Arizona Science Center Review

This was the biggest waste of $36 for my girlfriend and I. 120% directed to kids, do not go here unless you have a child. A majority of the adults were on their phones sitting down while their kida ran around playing with all the "toys". We were looking for a museum on science to learn something interesting and it was a bunch of kids running around smacking buttons on machines that hardly work. This is not the intriguing museum that is advertised and would highly recommend spending your money else where (if you dont bring kids and are looking for a museum of interest). We walked the whole place in 20 minutes with nothing of interest to be found.

Expensive, especially for a large family, but worth it. Parking extra. Lots of hands on activities and things to play with. Great for kids. Gift shop. Elevators to take you up and down the floors. Little restaurant. Lots of shows and special exhibits. Planetarium costs extra. IMAX costs extra. Some rides that cost extra.

Absolutely loved it. My daughter had a blast and I'll definitely get a year membership for us.

This museum was terrible from the moment we got there. Trying to find the entrance in a wheelchair was like going through a maze. Then having to use the men's room as soon as I got there was another whole issue. To use the handicapped stall you have to wait until every man using a urinal is done and gone as there is no room to get by. I and my guest were not only upset as to all the broken equipment but couldn't believe how much wasted space in such a large building; very poorly designed. Also many exhibits are very outdated. Will never go back and wouldn't recommended this place to anyone.

Kind of dumpy & WAAAYYYY Too Expensive for families of even middle income. Another Phoenix fail

Just want prices for a show.?!
Thxs for being so difficult.
Date night somewhere else.

This place is a joke of a museum. There are one or two actual exhibits, the rest are just toys for kids. Our state needs to better fund the arts and sciences. Other cities have much better museums.

Rude workers in the toy shop don't go there they are rude to children and its meant for children

I have been going to the science center for 20 years now and I love it every time. The different exhibits and and experiences offered. The only thing I suggest so going from the first floor up to see everything and you will need to go a few time to really accomplish that but lot of people take the elevator and get lost. But if you're up for a great experience and a bit of walking. Handicap accessible.

They need to repair a lot of things, We love this place, but now, it seems nothing works

Disappointing. Wanted to see the Pompeii exhibit but found out it would cost $110 dollars to see it because we would have to pay general admission one another special exhibit fee. They can keep their petrified corpses. We're having fun at Tilt Studio at AZ Mills!!

Place was ok, some stuff was dated and in need of repair. We spent the better part of the afternoon there. Kids enjoyed it but it wasn t their favorite museum. We got to use our membership from back home to get in for free, otherwise we d be a little disappointed.

I expected more of a natural history museum type vibe where there's plenty for adults and kids, rather than a full-on kid zone, but that's probably on me for not actually doing any research before coming. I still had a nice time exploring. I liked the Arizona gems section, which is probably not the section that kids like, but I think this is a great place to take kids.

About a third of the exhibits are broken or nonfunctional. Another third are just plain worn out or missing pieces. When a six-year-old can notice this and complain about it, that s pretty bad. The lunch place is all super-healthy joke food. Eat before you go or after you leave. Both kids hated it.

Beautiful facility, and a great way to stay out of the heat during the summer. The only area of opportunity I ve seen is that some of the hands-on attractions are in disrepair. The giant water table is great fun, but several parts of it were not functioning over the various times we visited this summer.

Great place for kds & adults alike, especially the Pompeii exhibit.

This is the second time I have brought my family here and things seem to have deteriorated in the year and a half since our previous visit. It seems that more than half of the exhibits were malfunctioning including the large outdoor water center that my children enjoyed the previous time we visited. I hope they work to improve their educational areas rather than working towards hosting social gatherings. Very disappointing.

Exhibits were ok but ticket is a bit pricey for what you got. Discounted parking with Heritage Garage was horrible. The sign said you got discounted price for parking ($5 for 3 hours) but we ended up being charged event price $12 for no reasons Bad experience overall.

