Saint Louis Science Center

First thing I did when I moved to St Louis was go to the science center and planetarium. They are both free but you do have to pay for parking if you park on the science center side. If you park on the planetarium center side it is free. They have other activities inside both facilities that do cost extra if you would like to participate. I chose to pay to watch the constellation show at the planetarium and it was well worth it. They have mats where you can lay down and look up at the stars while they do the show. I also paid to do the flight simulation which was so much fun. I chose the science center theater to watch Star Wars and it is one of the coolest theaters I have ever been to. I am going to go watch one of their actual movies for the center next. All of the staff here have been super friendly every time I have gone… about 4 times now. They have many different learning centers for kids up to adults to learn new things. The hours are my only negative because they close so early even on the weekend but I am assuming that is because they are a free facility. Other than that it was a really great place.

Oh the Science Center… I grew up in St. Louis and living away for several years totally had me missing all the free cultural attractions The Lou has to offer. I was lured to the Science Center on New Years Day to see Star Wars at the IMAX. My cousin was so thoughtful and went early to combat the crowd and stood in line for 2 hours so we were one of the first ones to enter and grab a good seat. I have to say, the movie was awesome, but I want to see it again on a regular screen. I felt like it was almost too big and I missed things. (Oh darn, I’ll have to watch it again). It was a pretty awesome experience though.
Pretty cool surprise after the show as it was after hours and found the main exhibits still open and free to roam. I almost liked it better as there weren’t as many people and you could interact with the exhibits. However, I was also surprised to see the same exact exhibits that were there 25 years ago… I understand science is science and it’s free and all that, but the exhibits seemed a bit dated. No doubt clean, but a bit dated and worn.
Keep in mind, if you go for any of the special exhibits, prepare to sell your limbs for admission. A family of 4 dropped close to $ 100 after exhibit admissions and food.

Went to see Star Wars, but it was more then just seeing a movie. The experience was great they have a glass wall where you can actually see how big a movie real actually is and what goes into making a movie roll. It was a great experience and as you all know the movie was awesome to. The only bad thing was our popcorn was a little burnt.

this was my first time here and I was very disappointed. First the popcorn was not good.2^nd is the seats are too close together 3^rd and most important reason. someone told me if you could not get the seats at the top you would get a crick in your neck and I did I had to keep moving my head back and forth so the back of my head burned and my hair ratted. I spent 15 dollars? Why gamble if only ¼ of the theater gets a good seat. I felt real sorry for the rows in front of me… NEVER again will I see a movie there unless for sure I can sit a the top. since lam sure that’s not happening… so in short I spent way too much to get bad movie experience.

I always loved the science center there’s a lot of fun things to do I even love the dinosaurs they so realistic If you want to have fun & learn about science this is the place to be.

This review is solely regarding the IMAX theater, not the other attractions at the science center. I have not been to this theater as an adult before my recent experience, only for grade school field trips to watch documentaries. Last evening we went to see Star Wars: The Force Awakens, as it was advertised and we thought would be a unique experience. It was a crappy experience is what it was. Printed on the tickets and stated when I pre-​ordered them, was «no costumes.» I was looking forward to the no costumes, no toys– light saber fights, just people watching the movie, well, that wasn’t enforced at all. We had purchased the 8:30p show time and it also stated on the ticket that since there were no previews the movie would start promptly at the time printed and to arrive 30 minutes early. We arrived around 6:45 as we knew there would be a line for this movie and there was. Well, 8:30 came and passed and we were still standing in line. They scheduled the movies so close together in time the playtimes were late; this was frustrating since we had already been in line for quite some time. Also, the line should have been watched by security. People were saving spots in line for friends who arrived significantly later than they did. This shouldn’t have been allowed.
Then, the movie experience itself. After starting late and promising no previews they used this time to advertise their own upcoming attraction movies, another lie. The sound started off very quiet, the entire auditorium of people were complaining and then it was turned up. The sound was awful the entire movie, it faded in and out at points to where you couldn’t hear the movie, then the voices didn’t match the movement on the screen for most of the movie and that was very annoying. The screen itself was blurry, it never seemed to be in focus. Also, showing a movie in this theater with the exception of the space scenes and landscapes was a poor choice. You had to turn your head to see the whole screen which in action scenes was difficult to follow.
Watching an actual movie and not a documentary in this theater is a very poor experience!

What a great place! You don’t need to love science to enjoy walking around the St Louis Science Center. So many interesting things to see and do. A lot of interactive booths in the Ripleys section. Nice gift shop as well. Parking is $ 10 if you cannot find street parking

Our visit to the Science Center was enhanced by one of their employees (I wish I could remember her name.) Upon entering the Science Center I walked over to the restroom and that’s where I met the friendly employee. Upon learning that I was in town visiting she offered to give me, my bf and his family free tickets to their Omnimax Theater. That was super sweet of her! The movie that we saw was very informative and entertaining but you might get a little disoriented with the setup. The Science Center itself is a very neat place for all ages.

