Reviews of H.R. MacMillan Space Centre (Museum)

Xiao Lai

Must see the Super volcano show!!

4am W

Went to the Space Centre of the building. Would’ve been an interesting place if they kept things up to date. It’s also way too small. There are a few pieces of interesting displays. But overall not worth the $19 dollar admission. $14 for 5 yr old kid is borderline ripoff. Since not much to see and do for kids that age here, other than some LEGO pieces and crayons.

M Aboud

Great place to visit

Sonic Vision

It's spacey!

Alphonsus To

Even if you don't go into the Space Centre (which you definitely should go check out). Come here for a picture with our famous metal crustacean!

Najat Zaidan

????

Nathan Teale

Amazing if you like looking up ????

Meg R

Amazing staff and displays. Love the planetarium show.

Cass Romyn

Our young family LOVED this place! Great for budding astronomers & astrophysicists! Lots of info on how Canada contributes to space tech - and cheaper than the World of Science (we have one of those at home anyway)

An Gran

i fell down and scraqed my knee

joseph hays

Sadly outdated. The center itself needs much improvement to justify the price. Fond memories here as a child, but just not much here anymore to recommend. The "exhibits" is all but shut down. The friendly, knowledgeable, and enthusiastic staff are the best thing here.

Lyan

Nice show and helpful staff.

Michael McComb

Fun for kids. Interesting, but small. Planetarium show on dark matter was worth it.

B Pardo

Liked te planetarium film, the place is over priced considering the exhibits haven't changed much since I last visited in elementary. It's good for the younger crowd tho.

Jora Nijjar

The kids enjoyed the exhibit but it is very out of date. Little has changed over the years. The night shows I have heard are fantastic. I haven't had a chance to experience them for myself yet.

Keith Robertson

Most of the space exhibits are either broken, or extremely dated/old. One even mentions that the International Space Station WILL be built...

3 1 5 7 3

I have been to the HR MacMillan space Centre several times and I highly recommend going for every season. Check out Saturday's freebee, when the telescope is open to the public.

Roseane

(Translated) Small planetarium, with several activities aimed at space exploration. Activities and movies at pre-determined times. (Original) Planetário pequeno, com várias atividades voltadas à exploração do espaço. Atividades e filmes em horários pré determinados.

Sol Rodriguez

We went for the family program (during COVID) it was not worthy. The guides were very knowledgeable but they didn't know how to talk to kids, there was not enthusiast at all. My kids are really into space and sadly we left the place very disappointed. Really don't waist your money at least not during the pandemic.

Julie S

This place has gone down hill since they got rid of the simulator. It's really small and they never get any new exhibits.

Richard Forbes

Very outdated. Looks like the theatre projector is from 1990s pixel resolution. We had hoped and expected for far better considering what’s available technology wise in 2021. Wouldn’t bring guests. Wouldn’t go back

Miko Bacomo

Took my 3 year old daughter here one weekend in summer - She enjoyed it however there aren't that many things to really playaround with/learn with - We really enjoyed the space show thing however it got dull really quick -Funding should be made to make this place better -

Liz Taitt

Quite a small museum. The planetarium shows vary...some have an actual National Geographic style movie whereas others are basically like a low quality powerpoint presentation and are not worth the $18. Choose carefully!

癲子圍觀

Fun & learning

Tristan Heberlein

If you have little kids, it may be fun. But they don't advertise this as a kids place. I went expecting that there might be stuff to pique my curiosity of outer space. I am by no means even an amateur astronomer - but the exhibits were so basic and simple (I got to "land a space shuttle" and turn my face into an alien face). Seems the exhibits were the same ones I saw 20 years ago when I was 9. Haven't they discovered anything different in outer space since 1989? Saw an IMAX "film" while I was there. A very dull look at Galileo's life. The whole film was just one guy talking in front of still sets behind him, pretending he was Galileo. Booooring, and really seemed to waste the potential of IMAX theaters. For $15 you probably should just buy a book on outer space and you'd probably get more out of it, AND you get to keep it!

C

The museum is pretty cool, especially the meteorite, moon rock, rocket engine and high energy radiation detector. Each exhibit is well explained by a plaque or a poster too. The planetarium was a bit of a let down (I went to the dark matter one) because it was simplified quite a bit for kids and people unfamiliar with astronomy. I think they would need to do this though or else not enough people would show up. The show itself was rather current (even had the gravitational waves discovery included) and the lady who led the show knew lots on the topic. The old lazer machine is out of commission but you can still see it at the middle of the room and take pictures of it. Overall I do recommend this place.