Really good. lots of exhibits. But the price is kinda high. still, it is really good for families

I have been coming to the Arizona Science Center for years now, I always have a great time when I come here

One of the best !
A sure thing to add to your agenda!
A must go!
It's so much fun, as well as informative.

Lots of fun things to do here, both as a kid and the kid-at-heart. Be sure to visit all four levels as well as sit in for the live demonstrations. Next time I'll definitely watch a planetarium show!

The Science Center is a great place to take the family and to go on a school field trip. It's 3 levels of fun! The demonstrations are fun to watch and they involve the kids. It's a great place to go in the summer to get out of the heat. They have a wide variety of exhibits to learn from. From aviation to the human body.

I love this place. I came here on my senior ditch day instead of partying/boating. Been here as a child and now as an adult. Only thing is that it hasn t changed much in 10 years. It s getting a little wear and tear and a few of the exhibits need renovation.

I would check out every square inch of this place but do keep in mind there are lots of hand sanitizer which you will need. I ve even been to a wedding here and it was nice as well. It s well worth it.

This is a very cool place for the kids and the family. My girls (6 and 8) absolutely loved being "hands on" with the exhibits. The storm simulator was my favorite - really cool to "feel" the different effects as the floor shakes and water is sprayed on your face.

Tip - as others have pointed out, the food in the cafe is a little on the high $$ side - but very good. If you are looking to save some coin. Your admission is good for in/out privileges all day - and being downtown is perfect for being able to take a short walk and explore other eateries.

Tip - If you are even thinking about coming back within a year (365 days), get an annual pass. They really make you feel special - they called me the day they mailed the passes to thank me for being a member and to let me know they were on the way. The admission you pay can be used to "upgrade" your pass to an annual if done on the same day.

We absolutely loved the funny faces we were able to do on the computer. My kids were completely engorged in learning and how fun it was to learn different things while we were there. It doesn't happen often with my children. It was nice to see them put away the phones and have a blast learning!!!

Place for children and adults where you can learn and have fun

Saw a Pink Floyd laser light show here a while back - was incredible.

Some very interesting things are present. This science museum is more for kids but even adults can enjoy the attractions!:)

Super fun space with cool creative building activities. Given that almost no one was here on a Saturday afternoon this must be Phoenix's best kept secret.

A different kind of Sunday funday. Certainly more of a child friendly venue , but my husband and I enjoyed ourselves. Especially seeing the T-Rex! Unfortunately but not totally surprising, that exhibit was an additional cost to the admission fee.
I'd go back again, probably with littler humans where one can certainly spend an entire day if they desired.

I volunteer there. I am a retired science teacher and took my students there for years. It is the only show in town and there are many towns that come to visit because they don't have a science center but wish they did! Cost? Not that expensive if you get a yearly membership. People don't take in consideration how costly it is to have the large exhibits that are brought in. Do you have any idea how much and trouble and expense it is to transport a 200 million year old full size t-rex around the world? Imagine the cost of insurance for this or real 5000 year old mummies that have been to ASC. Keep in mind all the school aged children that benifit by having this resource available. Many people are not aware that the exhibits support AZ State Standards and provide our children with classroom reinforcement. We see visitors from cities from all over AZ, not to mention the international visitors. Groupon softens the cost, but if you are a family or have grandchildren, look into a yearly membership.

Absolutely love when I can make my family do #FamilyTime it's been a while since we've been to the #AzScienceCenter my toddler was just a baby the last time. I love how much fun #MyBoys had! We went towards the closing time so wasn't so crowded and didn't have to worry about losing them when their attention was captured by different areas. They just loved every area! Every time we made them move to the next section they didn't want to go but then once there, they didn't want to go We can't wait to go next time and watch some of the cinemas they offer
#lfthx #OrganicAd

Not a bad little center, the planetarium was not working and a few things were closed off for safety. Staff was friendly and everything was clean.

