Winchester Science Centre & Planetarium

Excellent interactive place for children to run around and explore all things science related. The car park can sometimes be busy at peak times, and can be busy during half term/school holidays. It’s almost always nearly empty at the later part of the day (2pm onwards)
There is a cafe with a great selection of food and snacks, catered to adults and small children, (not too expensive)
When the weather is nice there is also an outdoor section for children to explore. A great soft play which is included in the ticket price is also there too. The planetarium is not included in the ticket price, but can be purchased as an “add on”

What a fantastic day!!
Visited with my husband and 6-year-old son.
Stayed all day until the hoovers came out, and it was time to go lol.
Lots and lots to so.
I'm not sure why many are complaining about the price it's a full day out. I thought the pricing was fair! It is additional for the planetarium but so worth it. I was literally in ore of it. The lady presenting it Steph was brilliant too.
Dino show was great, along with the science live shows. You book a slot for the dino show on arrival.
Lots to see and do and everything in interactive.
Soft play included to run off steam, lego building area, brick building area, dino excavation, and more.
Cafe was super quick despite a limited menu but large portions. Jacket spud was huge! Came to £18 for a jacket, panini, x2 cokes, x1 crisps, and a jelly.
Staff were all really pleasant and friendly. Toilets clean and displays.
My only grumble is the car park charge - bit naughty but most attractions do it.
P.S book 7 days in advance for a saving on tickets.
Well done everyone at the science museum! Highly recommend!!

Absolutely lovely place to spend the day. 6 year old and I spent 6 hours there and really enjoyed the planetarium and all the hands on exhibits. The short science demonstrations were well done, and all the staff friendly and helpful.

Cake in the cafe is definitely average. It was nice to have areas to eat a picnic inside and out.

Absolutely loved our visit, my son had visited before and wanted to go again for his 9th birthday. His little sisters are 6 and 7 and have ADHD and they were completely entertained. Lots of things to touch and experience which was perfect for my family.
A highly recommended day out for a family of any age.

Had a great family day out. Lots of interactive exhibits for children to help them learn. We also went to the planetarium and science shows which were both excellent.

The staff were all very friendly and helpful. We'll definitely be coming back again.

I decided to visit Winchester Science and Planetarium as my Son is obsessed with Science and Space and thought it will fill a day during the holidays where the weather forecast was ominous.

The cost per adult £17.50 and child £17.50 does seem high and can be extremely costly if you have a few children, but does decrease if you book in advance bear in mind it's also £4 each for the Planetarium. I was a bit gutted when I saw that there was a charge of £3 for Car Parking whilst going through the payment, but I had already committed by then.

The Car Park is quite small, but seemed to just cope with the demand which is fine, the grounds look well kept and beautiful. The facilities are very clean and modern and the staff were so polite and friendly.

I was so pleasantly surprised with this place, there were so many stands for the children (and adults) to interact with and learn from that you just couldn't get bored. The Space section had arcade stands, a spacesuit photo stand, but my recollection would just not do this place justice.

I would advise for you to bring a Picnic as the food and drink are expensive just like any other similar complex, there are many nice places to sit down and eat whilst being here.

The Planetarium was amazing and I would suggest that if you live in the West side of London and are going to Greenwich just for their Planetarium, go to this one instead! Both my Son and I enjoyed this more. The lady (forgot her name) that narrated was so clear, fun and informative which heightened our experience.

The Shop at the end was reasonably priced and had a lot to offer and my Son bought a cool space Pen 3D Picture of the Solar System.

Overall after my visit I feel this is great value for money, the staff and owners should be proud of what they have delivered here and I personally would recommend this for anyone who is slightly curious of Science or just want a day out.

Visited as a family with our toddler son. He enjoyed most exhibits, especially the giant guitar. The bubble show was entertaining and held the interest of the watching children. Entry price for adults is expensive when compared to other similar family attractions.

Visited today as a group of 7 for the first time. No wait to get in, easy to move freely around the centre and lots of friendly staff around to help if needed. The children loved being able to touch everything and see science in action. Ear defenders are available for anyone to borrow. Live science demos were just the right length of time to keep everyone interested, and the bubble trouble show was a great freebie! The gift shop is reasonable priced with loads of STEM toys available. Lovely outdoor picnic area with amazing views.

An excellent day out with the grandchildren. 2 girls aged 5 and 8. They thoroughly enjoyed interacting with the exhibits. Plus all the live experiments and experts sharing a lot of information. The Planetarium is amazing. Very good value for money.

Had a really fun day out with my 3 and 6 year olds. They loved the planetarium show as well as the live demos. Bonus points for excellent coffee. Thanks guys!

Great place to visit with two 9 year olds

Went on a Sunday and spent pretty much the whole day here.

There's some great "live science" demonstrations throughout the day which are great to watch and fun for everyone

We also booked the musical science theatre where we had a great time watching flames dance and laser harps.