Curtis Wiebe

Derek the resident astronomer at the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre truly makes learning about space a wonderful experience for students and teachers alike. I do wish the Space Centre had the space, features and the budget like their neighbour Science World, but their are limitations. Some exhibits feel rather dated and less interactive than the ones at Science World. The staff here are both helpful and extremely knowledgeable, and their space outreach programs for kids are incredible. The location is probably the Centres most beautiful trait. Very picturesque.

Neill M

Try on a discount day! Some of the materials are quite outdated but there is still fun to be had!

C G

Good, particularly for kids. The space auditorium is the highlight. The exhibition is dated, most of the interactive items did not work so I think it was too expensive for what it was. I also am comparing it to the smithsonian in Washington which is outstanding. Best exhibition is the particle cloud chamber, could stare at it for hours.

Stefano Cataldi

Cool place. Interesting show

Malista Kara McIntyre

It wasn't what I remembered as a kid. The planetarium show was informative and fun, but the space center is shuffled off to the side and has limited offerings to make a day of it. I recommend spending a little more and paying for access to all three park attractions (maritime museum and the Vancouver museum) to get the most bang for your buck. The gift shop has tons of amazing local First Nations made products to buy and the kids trinkets are good as well. Wouldn't say you could make a day of it there. Maybe a hour or two.

Sydney Eatz

The Macmillan Planetarium is a great venue. There are many events held here and we've try to get out to the planetarium as often as we could. The planetarium has an incredible theatre with world class sound. - A Richard Trus review

Zachary Elliott

Broken and out of date exhibits, a good, but out of date planetarium, Not worth the full price, interesting nonetheless.

Dion Caramalis

My Girlfriend and I went on a Monday morning - we had the place to ourselves! We found it to be mainly aimed at school groups and youngsters in general. As an adult that is a bit of a space-geek, most of the information alongside the exhibits is pretty basic. The Cosmic Courtyard was rather dated in terms of exhibit quality (many 'under construction', CRT's, Czechoslovakia gets a mention, old software, sticky trackballs) and some were poorly thought out. For example, the dark meteorite samples are backlit on a lightbox in a dim room and viewed through a magnifying glass. You cannot see them! The piece of kit on display there was a Rocketdyne J-2 engine - I got a picture with that! The Groundstation Canada presentation we saw was 'Rocket Lab.' It explained Newton's Laws of Motion and how they apply to rocketry on a level aimed at ~8+ yrs/old. The host, Raphael, did a good job, as did all of the staff at the centre. Our time was best spent in the planetarium. We saw 'The Seacher'; A very Sagan-esque 35 minutes zooming around the universe, observing the structure of galaxies, solar systems, supernovae and Earth. It got pretty psychedelic at times, like LSD trip-out visuals, encompassing 180 degrees of your vision. A bit too much for the lady. I kinda liked it. The information that the host presented after The Searcher was pretty up-to-date. She lets us know about the asteroid that was recently discovered with a ring system and Enceladus' cryovolcanoes. The sound and visuals were good, as was the show. Both the Planetarium and Groundstation Canada have around 5 different shows per day, so the ones you get are a lucky dip depending on how long you stay. The science demos are 20mins every hour, and the planetarium shows are 35mins every hour. It would also have been nice to learn more about Canada's involvement in space. The Canadarm gets a little corner with a model, and there's pics of some crew hung on a wall up the back. More! All in all, I think the level of information on display was great, it just needs a bit of a face-lift and a re-think. It's all mostly aimed at kids 8-15, which is fine! Most adults will learn something too. You can spend about 1-1.5hrs in the Cosmic Courtyard, then there's the shows. So you can spend a half a day here with the kids easily.

Roger Heward

The centre is neat, however at an entry cost of $18, and fairly limited exhibits, I just can't recommend the value for money. If you find a special deal though it is worth checking out.

David Yule

Highly recommend the star shows the seats are very comfortable

Golnaz

Summer plane 2021

Brady Borrmann

Nice little spot for those who love science and space. Lots of shows and activities throughout the day to keep you busy, and I went on a Sunday in the morning which I thought was great because it wasn't crowded at all.

Fernando Patricio

Pretty awesome place ! Had tons of things to view and a great gift shop inside.

soymilk

I went here with my grade 3 class in 2016. The show was amazing and it felt like I was in space. We also made puppets and learned a lot about space. We saw how astronauts ate and drink in space and this is what lead me to become an astronaut (not yet, but future)

Tyler Waggle

The planetarium show comes with the ticket and that alone makes it worth it, small but interesting exhibit otherwise

Velasco

Went during covid, Interesting place & good presenters, hope to come back after covid is over.