Such an amazing place....I highly recommend this. It allows you to think outside of the box.

This place is EXTREMELY outdated for SCIENCE!!! Like I came here for a high school field trip and returned at 27 with my son Science is interesting but this Museum for Science was a let down. Like if you re pursuing Science and come here this place will kill that dream.

Even if I hadn't visited the NY Hall of Science in NYC, just by itself the Arizona Science Center is not that great. The Grossology exhibit is not worth the money. In fact, the experience as a whole is not worth the money.

For two student tickets and two special exhibits, I paid nearly $40.

This place is definitely for kiddies, like children no older than five I'd say. Past that age, and they would be bored. There's a special bike that you can ride up in the air on a rope (for $5), but it's such a short distance and you have to peddle backwards from where you begin in order to ride forward - it's really as stupid as it sounds.

There needs to be more hands-on activities and not just kiddy activities like taking apart a puzzle. Seriously, why are there a myriad of deviations of puzzles?

The science center in nyc - you can learn about the psychology behind vision and how your brain tricks you... there was the largest gingerbread cookie village for a while, etc. Plus, everything was so fascinating for adults as well. The az science center pales in comparison.

The Science Center was a wonderful place to spend time. I specifically went to see the Mummy exhibit, although I would like to return again when I have time to see the rest. Parking was close and only $1 with validation. It seems to have a lot of exhibits geared toward children.

The only thing I'd keep in mind is that this museum is mostly for kids. But it's pretty big and the exhibits are good. I went to the special mummy exhibit which was great (and seemed more geared for adults).

Was cool enough however they advertise turning daily admission into a membership, well as we were leaving we stopped to do that (4:55pm, they close at 5) ( paid $100 for 5 of us to get in). They told us they couldn t do it because they closed the registers down. In their advertisements they need to specify that the cut off time is obviously before they close.

There was like a hundred people in line and line wasn't moving way too expensive to stand in line for that parking in the area is too damn expensive as well

My review of: Arizona Science Center

My children would live here if they could. There is discount parking in the garage as long as you remember to get your parking pass validated inside. Getting a membership here is well worth the price. Entry is quicker. I've seen the insane line of people waiting to get in. So come as early as you can. It will take all day to discover all the fun in these 4 stories. Yes, there are elevator but sometimes that is a long wait as well.

There is a cafe & gift shop. In the corner between them is the entrance to the lunch room for those who want to pack in their lunch.

A new exhibit that has a paper airplane launcher is a big hit for my older children. A Water works exhibit lets children see water's effects on gears, ball, water pressure and music. Prepare for your children to get very wet as they put pipes together to guide water along paths of their own devising.

Find out what goes into making a house, how your body works, how electricity works, how rocks are formed, experience "Forces of Nature", and alternate clean energy.

I've always loved the interactive exhibits here. Don't miss the fourth floor - it's easy if you're just exploring and it's got some fun electricity and light experiments!

We were pretty disappointed. Half or more of the interactive exhibits weren t working. If you re taking children just to learn it s fine, but to have fun while learning??? It wasn t worth the money.

I enjoyed my visit to dis yall place. I wen in the brain room room and picked up a stool and smashed it around the room and broke this tavblet holder. 15 peeple were watchin. Then I came in again and picked up the stool saw a camera and hit the protective glass, then my friend came in and pulled off the glass. Then I went in again and picked up the stool and hit the camera once more and the camera went black and the recording screen dispalyed no signal. you will never find me. so long cringy boiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiis

All in all a great place for kids (once)!Planatarium presenter was great. Added cost for planatarium and speciality exhibit was a turn off.

Too many exhibits were broken or worn out. Cafeteria was closed. Didn't think I got my money's worth. A night and day contrast to the MIM! Needed more than one a day lab session. I really dont expect to ever visit again. Regreatible that one cant just pay for and visit the planatarium without buying a playground, I mean gen Adm SC ticket.