The planetarium is also fantastic and well worth the extra few £.

Good range of food options both bit and cold for vegans and veggies and once you're done you can even take a little walk along the south downs

A great place to take your children for lots to see and do. The place is also very educational and the staff are super friendly and fun. It’s great to see the live science in action and how passionate the staff are when conducting it! They also have the planetarium which is really cool, you do have to pay a little extra If you want to see a show but we didn’t mind that. I definitely would recommend as there aren’t many places like it!!

That was a great experience for both, adults and childrens especially when your little one loves everything about the planets.The access was quick but it’s better to book in advance, and recommend to include both shows planetarium and science one.They serve good food and plenty of space indoor and outdoor plus a soft play area for kids under 6 years old. The live experiments were very good and the kids enjoyed it.Natasha deserves a 10 for her knowledge and dedication.It was a great day out there.

Excellent day out with the kids, plenty to do and see. lots of stuff is hands on and very educational for both the kids and adults alike. The amenities are god couple of eating places and plenty of tables around upstairs and downstairs. The planetarium is absolutely brilliant well worth the visit, advisable to book in advance if going in peak time.

Absolutely outstanding. Visited as a family with a 7 & 5 year old who were amazed from start to finish. The inclusion of Sensory Backpacks for people with extra needs is the first of it's kind I've seen anywhere and was a welcome addition.
Having ear defenders freely available at the displays and a Decombobulation Room for people who need a bit of breathing space is amazing. I imagine it gets busy during the summer and having an area where you can get some space makes a huge difference.
The science demonstrations are fantastic and everyone we spoke with was lovely. This was the first museum where every interactive display was working!
£3 parking was a bit of a surprise but can't grumble when you see where it goes, and the food was ok and surprisingly reasonable.
Brilliant day out, can't wait to go back.

Ideal for children to learn. Our 11 year old grandson loved it. There was less to do for the 3 year but he still enjoyed pushing buttons and pulling levers for a consequence.

Had a great day there with family lots fun and interactive things to do. Kids looved it and there is a small soft play to help burn off some energy.

I visited the Science Centre and Planetarium yesterday with my 9-year-old and 7-year-old and we had the most amazing day. I can honestly say I wouldn't change a thing - it was just perfect! The exhibits were both interesting and fun and kept the children entertained all day. However, what impressed me most about our visit was the staff. They were so friendly and informative and really hands-on. They got down to the children's level and patiently explained all about the science in a fun and memorable way. The science shows throughout the day were excellent, and the children absolutely loved the Dino Show where Grace shared her knowledge in a personalised and amusing way. Ollie really brought the world of dinosaurs alive when showing the children the fossils and telling them about the different species, as did Grace in the excavation section. Their enthusiasm really made an impression on my girls - they just couldn't get enough of your fun facts! Also Charles in the Planetarium was great, narrating about the planets in a calm and clear manner, taking the time to answer additional questions after the show. It was good to see a member of staff regularly going around disinfecting the activities ready for the next users. There were little science snippets on the cubicle doors of the toilets - each one had a different fun fact. (Yes, we were reading them out to each other - luckily it wasn't a busy day!) Details such as this show just how much thought has gone into creating this centre. We brought our own food and used the ample indoor picnic areas. By all accounts eating was last on the priority list - the girls couldn't wait to get back to the activities. We were there to the very end of the day and even that wasn't enough. If only we didn't live in Turkey we would get annual memberships. But we will definitely be back on our next visit to the UK!

The best day out! We had no idea this place existed (we live about an hour away) until my niece chose to go for her birthday. I have a child with additional needs and a wheelchair user so we are careful where we go now! I looked up online first and I have to say it seemed to most inclusive place to be! Access to all areas, FULL CHANGING FACILITIES with lots of space, accessable toilet with lots of space, free carer (also free for foster families) sensory packs, seating at the front of the science show for wheelchairs and their family so we were not separated, recombobulation room for quiet time.
There are also times when shows have a BSL interpreter and subtitles.
On top of this all interactive displays/experiments were at a height accessable for children and wheelchair users. We usually go to places and find we cannot really participate in the activities but this was the absolute opposite here, my daughter enjoyed so much!
Soft play was also accessable (often she cannot climb up because she is so small) and for under 6s so mostly small children in there.
We took a variety of ages from 13 to 1 and everything was exciting for the children and interesting for the older kids and adults. We were there all day and still ran out of time.
We look forward to visiting again and seeing the planetarium show.
Thank you for a great affordable day out.

We love the science centre! My kids (5 and 8) had a great time, particular highlights were the Science Live talks- really short and captivating presentations. Also loved the science show (free) where we learned all about electricity and the planetarium show where we learned about what it takes to be an astronaut (£4 pp). The range of interesting and interactive exhibits is really wide. We brought a picnic to save us some money, they are very picnic friendly here.