JAMES BOND

Tremendous experience the architecture and crab in the fountain great exhibit halls and meeting rooms

Imran Jessa

Outdated, small, useless things to see. The presentations are interesting and exciting. The main movie experience was a big let down it is dated also the projector broke mid way through the movie.

Shir S

This is small and mostly for kids but they staff was really great and helpful. They were very engaged and helpful and the whole day is filled with either a presentation or a movie. I saw presentations about science and fire as well as a really informative movie about dark matter. They also have a moon rock you can touch and a meteorite that you can lift.

Aurora Zhang

very boring

Mark Biernacki

Not as good as it used to be. Best to buy a multipass for museum of vancouver and maritime museum, the theatre, and then visit the planetarium for the theatre show and the groundlab show, and spend the rest of your day at the other 2 places. Leave lots of time for the maritime museum tho

Ma. de la Luz Gomez

Museum is ok, I was surprised babies, toddlers and kids pay full ticket! ????

Juan Gonzalez

My favourite planetarium!

Dan Larsen

I wasn't sure what to expect from this place as I had never even heard of it before, but it turned out to be a lot of fun and very educational! We especially enjoyed the planetarium.

Clarence Ho

Nothing wrong with the show. My kids had a great time. The 1 star that I left is because of parking. It's practically an empty lot at 8:30pm platinum show. It's was pitch dark cold and rainy night with no visible sign to pay for …

Puneet Mahajan

Not worth the 40 minute drive to the place. There are not too many exhibits to begin with and half of the exhibits were not working. The staff showed no interest in talking to visitors or to fix the exhibits. The theatre experience was nice but we missed the live demo as the schedules clashed. There is absolutely no reason why it has to be that way and why they couldn’t be better scheduled.

Roseane

(Translated) Small planetarium, with several activities aimed at space exploration. Activities and movies at pre-determined times. (Original) Planetário pequeno, com várias atividades voltadas à exploração do espaço. Atividades e filmes em horários pré determinados.

Marianne Tilton

An architecturally interesting building in a park like setting. The space gallery is small and the displays are dated, though the topics are interesting. The shows.offered in the planetarium theatre are the highlight of the Space Centre. The binding also houses Vancouver Museum exhibits, with separate admissions. Views from the foyer into the Vancouver gallery hint at modern and bright displays there.

Rosalyn Sealy

My child visited the Planetarium with her class in November 2016 and received an adult pass for a future visit. The pass was misplaced so I called to ask if it could be honoured by providing my child's name, school, division and date of the school field trip. I was told that the pass was a "benefit" and not a right and I was unable to enter without the piece of paper. In a world of technology, perhaps it's time to implement a friendlier system that actually encourages people to visit. Very rude

David OS

I feel the ticket is expensive considering what they have. Should improve and renovate.

Chrisyfeli Jiang

Terrible place. Lots of broken things and it's super SUPER small. Almost nothing to see.

Eugenia S

Very outdated. Not much to see in the exhibition room. The shows are ok, but not on par with what's being produced on documentary channels these days. Basic info geared towards kids. Experiment lab was just ok too. My 6 year old loved the whole experience more than me. I'd say it's a good place to take kids so they can get a better understanding of cosmos.

Ian Clark

Price seemed a little high at $18, but it was a good exhibit.

Dan Patton

Nothing is either new, exciting or world-class, but its worth a visit on a rainy day

Leo Augusto

Loved the shows at the planetarium. Very knowledgeable staff and 180º projections of the universe. The observatory is free (by donation) on Saturday nights

Chun Kieng Tang

(Translated) I like (Original) 我喜欢

Dawn Tavish Flynn

The Space Centre was really cool. I definetly recommend it to absolutely anybody.

B. Shearer

out of this world!

AM 1777

It is a great place to visit. Some exhibits are not working but it doesn't matter that much, content is good

MJ M

I've been to 2 after hour events for adults & they've been really fun & interesting. I do wish more of the displays worked & there was more to do there. But the planetarium talks & trivia games were fun & I learned a lot.

Ryan Ruan

A little old, outdated, and expensive, but still an interesting place with helpful, respectful, and knowledgeable staff. If you're from out of town with some extra time, might as well go over to the space center. The MacMillan Space Centre is usually quite empty, so there's no need to push past crowds.

Murilo Filhol Vieira

The planetarium is small, but you can see parts of a rocket, things of the space and specific expositions, like a Korean Vase exposition when I been here.. Also here have a cinema to watch about space or something like that. I loved this place.

Alex

I went with my school and it was absolutely amazing! It was really fun, although could you guys add a few more exhibits?

Kai Chu

Dated and broken exhibits, the planetary dome show saves it, otherwise totally not worth the cost.