Today I went and my favorite part was the Pommpeii exhibition and force of nature

Great precautions in place. The kids loved finally being back and we felt very safe.

The 3d movies and the Planetarium are awesome! Most the exhibits were broken and the MIRROR MAZE WAS A JOKE!!!!!!! THE MIRRORS WERE SO DIRTY WITH HAND PRINTS YOU KNEW EXACTLY HOW TO GET OUT! Prices are way to expensive for everything except movie and Planetarium.

My wife and I arrived kate in the afternoon, apparently only 30 before closing. We were not alerted to this fact and had to leave well before we got our money's worth. In addition, many of the interactive exhibits were very untidy. It seems that, after 4:00 or so, nobody bothers to clean up.

Fun little place to go. Especially if you love being a kid at heart! #organicad #lfthx #azsciencecenter

My family purchased a membership off of Groupon and have been here a few times. My son is six and also attended the summer camp last year. He loves going and trying all of the exhibits. I like that it's exposing him to science but it gets boring because so much of the museum is reading small print. I would like it even more if they did more live demos but know it's hard to balance the adults' interest and the kids'. It's always really clean and the staff is nice although we don't interact with them much.

I had a blast with my classmates and I really liked it when we were in the earthquake it was really fun there and I hope I can do it again

There was so much to see and never a boring minute! The Victoria dinosaur exhibit as INCREDIBLE and that alone was worth the cost. Which wasn t bad at all. Every corner had something to see and do. Everything is hands on and I recommend this for ALL ages.

I ve been to lots of science centers or kids zones but honestly I m truly impressed at the amount of things there was for my two year olds to touch, hold, pull, pull, engage, and learn from. Highly recommend.

I recommend eating before 11:15 if your there in a weekday (even in summer) to prevent eating with school groups.

Elevators are well accessible, staff was friendly, I also found it stroller friendly. Additional experiences are extra so check website ahead of time and plan your trip for best experience.

Great deals on groupon. I highly recommend a season pass if you are local and looking for summer air conditioned to do with the kids. We were there 3 hours and for sure did not get to do-everything.

Parking garage on 5th ave and Monroe for validated parking (clearance 6ft8inch), 12$ parking on Washington between 5th-7th street (clearance 8ft in some areas).

We really enjoyed this science centre. And if you have a membership at another science centre you can likely get in here for free. My kids loved the hands on exhibits :)

Great place for our kids and never seems too over crowded, even on the weekends. My only complaint is the cost. We bought our membership on Groupon so we paid half price so I am not too worried about it but if I had to pay full price I would feel a little ripped off. Plus, once you get in, you have to pay additional fees to see the movies and enter certain exhibits.

I have been coming here for ages. My nephew enjoyed it, but a lot is not working. Overall it was okay. We did the planetarium show on the solar system... if you don t have some background in Physics and/or astronomy, don t go to this talk.

1) The person doing the talk was going so fast that it was hard to understand what they were saying. By the time you figured out the words you missed the next 5 sentences that were said. Sounded like I was in an auction.

2) Very advanced talk. Not much explanation, and if there is, it is at a high level. I was okay with it because I understood it, but not everyone will (especially little ones).

Overall, for the price, it is not worth it anymore. I got in for free due to a membership that s why it received 3 stars but if I had to pay, my rating would be a lot lower.

So much for the kids to do! A great way to have fun and learn!

A bit expensive. But a very fun place for kids. They had a lot of things for kids to do, from babies-teens. Gift shop was very nice & filled with very interesting things that you dont find everyehere else. All of the staff were friendly & very helpful. The planetarium was my favorite & the speaker was very upbeat & got the kids attention.

If you've been to a good museum you will be highly disappointed. The displays are NOT in good shape, a lot of them were defective during my visit. Not too much to see or to do. An overpriced bad experience.

