Come and See - Observatory / Planetarium / CineDome & More
Written: Feb 27 '05 (Updated Mar 09 '05)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Attractive, variety of topics, expensive equipment
Cons: Most things were closed during our visit. Not enough information.
The Bottom Line: Something fun for elementary age children to do on rainy day.
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| xyzwyatt's Full Review: Orlando Science Center |
My husband was able to get us a one day free admission to the Orlando Science Center (OSC) through his work which I am very grateful for because I would have been very upset if we would have paid the $50 admission price for our family ourselves. I have been to many science oriented museums in many different states so had an expectation of what to expect and the OSC really wasn't very enjoyable for us however I'm sure that it will be for some.
The museum is located near downtown Orlando just off of I-4 at Exit 85. We had not been to the area before and had no problems finding it because it is just a couple blocks from the interstate and marked well.
Luckily we happened to have some cash on hand for parking, I looked at the hours and admissions on their website before going and it didn’t mention parking. Parking for the OSC is directly across the street from the building. The parking garage charges $3.50 and they do not break bills larger than a $20. There is a sky bridge from the parking lot to the second floor of the museum where the admissions desk is.
The hours of operation change depending on the season so I would recommend checking their website or calling before making plans. The observatory hours are approximately 7-9 PM on Friday and Saturday.
We checked in at the admissions area and a very friendly lady assisted us. Admission prices are $14.95 for adults with a $1 discount for ages 55 and over. Admission for ages 3-11 is $9.95. Admission covers all activities that happen in the building including movies and observatory tours. Strollers and wheelchairs are available free of charge.
We arrived around 3PM on a Saturday and although there were a lot of people there I didn’t consider it busy. I noticed that there was a $5 discount after 5PM on Friday and Saturday Nights. The OSC stays open until 9PM on those two nights so would definitely be a better deal especially if you wanted to see the planetarium.
The building is 207,000 square feet and circular in shape. There was a pond with turtles and tall trees in the middle which I found interesting. There is a circular stairway that leads to each of the four levels which is also where the elevators are located.
Level One
The Dr. Phillips CineDome is on the first floor but the next showing did not start for 5 hours so we did not get a chance to see it. They were playing Mystery of the Nile the day we were there.
There is a cafe is on level one and although we didn’t go in we were all tempted by the smell.
Nature Works was one of the things that my kids were remotely interested in. It is a 7,000 sq ft area that was transformed into a natural habitat for animals, insects, and reptiles. We saw skeletons of animals and reptiles, and a full skeleton of a huge snake.
Kids Town was fun for the girls. The playrooms were designed for short kids (48” and under) so older kids and adults couldn’t fit inside the playrooms. There were some little activities to do inside like blow bubbles.
The Exploration Lab was next door to that had a row of tables and buckets of hands-on activities and reminded me of a daycare center. This looked like it would have been fun for preschool or elementary school children. The exploration lab seemed to be out of our group’s age range so we didn’t go in.
I really wanted to see the Planetarium however the day was overcast and the family unanimously voted to leave rather than wait another hour for it to open. It is a live show put on by the OSC astronomers. They also have a laser show at certain times in this room.
Level Two
The second level is where Science City is located which was our favorite section. There was a display for 123 Math Adventure, Physics Park, Power Station, Wired Science, and Inventor’s Workshop. There were a lot of hands-on experiments for all ages.
We explored the Darden Adventure Theater which looked like something we would have really enjoyed but it too was closed. The shows are live demonstrations.
Touch The Sky was really interesting to the whole family. Each instrument that is used in a plane was displayed individually and you could try the instrument out and read a brief description of what it does. There was a Little Tykes Airport which was a play area for the preschoolers. They were having a blast climbing on the props. The flight simulator was of course closed for the day.
The gift shop is on this level; hopefully you’ll be able to dodge it. We have three kids so I was hoping to find a trinket to please them in the store. We looked through the store which had a good selection of scientific and original items. They wanted everything that they saw however most items were severely over priced. We ended up hustling them out of there without their booty.
Level Three
The only exhibit on level three was the Cosmic Tourist. This is a tour of our solar system focusing on Earth.
I think Tryscience was the area that had several nice computers were that out of order. It is the first worldwide on-line science museum. You can check this out from home at: http://www.tryscience.org/
Level Four
Level four as two large areas titled Tech Works and Body Zones. There is a light power exhibit, showbix science exhibit, Dino Digs, and a Healthy Lifestyles area. The entire level was closed off on our visit. My son stressed about 12 times how he wanted to go to see the 4th floor stating that we were missing a lot of the stuff. I guess he thought we were joking when we said the area was closed.