Wendy Hunter

Good exhibits and interesting temporary exhibits keep things fresh.

Matthew Mullins

Went to an evening event here and had a lot of fun, the planetarium show was very interesting. Some of the exhibits were a little outdated unfortunately but I didn't detract from the experience of the evening event. Possibly a little expensive for the daytime, but the main attraction for me is the planetarium.

Enoch Cheung

not worth the admission

Thomas Reimer

Very outdated - fairly pricey for the half an hour I spent there. Very kid friendly but it's nowhere near worth the money in its current state.

Matthew Pape

They did a very good job of replicating what time travel would be like. I felt like I was right back in the 80s!

Jonathan Polak

I didn't go into the building, but attended the outside events on eclipse day Aug 21. they had tons of activities for kids, telescopes, screens, lectures, awesome.

Lea S

There's not much to say here, sadly. As most reviewers already pointed it out, this place is a bit outdated (the building is shared with the Museum of Vancouver). A lot of the displays were not in order. My husband was really looking forward to visiting this, since our last time was in Chabot Space Centre more than a year ago. If I thought CSC was small, this really threw me. It's very, very small. I don't think it's even worth bringing the kids. The place was not crowded (as such venues usually are), which I didn't find suspicious until I entered the room. The only plus side of this was the planetarium on the upper floor. The show was about Stars and it was interesting. The narrator was good and answered all the questions that turned up during the show. The price ($15) is too steep for what they're offering. I'd skip it and opt for something else (preferably Museum of Anthropology).

Fan Yang

(Translated) Very suitable for children who want to increase the opening hours at night (Original) 很适合小朋友 希望增加夜晚营业时间

Dane Di Piazza

The activities and games are old and outdated. However the shows are interesting and entertaining. The cost is admission is quite high, it's a better deal to get a annual membership even if you only go 2 or 3 times

Pryde Foltz

My son and I spend so much time here. The exhibits are a little dated but the live shows in the Ground Station make up for it. The presenters are very enthusiastic and of course the planetarium shows are amazing. If you go Saturday night, you can also visit the observatory and do some space gazing. One of my favorite ways to spend a clear Saturday night.

Louise Borg

I recently went on a class trip with my son who is in grade 2. With kindergarteners grade ones and grade twos. This place is very outdated. Technology is very old you could probably do the whole thing in an hour.

Erica Ngan

This place is too small and uninteresting when we had an hour to talk around, the movie was a disappointment, won't take this trip again for a long time. Definitely miss the simulator

Mitul Shah

It's a nice, fun and chill museum. Not that much to do but interesting enough. I don't understand why it's paid parking however, and the company that provides the parking sucks. I got a ticket for being 15 minutes over my alloted time.

Saving Money

Very Small, a lot of broken/ out of order displays. Both of the shows were interesting with the star theatre show (The Universe) was almost worth the cost of admission. The planetarium also seems to share the space with the Museum of Vancouver, which I found odd, it would be nice to see more space allotted for the planetarium exhibits.

liz Hidalgo Nakamine

(Translated) Very few rooms to visit. It is going away to see the museum. (Original) Muy poco salas para recorrer. Es irte lejos para ver el museo.

Peter Kim

(Translated) Planetarium jackpot (Original) 플래니트리움 대박

Tim Godin

It was spacey.

Jenny Tough

The displays are of limited interest to any kid with an interest in space beyond a 4 year old and more than half of the interactive displays are broken. Expensive tickets for such a limited exhibit and it seems like a complete con when the MOV is in the same building but you'd have to pay again to go there. Even the shows are of limited interest except the ones in the planetarium but you can only see one a day. I'll be amazed if it stays open much longer but it's been groaning along for ages.

Simppeli100 Gaming

Nice One

deadlikeapixel

Went to see a "show" which ended up being a university student explaining a power point, essentially. He was very nervous, and while I'm sympathetic towards him, I am disappointed that for 20 dollars I paid to watch somebody stumble and speak in monotone about a galaxy. It was laughable.

life

Only 10 or so interactive stations, 2 didn’t work. Informative but small. The planetarium show in “the universe” was great. Teenage kids bored after 15 min reading the displays. No cafe. Junk Snack food &drinks available from a vending machine

ThomasReimerVids

Very outdated - fairly pricey for the half an hour I spent there. Very kid friendly but it's nowhere near worth the money in its current state.

