Experimentarium

The Experimentarium opened in 1991 in the old Tuborg bottling hall at Hellerup and was rebuilt and expanded in 2017, and it is the main science centre in Denmark, aimed squarely at families. There are several hundred hands-on exhibits across themed areas covering the body, energy, water, sound, motion and health, along with a bubble laboratory, a large tunnel of water experiments and rotating temporary exhibitions. The architectural feature is the Helix, a broad spiral staircase of ten thousand copper tubes rising through the centre of the building, which visitors climb between floors. A rooftop terrace has open-air experiments and a view over the Oresund. Everything is designed to be touched, pushed, pulled and tested rather than read.

What you actually see

• The copper Helix staircase - ten thousand tubes spiralling through the building.
• Several hundred hands-on exhibits - body, energy, sound and motion.
• The bubble laboratory - the perennial favourite with children.
• The rooftop terrace - open-air experiments over the Oresund.

When to go

Year round; it is entirely indoors and is a standard wet-day option. Half a day. Danish school holidays and weekends are extremely busy, so weekday mornings in term time are far calmer.

Honest expectations

It is loud, crowded and aimed at children; adults without children will find little. Ticket prices are high and there are extra charges inside. Exhibits break and are sometimes out of order. Queues for the popular installations are long at busy times.

Nearby

Hellerup and the coast are around it; central Copenhagen is a short train ride.