I like to buy a year pass on an activity once a yeat, and this was it! super worth it! we've got our money's worth plus more!! I love the imax movies!! we took our son here for his 4th birthday as well, great idea. bringing friends here to explore is much more funner as well.

The South Pacific movie was awesome. Also enjoyed the animation exhibit, we go about once a year and should go more often, 5 stars for the kids.

I got a year pass through Groupon for $55. $55 are you kidding me? What a great deal. My 3 year old son and I have been twice already and he just won't leave. At first I thought the stuff here would be a little too high level for a three year old, but he loves it. His favorite is the outdoor water exhibition, but he also definitely enjoys all the other sciency stuff as well.

Does he like the Science Center better than the Children's museum? It's hard to say. But for a half off yearly pass, it's makes for a great Sunday morning!

Went to Pompeii Exhibit yesterday. Probably the best display and/or event they have had at the Arizona Science Center (although Technopia was pretty cool). I'm giving 5-stars for display itself as it is simply amazing to be looking at artifacts and items over 2,000 years old dug from a volcanic eruption.
My only complaint/nitpick is how they handle the castes of the entombed bodies. First, we all admit on some level that that THIS is what we're all paying for. However, why make it into some grand finale that people feel they have to rush through the other areas of the display in anticipation of finally seeing what they are really paying for. And what the heck is the deal with the Blue Coat guides and how they play a hand in the final presentation?? Cheesy at best and tasteless at worse, especially when the cheesy 4D movie (whatever that was supposed to be) with smoke and vibrating floor were added. Again, cheesy at best, tasteless at worse (I know it was 2,000 years ago and a natural event, but imagine something similar for a 9-11 event display!).
To top it off the display ends at . . . a gift shop!! Way to go Science Center! Way to cheapen this amazing display where people are literally leaving the final area speechless and funneling them into an area where we have to pass through sales on T-shirts and paddle and ball sets.
Even with the questionable presentation, Pompeii is well worth the price, especially if you are a member.

Great time. But no museum workers anywhere, and at least 1/2 of the kids were running around acting like kids, so supervision at all.

It seems that in an effort to make exhibits more accessible to younger visitors, the Arizona Science Center lost a lot of quality. I can't find a single thing here that a highschool education does not cover. Everything is much too dumbed down for college level and graduate students. Great for the kids though.

My kids and I love it. There are so many fun activities here and so many opportunities to learn something new. There is a cafe if you want to buy your lunch, or you can bring a lunch and eat it in the cafeteria.

The attractions were fun for our 19month old and the two of us adults. We got a year pass and look forward to coming back soon!

Loads of fun and quite educational. Horrible of them to conveniently leave nuclear power out of their power generation display even though they have Palo Verde, a 3875 MW generation station, just a short drive to the west. If we just ignore it does it go away? And if so then where does your power come from?

I highly recommend this place for the entire family. Try and do everything so you don't miss any of the good stuff, had a blast with the family.

THIS SHOULD BE A CHILDREN'S MUSEUM YOU DONT FIND OUT UNTIL IT'S TOO LATE, PLEASE DON'T GO UNLESS YOU'RE BRINGING A CHILD UNDER THE AGE OF 12.

To crowded in my opinion, kids were running around everywhere unsupervised so I had to keep my 2 year old close or she would get ran over by bigger kids if there parents would do there jobs it would be better and also it s not just parents its camp leaders apparently they don t care what the kids in their group do for example we were waiting in line to try a wind machine and there was a boy on it for 20 minutes trying to do it Refusing to get off and not once did I see an adult talk to him and try and teach him about sharing or having to give other people a turn So my wife said something and he got off but what does that say about the camp leaders there sitting in air-conditioning texting on their phones not caring what the kids are doing. but other than all that it s a great place and the staff was very friendly.

They have nice Groupon deals on memberships. And to renew with a Groupon you have to go in person, but they add the renewal to the end of your current membership expiration date so that's nice.