Edgar Ignacio

space the final frontier for exploration

Anatoliy Maslyanchuk

This is a place with duo museum (space center and museum of vancouver), not a place you would go just for space museum. The space museum is really small, you are expected to go to planetarium first and then explore small space museum if you want. The space museum is great for kids i'd say, a lot of models are toy like they don't really look like a real thing. Museum of Flight in Seattle would be a much better place to go for space museum. However, the Museum of Vancouver is really interesting and has so much to explore. Conclusion: Don't come here just for space museum, it isn't worth it. Planetarium is worth it though. If you are a space nerd and know a lot about space, you will not learn much anything new because everything they talk about in planetarium is very basic space knowledge. Something kids and regular non space fans would most likely not know.

Count Grishnackh

Amazing planetarium show ("The Universe") and super friendly staff made this a great experience. Well worth the Money, don't pass this opportunity up if you are travelling, or even if you've lived here your whole life and never been.

Eliana GV

It is a little bit too expensive for the small size

Michael

If you used to go here as a kid and wish to relive quality memories as an adult do yourself a favor, don't. The lack of care and adequate funding is the only thing that will now draw your attention.

Graeme Cheadle

Just saw Qwalena. Brilliant. Highly recommended.

JIhun Kim (김지훈)

Fun with stars

Marina B

Always a neat experience for any age!

Sebastian Kluth

Visiting the ground floor of H. R. MacMillan Space Centre might only take about thirty minutes but there are two very interesting additional activities. There are different presentations in a small auditorium that usually take about twenty minutes each. There is also an observatory at the top of the museum that presents you the infinite wonders of space as presentations here can take more than forty-five minutes.

E L

The planetarium shows were awesome, and in all honesty, the only worthwhile thing to do here. The centre itself was small and dated, with multiple activities down for repair. Just by a planetarium ticket and skip the rest.

Adam Schellenberg

The planetarium could use some updating, but the original architecture is a beautiful example of the 1960s and the optimism surrounding space therein. I love the Space Centre and the adjoining City of Vancouver Museum.

Mia Kitsu

Out if this world. The exhibits are definately for younger kids but the talks are fun and great for everyone.

Ben Z Cooper

Science!

Trent Kennedy

Great show, the visuals were cool but the presenter was more entertaining with her witty humour and one liners.

Matt Roche

In need of a upgrade but still provides an enjoyable day out for anyone who loves space exploration.

Leigh Peterson

One of my favourite bits of architecture in the city!

fred shadian

Spectacular shows, friendly staff.

nibin james

Good show

Alice Li

I have fond memories of this place from when I was a kid and we came here on school trips, though back then, they had laser shows! My husband loves this place because one of the narrators has "the most relaxing voice" he's heard and honestly, that is the main reason we go here at least once a year. I think one time, we were in the same elevator with the narrator because we saw him at the podium once we went in. Our son really likes this place, too, but I think for all the learning and hands-on stuff because I think he's a little too young to really understand the presentations. Have to say though, I love the mini-shows because the presenters have little to work with in terms of audience participation/enthusiasm, but they're still super into it! We have the Entertainment book and they have a coupon in there if you need discounts.

loco249 249

This was the highlight of our cross Canada trip. Just amazing!!!

Shekoofeh Azizi

Platirium was great but in overall outdated.

Adam Heinermann

Quite expensive for so little. Most of it seemed like filler.

James Phelan

The highlight is the hourly presentation, whole the rest can be covered in a relatively short period of time. Probably best paired with a trip to the Museum of Vancouver in the same trip. Made more worthwhile with the Discover pass, which includes the MoV as well as the nearby Maritime Museum.

Damien Boorman

Pretty 80s. Needs a reno

Greg Taylor

I have fond memories of doing science camp here as a child (cue nerd heckling). Also saw quite a few music laser shows here until they discontinued it. They now show at BCIT in Burnaby.

Kevin

Very cool for kids, a bit small though

Todd Engel

Aging facility but the education is the reward

Derek J

Rude staff, walked away without going in. From the other reviews it seems like we saved our time and money, apparently you can't go in without wanting to see the screening..

Hex Zen

What happened to the night music shows? That was one of the best things about going there. That and the acoustics in the reception area. Worth a visit for the shows still. Neat, would be a fitting description.

Melissa Meng

Nice place for kids to explore the knowledge of space.

Bianca-Lee Burgess

Attended the "Invisible Universes" show. I thought it was good and informative. My only suggestion is to perhaps implement an age restriction for some of the …

Mitul Shah

It's a nice, fun and chill museum. Not that much to do but interesting enough. I don't understand why it's paid parking however, and the company that provides the parking sucks. I got a ticket for being 15 minutes over my alloted time.

Livia Evergreen

Great museum for families with kids from 7 or so. The space show was amazing and surprisingly long, about 40 minutes. The actual museum section is a bit smaller than I expected, but they combined well the entertainment and the information.

