Looking for family-friendly winter holiday activities in Melbourne?
Scienceworks in Spotswood is packed with fun things to do with kids during the school holidays. From hands-on workshops to live science shows, there’s something for every budding scientist and curious explorer.
What’s On at Scienceworks Winter School Holiday Program
Tinkertown
- Dates: Until 7 February 2026
- Time: 10am-4:30pm
- Cost: Children $10 / Member child $8 / Concession $10 / Adult $25 / Senior $20. Includes Scienceworks entry
Tinkertown invites young makers to explore the engineering design process by building cubby houses and wild inventions. Think problem-solving, secret messages and out-of-the-box contraptions – it’s a playground for the imagination!
Robots and Coding Workshop
- Date: Saturday 26 July
- Time: 1.30pm–3pm
- Cost: Children $35 / Member child $28 / Adult $15 / Adult Member/Concession Free
Perfect for kids who love tech! This 90-minute workshop teaches how to code and control an mBot robot through hands-on challenges. Designed for kids and adults to participate together.
Science Studio Workshop
- Date: Saturday 21 June
- Time: 1.30pm–3pm
- Cost: Children $35 / Member child $28 / Participating adult $30 / Participating member adult $10
Get hands-on with science! This workshop includes six exciting experiments where kids and adults work together to ask questions, make discoveries and spark curiosity.
Museum of the Moon
- Dates: Daily
- Time: 10am–4.30pm
- Cost: Included with entry
Marvel at the Moon like never before! This breathtaking 4-metre art installation captures stunning details of the lunar surface. Located in the Planetarium Foyer – don’t forget to look up!
Build’Em Up Show
Dates: Daily
Time: 12pm and 2pm
Cost: Included with entry
Let’s build! This energetic 20-minute live show explores materials, structures and fun physics through exciting demonstrations in the amphitheatre.
FlushBack
- Dates: Daily
- Time: 10.30am, 1.30pm and 3pm
- Cost: General $3 + museum entry / Members $2 + entry / Extra iPad $5 / Under 3s free
FlushBack, Scienceworks’ award-winning AR adventure, brings to life the awe-inspiring heritage-listed Spotswood Pumping Station.
Travel back to 1942 and complete challenges based on real historical events. You must ensure the Pumping Station continues to operate so Melbourne doesn’t turn back into ‘Smellbourne’!
You’ll be guided by actual workers from the past, brought to life on your device using augmented reality (AR). They will introduce you to each of the major components that enabled the Pumping Station to pump Melbourne’s sewage away from the city for treatment.
Planetarium Shows
- Dates:Daily
- Time:11am–4pm
- Cost:$10 Child and concession / $8 Member
Book into the Planetarium and enjoy an out-of-this-world show exclusive to Scienceworks.
- 11.00am – Tycho Goes to Mars
- 12.00pm – Tilt
- 1.00pm – Solar System Adventures: Where’s The Water?
- 2.00pm – Tycho Goes to Mars
- 3.00pm – Capturing the Cosmos
Lightning Room Shows
Dates: Daily
Time: 11am, 12pm, 1pm, 2pm and 3pm
Cost: Child $10 / Member child $8 / Concession $10 / Adult $25 / Senior $20
Take a seat in our Lightning Room and be mesmerised by The Glow Show, a stunning 30-minute live science show.
Explore the fascinating processes behind luminosity, including the many ways a glow can be produced. Discover the science of fluorescence, how animals can appear bright at night and the brilliant, coloured effects of using different materials to make light.
In the spectacular finale, witness a giant Tesla coil light up the theatre with lightning using more than 2 million volts of electricity
Pumping Station Tours
- Date: Daily
- Time: 11.00am
- Cost: Included with museum entry
Sniff out some of the smelly stories from the pumping station straining well and explore the magnificent engine room, marvelling at the engineering feat that helped overcome the stench of 19th century Melbourne in daily Pumping Station tours.
Pumping Station Tours are available every day and run for thirty minutes. However, do note that the tours are sometimes closed for private events so it would be best to check Scienework’s What’s On Page first to see if tours are running.
Collection Store Tours
- Dates: Daily
- Time: 12pm and 2pm
- Cost: Included with entry
Take an exclusive look behind the scenes with a tour of the Scienceworks Collection Store.
Get a glimpse of some of the rare 40,000 collection items stored at Scienceworks, and hear some amazing stories belonging to these unique objects.
Check out the Scienceworks’ permanent exhibitions including Ground Up and Beyond Perception
Eat and drink at Grazeland next door
Click here for more things to do in Melbourne this Winter