Observatory
I really wanted to see the observatory but that didn’t work out for us. Any future trips will definitely be later in the afternoon so we can see the observatory. I think it is only open on Friday and Saturday evenings, weather permitting. Since we were unable to see it first hand I will have to quote a passage about it:
"The aluminum-domed Crosby Observatory atop OSC houses Florida's largest publicly accessible refractor telescope. A one-of-a-kind, custom-built telescope, along with several smaller scopes are available for night sky viewing on Friday and Saturday nights. Peer through the powerful, 10-inch lens of the refractor telescope to view the planets, the four moons of Jupiter, the rings of Saturn and deep sky objects such as galaxies, nebulas and double stars."
Other
We saw a birthday party in action. There was a conference room full of children and presents. They were lining up to take a tour of the science center. I took a look at the birthday package and it seemed like a great deal. For $10 a person it included admission to OSC, a sheet cake, plates and cups, and an hour in the birthday room. Upgrade packages include a take-home project, and a tour guide. The kids were really enjoying themselves at the party we saw.
There are also Spring Break camps in March and April for grades K-8.
Here is an original and fun idea! You can have a Paleontological Birthday Party for old people. They can celebrate a pre-historic birthday in the Geriatric Park. Wouldn't that be fun!
My Thoughts
This seemed to be a kid’s science center. Our family talked about this and none of us learned anything about science that we didn’t already know. Our 5th grader even already knew all the information.
There were a few exhibits that I enjoyed such as an earthquake and a tornado simulator. I touched them but I didn’t see anything to read or learn about it. We did go back to a hands-on section and spend more time in it looking at the exhibits in Science City. There was a sound exhibit that I enjoyed. There was a tube filled with Styrofoam beads which allowed me to see the sound waves. All five of us were entertained in this area because it had the greatest amount of hands-on activities.
I thought that their displays were arranged nicely and have a great visual appeal. The science center has an exploratory feel to it since the building is circular and things are just scattered around the room, there aren’t any paths like you would find in a museum.
The visuals were wonderful. The walls were painted, the lighting was professional, and the exhibits were all done professionally and well-maintained. It was obvious that a lot of money went into the science center. Some of the sponsors that I noticed were: Lockheed Martin, Walt Disney World, Publix Super Markets, IBM, and Progress Energy.
I was not impressed with the Orlando Science Center at all especially when comparing it to other science centers that I’ve been to mostly because it wasn’t educational. The exhibits lacked originality and explanation. There wasn’t any audio for any of the exhibits so reading was the only way you could get any information. Hubby and I were not able to read anything because we were watching our kids closely which was challenging being a busy day with an open floor plan. Neither of my girls can read so they touched and immediately left. My oldest, age 11, was constantly being left behind because he wanted to read the exhibits.
We were inside the OSC for two hours which was longer than it seemed. We touched a lot of things but there was so much that we didn’t get to do which would have added to the length of our trip. We did not take the time to read all of the exhibits. We wanted to see the CineDome and planetarium but both were closed. In addition, the whole 4th floor was closed off which would have added time to our trip.
We came into contact with three of the employees and observed several others as they worked at OSC and I noticed that they were all very polite and helpful.
Although we did not enjoy our trip to OSC I am sure that people of the right age group would enjoy the center. In fact, I think we would have had a much better time if we were able to see some of the main attractions. If we were to go again I would call ahead to find out if all of the exhibits were open, what time the shows started, and verify that that we would see the show in the planetarium. I would also want to go in the evening so that we could view from their observatory. I would not recommend this museum to a family who has children that can not read. This would be a great museum for an adult to take a child for one-on-one time. My son went alone last year with his Grandma and was able to spend more time on the exhibits. My son is a science nut and wants to be a scientist when he grows up and thought that the OSC was just average. I believe kid's ages 6-14 years old will really enjoy the OSC.
If you are from out of town it might be something to consider on a rainy day. It is a better value than other attractions such as some on I-drive.
777 East Princeton Street
Orlando, Florida 32803
Website: http://www.osc.org/index.htm
Toll Free: 888.OSC.4FUN
Other Things around Orlando:
Amusements
Universal Islands of Adventure, Universal Studios, Orlando Sea World, Cypress Gardens Adventure Park
Indoor Entertainment
The Florida Aquarium
Malls/Shopping Areas
The Mall at Millenia, The Florida Mall, Universal CityWalk
State Parks
Lake Louisa State Park
Best Food
Universal Margaritaville at CityWalk, Hard Rock Cafe at Citywalk, NBA City at Citywalk, Seasons 52, New York Pizza Deli, Jungle Jim's, Bajama Breeze
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Students
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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Epinions.com ID:
xyzwyatt
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Location: Nashville, TN
Reviews written: 542
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Be a coffee-drinking individual - espresso yourself!
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