Christopher Leung

Awesome statue infront of the museum.

David Stad

Wicked planetarium show of the Universe

Andy H

Pretty disappointing. I was expecting quite a lot more. Very disappointing for us as Vancouver residents. The Space Centre itself is quite small, so it'll take you less than an hour to see and read all the exhibits. It's too expensive for what you get. You also have to pay for parking, which could come to at least $8. Also the planetarium itself hasn't been updated to show HD video resolution. It's barely SD quality, so all the stars and planets are smudged. It felt like I was in the 1980's again. Plus the show that we saw (Our solar system) was quite boring and some of the kids around the theatre were complaining about that. I could hear "Can we go now?" on many occasions. The commentator wasn't very alive at all. You also have to choose your planetarium show when you pay your entrance fee, so you can only see one show and you can't change it. Why they do that I don't know, the theatre was less than 1/4 full. They have several electronic exhibits too, but we found most of them were either out of order or malfunctioning. No coffee or tea anywhere. The only redeeming quality was the live presentation, which we saw was about rockets. This is located right next to the Museum of Vancouver, which itself is dated and only 6 out of 10. They should sell a ticket which includes both museums and then you maybe pay a supplement for the planetarium. Overall the MOV and the Space Centres are a disappointment, they really should knock them down and rejuvenate the two facilities. Sorry guys but if you want repeat customers you're going to have to try a heck of a lot harder.

Scott M

The museum is more aimed at kids, but I definitely recommend checking out the star theatre show, and coming in late on a saturday to look through their telescope (The observatory is not in the main building but close to the parking lot off to the side. The staff at the observatory there are quite knowledgeable, and are really friendly.

Sean Wilde

Fantastic place to visit, extra educational

soymilk

I went here with my grade 3 class in 2016. The show was amazing and it felt like I was in space. We also made puppets and learned a lot about space. We saw how astronauts ate and drink in space and this is what lead me to become an astronaut (not yet, but future)

Abe Eghbal

Amazing; but not so exciting for children! The neighborhood environment is so beautiful.

Asad “Arcane”

The space center should be renamed to the planetarium. The only thing worth seeing is the planetarium shows. There is only a small area with few unique things like trying to lift a meteor and touching a piece of the moon.

Mark Erikson

great experience!

chamberland eric

Terrible. 3/4 of the exhibits don't work. There is about 30mins of stuff to see if you read everything. Nothing is really worth spending time on. Avoid. Go to Telus world of science instead.

Christian V

Way (way) overpriced ... Had we paid full price, I would have asked for a refund. With coupons, it's still not worth it. You only get to see one of the various shows in the theater now; it's an additional charge for additional shows. The show we watched had great effects, but that was about it. The "Cosmic Courtyard" hasn't changed in years, other than more things being broken than the last time we went. I'm not sure it's changed all that much since elementary school field trips 30 years ago ... It's sad that this is the best we have. My preteen loves space and discovery, but was frustrated that everything seemed old/didn't work.

Keith Robertson

Most of the space exhibits are either broken, or extremely dated/old. One even mentions that the International Space Station WILL be built...

AB Huang (performate)

good movie

Shaun Best

This place fills my heart, soul, and imagination. It and the people there are wonderful. I just wish it was bigger. Can't wait to go again, love the huge spectrum of things they do there, concerts too!

Poppy Morris

Disappointing. It feels like an old abandoned attraction from well over a decade ago. The information is outdated, comparisons to the past are to 2005 (as the present day) and there have been more recent launches that exhibited. Most of the interactive exhibits are not working/broken/turned off but no 'out of action' signs. Staff on front desk were unhelpful, incompetent and couldn't care less. She gave us the wrong ticket to planetarium show which apparently starts 5 mins before and closed doors on the hour. Not knowing this we turned up in the hour and waited. After ten minutes the front desk staff passed and said nothing. After fifteen mins we werr close to giving up, the usher then turned up and rudely explained all this to us. We went in and saw the last half hour of the show which was definitely the highlight but I would have liked to see it from the start ... Overall quite disappointing!

Crystal Graham

It's exhibits are mostly broken or in operational???? The plus side is the shows my kids loved them and I will take them back for the shows but that's it. As an adult the best part of the exhibit was touching a moon rock.

Marco Lucarino

Cool place

Darrell Govereau

Great seating arrangements for covid. Informative also. They know their stuff, and have great presenters. Hughly recommend...just make sure you pay for parking or you'll get a ticket !!!