Also, can add a second person to your membership so you don't have to accompany them to attend.

pretty cool place. I notice a lot of the exhibits were not working or were broken there were hardly any staff on the floor which was kind of odd.
our experience was okay nothing to write home about.

Amazing
Interactive science center

Disappointed that so many interactive exhibits were not operational

Outdated, smaller than expected... I d even call it lame unfortunately.

Really expensive 55 dollars for 2 people. And after charging you that much they time you to see the exhibits. Not worht it.

Took my family here during our spring break and we all enjoyed it. Great for all ages. My kids are 6-16 and everyone had a great time. We spent about 2 hours here and wished we had about another hour. Parking is nearby and make sure you get your parking validated. It s the difference between $12 to $3. We did a groupon deal and are excited to use the pass for other science museums on the list while we travel. I recommend starting on the top floor and working your way down but make sure you leave yourself enough time to enjoy the 1st floor at the end.

Have had year long memberships through Goupon. I also love that your EBT card can get you in for four people / $3 any day. also, if you check out culture passes from your library you can get two people in for free most any time. We have visited so many times. Definitely take advantage of the free refills at Bean Sprouts. Bring snacks, plan ahead to eat in the eating areas. To get through the whole museum takes four or more hours. Lots of Hands-On experiences for children, areas for babies, andenough interesting stuff for adults.

What an awesome set up. But I must be real . This would have not been able to happen for my family if it wasn t for frys and there need to make their community experience things they would not normally be able to. Thank you I understand everything has a cost and I m totally not saying that the fees are over priced. No not at all. But to take my boys and and actually do more then look around. Actually see a show n my son try the bike that rides across everyone in mid air. But if u can go Go! If ur counting ur pennies I ll post the next free admission.

I just choose excellent for the future, im having my jr sr prom there

Nice place to visit with your kids. Lots of interesting things

The CREATE area is simply the most amazing place! Nick, RaeAnn, Jordan, Esther & Victoria are an amazing team of people who were ready and willing to help us be as creative as we wanted. They had the knowledge and excellent way of guiding and teaching. My son and I enjoyed two mornings, of our vacation, at the CREATE lab. We made a car, a lamp, cutting boards and some other projects we plan to use as gifts.
The CREATE studio has the high quality equipment to help you design anything your heart would like. The studio is clean and extremely well kept and clean. It s accessible to all levels, ages and abilities. You have the ability to create custom projects or take advantage of their already designed kits. You can spend a short time or an extended time there. (We wanted to move in & never leave!)
The CREATE lab is simply amazing & we couldn t be more thrilled with our custom creations. Honestly, we owe our thanks to Nick. He hosted us into the space and encouraged us to make our projects. All of the other employees built on our excitement and encouraged us along. It was a wonderful two days at the lab. We can t wait to return to Arizona and visit them again!

This place not worth to visit such a scam strategy once you pay for the admission ticket you will be surprised to know that you have to pay another ticket for exhibit, so if you think that's all you are mistaken, there is another additional ticker for 3D theater wow !!! I want to see only the exhibit why shall I pay for admin ticket is like they force you to see the entire place or pay for it, Dont go there !!!

18/ adult and 13/ kid It is a little bit cheaper if you order tickets ahead of time online and pick them up at will call. The Mummy exhibit adults were 11.95 and kids were 9.95. $3 for validated covered parking for 2 hours. I totally thought the cost of entry would cover everything but it didn t. The mummy exhibit was very cool. You could see everything in the glass displays just no photography or phone use. The staff was friendly answering questions in the exhibit. Overall it was a fun experience but the cost seemed way over the top that s why I deducted two stars.

We bought the Basic Plus membership to the AZ Science Center and have been many times this year. It's not too expensive and they change the exhibits enough that it's not boring to go again. Our kids (4,3,1) love the hands on exhibits where they can interact and learn. Check it out!

I've been coming for years, but today we came for the Pompeii Exhibit. Stunning, as expected, yet sobering. Highly recommend!