One of the coolest kids museums I have ever been too! Not sure who had more fun the adults or the kids? Digging for fossils, exploring conductors of energy, watching scientists play with liquid nitrogen, erecting your own mock up of the St. Louis Arch, a sand box that uses digital technology to project topographical maps as you move the sand around, seeing the effects of air pressure on all kinds of objects, the list goes on. You won’t be disappointed.

We thought the Science Center was just ok. Maybe because we had been to the Magic House a few days before? The best part was the Omnimax theatre where we saw some sort of ocean movie. The kids liked that, but not sure we will be back for just the science center.

My kids are 9 and 11 and this place had them engaged for hours! From the interactive energy exhibits to the space and flight areas, they were constantly into something, laughing and smiling the whole time. Highly recommended!

Very awesome stop for a rainy hot day! Museum has things for all ages but I’d have to say it’s mostly for under 15÷16… Free admission but robot exhibit was 8 for adults 6 for kids. 10.00 for parking but parking at the planetarium is free. So park there and walk on over the bridge

Based on others reviews I am guessing locals get free admission. We are from out of town and paid $ 40 for 4 of us for general admission, one omnimax show and the special exhibit. We had a $ 8 off coupon we used too. Parking on site was $ 10.
My 5 and 7 year old had a lot of fun. We spent about 4 hours here and couldn’t stayed longer but we were losing steam after several days in a row of doing tourist things!
The space omnimax show was cool. It was about 30 – 45 minutes. The android exhibit was not worth the extra money.
We ate lunch at the Science Center and it was actually pretty good. It was definitely a step up from most café type places in museums and zoos. I’m tired of hot dogs and corn dogs at these places.

Every time I come here it’s a fun and interesting time. There’s even new fun things to do since the last time. The mind ball game is a must! Plus it’s free, except for the $ 10 parking.

A huge plus to things to do in St. Louis!
Did I mention it’s free?
Get lost in here and spend a few hours looking and interacting with tons of fun stuff!
Friendly staff, too!
There were a lot of kids so keep this in mind when going here (it’s not a quiet museum)
Will definitely bring others here!

I enjoy taking the kids here — They love to discover and see all of the great things. Their favorite part is going over the enclosed overpass and looking at the cars go by on the highway via a window in the floor.
Admission here is free, which is really nice. Parking and IMAX are additional, and it’s not bad price-​wise. Any food, snack or drink seems to be extremely overpriced however. While we are talking about that, I would like to give a tip to parents about the top floor cafeteria called «The Loft». The chairs there are designed of metal with tons of small holes in the seats and backrest (by design), but the problem is that my 6 year old decided to stick 4 of his fingers in there and could not get them out. It took me about 10 minutes while he was screaming and crying… I imagine that it hurt like heck. And while it did not cut his fingers, it was painful and definitely has the potential for that. Just don’t want to see this happen to someone else.
We will definitely be back, but maybe bring our own snacks. ;)

Those of us that have grown up in St. Louis (or anywhere close to it) don’t actually realize how amazing it is to have a Science Center like this — with FREE ADMISSION — available to our kids! We always did the field trips when WE were kids, so it got a little boring after a while.
However, after moving out of state, I find myself really wanting to come back to visit the free attractions like the Science Center, the Zoo, etc.
While it can be a bit boring — especially if you’re not hugely into science — it’s definitely worth the trip. I would recommend eating first, as I have never been impressed with their food (other than the astronaut ice cream, which obviously you HAVE to buy).
Parking is free if you go on a day where it’s not too busy, because you can park on the street. Don’t forget to get a coffee and a cookie from COMET COFFEE which is literally a block or two up the road from the Science Center.

This is a great place to take family, kids and those who have free time to come check out little interesting things you never thought you wanted to know.
Admission to the science center is free, but parking is 10.00. Luckily a patron who is a member of the facility gave me a free parking pass on her way out and therefore our entire trip there was free. (Yay!)
Although admission to the center is free, there are exhibits and attractions in the center that cost ranging from 5 – 10.00 per person.
The center has plenty of things for kids to play, learn, and explore, but is very very crowded. My cousins had a great time running around and learning about things like newton’s laws of motion and how electricity works. not that they care, but hey they were occupied and having fun. After all, that’s all that really matters, right? Lol.
However, the food there is expensive. Probably to make up for the lack of admission fee, which is understandable, but if you’re with a group it could get pretty pricy. So I recommend eating before coming or go out and eat after visiting.
Also, being the germaphobe that I am, I was thrilled to see hand sanitizer everywhere. It’s great that they don’t charge an admission fee and they want to stimulate and nurture the knowledge of children. Overall an excellent place to visit if you have kids or you’re ever in the area and need to kill some time.

