Think Tank Science Museum, Birmingham (Reviews=3)
Discount 5 Venue 5 Staff 5 VFM 5 Recommended 5
Reviews
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Today my family and I visited the Think Tank. It was a last minute decision as we were at Cadbury World and knowing it would not fill our day, decided to try and find something else to tag on our day. With the our oldest not being overly interested in going, we didn't think it would fill anymore than an hour.
However, we were pleasantly surprised and actually spent almost three hours there. The outdoor area was brilliantly interactive and the museum was pretty good too.
There was also a fabulous and large role play area for younger children, with different zones, including a salon, builders area, doctors and shops.
Both the girls thoroughly enjoyed it and to top it all off the all 4 of us all got in for free. We did pay extra for the planetarium (£16) and let them both have something from the gift shop; another highlight for my youngest when she saw that they stocked Jellycats!!
All in all a great day out and the staff there were great too.
It was about a 2 hour drive from Lincoln to the Think Tank Science museum in Birmingham, but it was worth the visit.
There is parking at a multi storey and then a couple of minutes walk from there. We (2 adults, 1 child) got in free with the Max card and everyone was very helpful.
We spent 3 hours there, but they recommend up to 5 hours to see everything. We saw people there in wheelchairs and it all looked to be accessible with spaces to get through and lifts to each floor. There were toilets on each level too, I believe, including disabled toilets.
My son is autistic and he didn't like Level 2, so we didn't spend long on that floor. The ground floor (Level 0) is great for learning about the Industrial Revolution, James Watt and inventions and there are many old vehicles to see.
There's also a cafe on this level (about £12 for sandwiches, a latte, Coke and crisps) and one in the Mini Brum area (Level 3). Level 1 is all about making things - out of glass, wood, etching, etc. Level 3 is the place for little ones to go - Mini Brum is fab with play areas for doctors, beauty, building, canal boat, etc. Even though my son was older than the suggested age, he enjoyed it and no one minded him being the oldest child there at 13.
There are things to get stamped in Level 0 and my son enjoyed collecting them. We all had fun in those big card things you photograph where you put your faces through. There are so many fun interactive things, you'll find something to do for any age.
The outside science garden is fabulous, we spent about an hour there. You may get wet with the water play! Another tip, we arrived midday Sunday and were straight in, but when we cam out at 3pm, there was a long queue. There's a very big gift shop too, but it does include some cheaper souvenirs. My son got a small cuddly monkey for £7.
We (two adults and two children) visited 'Thinktank Science Museum' in Birmingham. We pre-booked online selecting the Max card option and presented the physical card and booking email when we arrived.
The venue has a great social story on their website, which we viewed before we went - this is always helpful for my children, who can feel anxious in new places. There is a quiet room available upon request (something we didn't use but was good to know of).
There's a useful map on their website, if you want to prioritise which part to visit first. It was not busy the day we went, possibly due to Lincoln and Birmingham having different October half term dates.
My children enjoyed the venue a lot, especially the outdoor science garden which is very hands-on and lots of fun. This venue was clean, accessible and had friendly staff.
The money we saved alleviated our concern, that we might pay a lot of money to visit and end up leaving abruptly should either of our children experience distress or overwhelm from the environment, noise, crowds etc.
A great place for fans of STEM and a positive experience in every way.