Frank Kaminsky (Frank K)

Came here for the planetarium, which was interesting. A mind-blowing and fascinating experience to be able to visualize how vast the universe really is. Planetarium was great, but other than that there just isn't really a lot to do here. The observatory was opened when we came, but because it was cloudy we couldn't look through any telescopes. Paid $15 for evening admission. Staff is friendly and knowledgeable.

zaa zap

visited here on November 14th 2016 and was extremely disappointed. the lady who worked at the front desk was extremely slow at talking and just sounded like a total idiot, not professional at all. When i said i would like a student pass and went on for about 5 minutes about how they don't offer a student discount but do have an adult, senior and children s pass. i don't care, just give me the closest thing i asked for. She said the show started in 5 minutes and proceeded to be extremely slow at processing the ticket, not the machine, her with counting the change and checking the price of the tickets. When i walked in and saw the screen, it was very pixelated. the show itself was not very detailed and gave a very elementary school look on the vast galaxy. the presenter was almost as brain dead as the lady who sold tickets. Terrible quality and not even worth seeing for 5$. wish i could give this place less than 1 star because it is the worst place in vancouver. the displays were mostly broken, were confusing to read and just plain boring. i was done in about 30 minutes even though i paid for 3 hours of parking. stupidest people who work for what should be a very interesting place.

marie 2010

(Translated) Very nice museum. Also makes planetarium. At that time the feature film was on the black matter in space. Very very interesting! (Original) Très beau musée. Fait également planétarium. A ce moment le long métrage était sur the black matter in space. Très très intéressant !

Peyvand

Love the place! Tickets a bit expensive specially if you plan to see more than one show. Highly recommend watching a show in Planetarium

Isabelle Rybank

Very small

Matthew Buie

I've been here a few times now, and really enjoy it. It's never been busy while I was there... in fact, I rarely see anyone else. It's very much a "static display" venue, which is a shame. More interactive exhibits would improve the experience tremendously. That being said, the exhibits are well kept, and well presented.

Ali Akbar

We have been coming here for years as kids and now we are taking our kids here . We still love it and our kids love it.

Diane Walsh

Having just been to Washington DC and going into all the Smithsonion museuns free of charge, I feel this museum is a bit pricey for what there is to see,do and read. It seems mostly geared towards children and some of the facts were out of date. The planetarium was, however, very good.

chungyun kim

To good learn about univers.!!

Jason Armstrong

This place is amazing! Nothing fancy just good fun! Please visit and support it would be a shame if they closed for lack of support! An absolute GEM for Vancouver!

Anders Rasmussen

Decent visit. mostly fun due to great ppl working the the static presentation was so/so

Al Fumizuki

Very outdated. Nice looking building from the outside, but inside the equipment is old. It feels like it hasn't been updated since the 80-s. Would not recommend to anyone.

Steve B.

I'm not ranking here the $40 ticket we've got, and the $50+ for entrance (2 adults + 5yo). But seriously planetarium animation is really old and space museum a short experience.

J J

Some of the interactive exhibits did not work and other exhibits need better lighting. The presentation on "Surfing the Solar System" was interesting but the visuals need to be sharper. If these were sorted out the experience would certainly be worth 4 stars.

Scott VM

Planetarium and Ground Station Canada are always fun. The Pacific Space Centre exhibit space is very small and outdated; no mention of Chris Hadfield, the most famous Canadian astronaut. The space centre exhibit area needs to be expanded. Gift shop doesn’t carry anything space-related. I’ll be back, but every visit makes me sad thinking of how great this place could be.

David Warren

I mean, don't get me wrong, I love that this place exists. however it is a bit disappointing, I mostly go now for the after-hours events in the planetarium. wish they had a liquor license though!

Mariamor Rangel

(Translated) It is a small museum but with a lot of personality. The employees are very kind. There is a piece of meteorite and moon that can be touched. (Original) Es un museo pequeño pero con mucha personalidad. Los empleados son muy amables. Hay un pedazo de meteorito y otro de luna que se pueden tocar.

Michael Brinoni

Awsome!!!

Evgeny Novoseltsev

terrible and very expensive, 60$ per family for 20$ minutes of exhibitions is too much. absolutely not interested. Spend your time and money for Telus world or aquarium.