Its been years since I have been to the Science Center. Yes, it has been over 20 years since I have been to this place.
Unbelievable. Except some places on the 2^nd floor, this place really has not changed quite a bit. Except for the prices, hell yeah, the prices have been keeping a steady pace of the rest of the world regarding inflation.
Maybe the pace has been faster, because some of the prices were sky high. How can parking your car on the lot cost $ 10? Yes, I have seen earlier reviews that it used to cost, 8 – 9 bucks to park a few years ago, but now its a whopping $ 10. What justified that expense increase? It makes better sense for a huge group of people and just one vehicle, but for one person, the expense is very outrageous.
As well, most employees are lacking in customer service training. I walked to the information booth, and since I am a military member, I was advised that admission along with many of the amenities were free. Oh no, sacre bleu! Ask about free exhibits and the customer service people have no idea what you are talking about. The place was listed on the Blue Star registry as a FREE museum and most don’t even know what the Blue Star registry even is about. However, there are variety of different discounts that I could get if I was a military person. However, when I got to the register to pay for my tickets, the prices I got from the cashier lady was different than what I got at the information booth. Ok, so I paid for my admission to «Dinosaurs in Motion» and I went on my merry way.
The premium exhibit was… ok. It was listed as «Dinosaurs In Motion» an exhibit where this artist created several Dino skeletons from different metal moving bones and you could use pulleys and other mechanical means to see how they move. The disappointing aspect of this exhibit was that everything was in the dark. What was the point of seeing all the different moving parts if you cannot see them in the first place? A lot of great information and these were beautiful pieces, but this wasn’t a terrific learning experience. This was a $ 12 adult ticket that I got it reduced down to $ 8. Oh well, at least the kids had fun.
I wanted to see a film so I booked a ticket to the Omnimax. The lemurs show was amazing, but it required to put down an additional $ 6-​$ 8 for a good 45 minute film narrated by Morgan Freeman. Oh, and don’t ever take your cell phone out or the cell phone nazis will remove you from the theater.
Oh well, at least the kids had fun.
That is pretty much where I am getting at, this place is now just modeled after the Magic House, where kids are the primary focus and there is hardly anything for geeky adults. Now there is a concept on the website called «First Fridays» where adults and teens can hang out, see movies and take part in geeky Sci Fi parties, like the upcoming Dr Who First Friday, but here’s the thing: its First Friday, it should be EVERY Friday. If you want to expand your target audience and increase a revenue, increase the offerings of such targeted promotions.
Sorry for a long winded review, I feel like I wasted $ 26 on a visit, while I am looking for interesting things and I left ended up overspending and not getting good quality stuff.
Even the gift shop in the planetarium ran out of Neapolitan dried ice cream.
More than likely I will spend the rest of my summer haunting the Zoo, the Art Museum or the History Museum.

This is my first trip to the science center since we moved here four years ago. Yes when I lived here as a kid I had gone several times but this was my first time taking my own children ages five and three. I had put it off for a long time because I thought they were too young for what I remembered of the science center. Boy was I wrong!
We arrived promptly at 11 AM on Sunday when they opened. While there were maybe 30 people outside most of them were not paying for any of the exhibits so our wait in line to buy tickets was less than two minutes. We purchased tickets to the dinosaur exposition and to the planetarium. Both exhibits were really cool. The total cost was $ 42 for two adults and two children however, we are military and got a substantial military discount. It would have been closer to $ 70 without the discount.
Don’t be fooled though if you do not want to see any of the paid exhibits there is still plenty to do inside the science center that does not cost anything. In fact we spent over 80% of our time in the free areas and the other 20% in the two paid exhibits. So even if you don’t want to spend any money there’s a lot of hands-​on activities for kids.
By 1 o’clock it was packed almost to the point of being an annoyance. We left around 2 and I’m glad we did because there were more people coming in than going out.
Overall we had a great time! There were lots of activities for my five and three-​year-​old to do and keep the adults interested as well. I would highly recommend this place but similar to most of the other St. Louis gems like the zoo, the magic house and the botanical garden, I highly suggest you arrive at the time they open.
Parking was $ 11.

This Science Center does not hold a candle to the Science & Industry Museum in Chicago. It can’t compare. However, for a free museum, it’s pretty decent. I went with my aunt and sisters last weekend. My aunt is a member at the S&I Museum, so we got free parking and could’ve seen the Imax for free. I love membership perks!
The bridge over 64 is pretty neat — I like the radar. The Planetarium has so much to offer also. We went about two hours before it closed, so we didn’t get to see everything. I was here last summer, and they’ve added/​revamped so much since then. There are lots of new interactive exhibits that are fun for all ages.
Definitely a fun way to spend an afternoon.