’t need a man for a name or anything else thank you very much!) but… It’s much more than that old Baby Daisy hoover. There’s something so wonderful about the Science Museum that I can’t put my finger on it… We once saw ALL of Take That (minus Robbie – he was still being a thorn in their side in the mid noughties when it was) with their families there and even they couldn’t take my attention away from finding something else to see, something new to explore… I just love it and so do my kids!
Science is jut so… Well, explosively wonderfully fun to find out about- IF it’s hands on and this is something The Science Museum understand well. Everything that has ever captured my attention there has been a hands on exhibition and I remember going around with Jonny when we had first met ageing ourselves up on their computer and changing our sex photographically – we just laughed and laughed and laughed!
The Science Museum holds amazing memories for me. For us. And It’s always a pleasure to visit. My only sadness is that I don’t get to go too often with Raffie and never get to go just he and I which I could remedy and MUST because I have special memories of being there with both the big ones on their own and it would only be fair… Do I feel a London trip just me and the babe coming on soon… Oh I hope so! I have about a million places I want to take him to but The Science Museum just he and I is TOP of the list!
We went a while back, the kids and I, we checked out the amazing SUN exhibition and followed it up with a trip to the Wonder Lab: The Equinor Gallery (formerly The Launch Pad) which does come at an extra cost but you can buy an annual ticket for £15 (£13 for children) and believe me, with over 50 hands on experiments, it’s worth it! We loved it so much we had to make a trip back for this half term not least because The Sun gallery was having a special breakfast for the media and we wanted to find out all about what’s new!
We actually didn’t make the breakfast as we were contracted to be somewhere else but thankfully the Science Museum still wanted us to come along on Saturday and over lunch time we enjoyed both those wonderful galleries again. This time sadly without Flobo (she was poorly at home and is still feeling sore about missing out) but with our lovely friends from the Mummy Endeavours gang who showed us through their fresh eyes that we were not alone in our enjoyment of the exhibitions!
The kids (and us) really enjoyed finding out all about The Sun from its harmful rays to its energy saving properties – we saw how it can be used for good and bad and all sorts of other things while I think for Jimmy his most favourite part was testing out the sun dial. This education soaking into his sponge of a brain even though he thought he was on holiday, thought he was merely having fun!
And after The Sun it was off to the Wonder Lab where children get to take on all the many experiments which are offered to them in such fun ways – make a rocket, find out which slide is fastest, follow the whole world going around! Oh so much to do and brilliant talks too! We had the most BRILLIANT time! Again, all of us from the grown ups to the baby!
And we couldn’t have made the journey to the Science Museum without taking the baby down to the Garden in the basement of the museum. Oh this face at the water play makes me happy – this is what Florence and Jimmy used to love and now he does too. There’s much more in this play area for under fives (which the big boys also still enjoyed on our visit) but this water area to dam boats is my fave!
So we will be back! Of course we will! Who wouldn’t want to go and enjoy this wonderful museum (which is completely free to enter) that we STILL haven’t seen all of despite many visits! Some top tips for visiting with families are:
- If eating out try the cafe in the basement as it’s always much quieter!
- Go with a plan and stick to it – it’s easy to get distracted and then you might miss the bits you were most looking forward to!
- Be sure to catch the bubble show in the basement which is free and SO good – we’ve not timed this well on our latest visits but I shall rectify for next time!
- Use Queensway on the Central Line which has lifts (and only a few stairs to negotiate) then you can walk through the park and check out the Princess Diana Memorial Playground too!
- Be thoughtful to those who can’t use stairs when at the museum and if the majority of your party don’t need to use the lift try not to – they get very busy!
- Make your Wonder Lab tickets annual passes as it’s not much more price wise and works out even if you only make two trips!
- Take a change of clothing as the water play, though it comes with overalls to borrow, is pretty wet making!
- Find out what the kids homework is and merge it somehow – there will DEFINITELY be a way
So they’re my top tips – hope you all have as much fun as we always do!
My tickets to The Sun and Wonderlab were gifted.
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