Dave Roberts

We had a great night here. The staff is passionate and knowledgable, and the whole experience was very sincere and genuine. We'll be back!

scott seidel

Went with high expectations and an open mind but was terribly disappointed. To many out of order displays and lack of staff. "The Universe" show was advertised as a Show but it was Not. More of a spoken work Documentary geared to preteens. My 11 year old was falling asleep due to the monotone speaking. Sorry guys but this was my Last visit. Scott

Craigery

Guy tried to tell me the first man i space was 1964 rather than 1961. Planetarium was bunk

Hannah Hernandez

A small exhibition which was cool to look out but the best part was the theatre show where our host explained how to read the stars and some more general information about our solar system. The staff were very knowledgeable and friendly! I just wish the weather was better so we could have seen through the observatory telescope. This is a fun and short little experience if you find yourself in Vancouver with an hour or so to spare

Andrea Brzica

Very nice experience! The staff was rather helpful and nice. We had a great time.

jevgenijs grasevics

We’re pleasantly surprised and enjoyed the planetarium. The rest of the museum does not have much to offer, but planetarium show is well worth the go!

Marcelo Salame

It's pricey, but for me it was worth it. Mark at the theatre was great. I'll go back there for sure.

Momof2

Very outdated, husband says it's changed little from when he was a kid. Lots of the exhibits were out of order. The ones that were working, hardly did and one was even missing lol. We spent 15 minutes in the main area, and we were done. The kids hung out most of the time at the Lego table, had I known that we would have saved the $50 and played with our stuff at home. The shows were nice, the only redeeming quality of the Space Center. All the staff were amazing, and helpful. It would be awesome if they upgraded themselves, as we won't be returning.

Robbie Carley

The planetarium could really use a makeover. The exhibits are not very inspiring and quite dated. The best thing about my last trip was the lecture on spectrometers. The guide was funny and informative and put on a great show.

Riddle Pond

Fun times.

Michael Rose

What a cool place. They have 1 of 5 pieces of moon that can be touched by the public.

Samina K

This is not a space centre by any stretch of imagination. There are barely 3 rooms of exhibits. To charge $19 for admission to something like a school exhibit is exorbitant. In addition to the high parking fees. And oh they charge an additional $19 for the museum. Avoid. Spend your money elsewhere.

Stef McL

Some interesting exhibits but pretty much all the interactive exhibits were in much need of an update. Some of the information on display was also out of date. We also went to one of their 20 min interactive shows which was quite good. We were persuaded by the receptionist to attend a couple of the shows at the planetarium. The first of which was a film mad for Canada 150. Although artistically interesting dor a while it wasn't suitable to engage our 9 year old syfficiently who couldn't wait to leave. It also put us right off the next show that we had paid for as none of the 5 of us could stand another 45 mins sitting through another decidedly average show. We then looked for a cafe to have some drinks and a snack for lunch however we were again disappointed to discover there were no facilities. A couple of years ago we all went to the London Science Museum (free entry), and the London Planetarium which were sooooo much better than this. Overall a very disappointing experience and nothing we would recommend to a family visiting Vancouver.

Derek Jay

Pretty small, but there's a ride you can go on and science experiments. get a chance to touch a moon rock

Matthew Riordan

Small and expensive. Space exhibition is outdated and bland. The vancouver museum is better but too expensive. The best attraction is actually the building itself. There are some stunningly framed views of downtown vancouver. Best viewed in winter when the trees have lost their leafs. Entry should be free and would save them the cost of the 4 people sitting at the entry doing very little.

Ben Polutnik

A little dated to say the least.

Randall McCartie

We're going there my whole life. That building is very unique made in a Precast somewhere and then assembled there. The grounds everything's great

Chris Birch

Less than helpful staff at the desk and a VERY dated surroundings.

Tom Hu

Ok, the other reviews are correct, the place is not very big. You can finish all the exhibits in 45 minutes at most. However, the price include one show at the planetary theatre which is totally worth it. There are also free live shows …

Minh Trat

Fun movie features. Science!

Y M

The planetarium was cool, and the outside telescope is also a good experience. Very kid-friendly.

Y M

The planetarium was cool, and the outside telescope is also a good experience. Very kid-friendly.

Roger Kasper

I brought my out of town family here and while they had fun, I thought the exhibits and all displays are quite dated. It seems like it would've been high tech back in the 90's, but for today's standards, they need to upgrade big time.

Andrew Hung

Planetarium show was very good.

Cosmo Kwan

Love this Space Centre. Brings back memory as child from the school field trip. Great staffs/friendly!

Raul Mercado

Mix feelings, I been in several space centers and for Vancouver I was expecting so much more, it is quite small for an $18 dollars entry, a positive thing is that they have a touchable moon rock

Gurjinder Virk

The space show was fun and informative but 45 mins almost seemed to long with all the information crammed Into the show. The staff were really nice and I really liked how at the end of the show they described what the night sky in Vancouver would look like. I really liked this because it was a clear night so we got to experience the sights right away.

tian marry

(Translated) Where your child's school organization goes. Explore the mysteries of the space universe, praise (Original) 孩子学校组织去的地方。探索太空宇宙的奥妙，赞