Vacation in Orlando Area: Review of WonderWorks

We recently returned from a two week vacation in the Orlando, Florida area.  Now that the kids are getting older, we decided to avoid the Disney theme parks and visit other attractions that might be less well known.  We have spent plenty of time at the various Disney locations in the past.  We received a recommendation regarding WonderWorks which is characterized by being located in an upside down building!

We arrived about 10:30 am (operating hours were 9 am til midnight).  After spending $19.95 per adult and $14.95 per child under 12 minus the $1.50 off coupon, we proceeded through a vertigo tunnel to enter the exhibits.  It made you feel as if you were spinning.  Some of the kids thought they were walking upside down.  I started feeling queasy but I think it was because I was last in line, and everyone else was going so slow.  It seemed as if I was in the tunnel for 5 minutes, but it wasn’t that long.

Once inside, you are treated to a hands on experience that had a lot of technology and scientific exhibits.  We stepped into a wind tunnel that simulated the winds from a hurricane.  We sat around a table that made it feel like you were in the middle of an earthquake registering 5.3 on the Richter scale.  You could put your hand in a bucket of water that was the temperature of the ocean the night the Titanic sunk and see how long you could last.  I made it all of 15 seconds, but I have sensitive hands.  My wife lasted one full minute.

My youngest daughter just loved the bed of nails.  She laid on it 3 times.  She didn’t understand the physics, but we tried to explain it to her.  We also got to design our own roller coaster, climb into a flight simulating type chamber, and ride our own creation.  My wife didn’t much care for my creative talents.  You could also attempt to land the space shuttle (at least for me it was only an attempt) and fly a fighter jet.

Perhaps my favorite exhibit was Mindball (I have put their website in the links at the end of the article).  You strap a headband on which reads your EEG and monitors your alpha and theta brain waves.  As you relax, your brain wave activity declines and a little metal ball will move away from you.  You sit across from a competitor, and the most relaxed person wins.  It was a lot of fun as the various members of our family paired off against one another to see who could relax the most and the quickest.  Be sure to check out the website cause this is COOL!

We took a break for lunch and actually left the building, walking several blocks to get some Mexican.  With a hand stamp, you are able to come and go all day.  All told, we probably spent about 6 hours in the exhibits which was about the right amount of time.  We got a chance to see and do what we wanted.  We could have spent a little more time there, but one day should be enough time for most.  It turned out to be a fun experience at a decent cost.  I would recommend WonderWorks if you are ever on vacation in the Orlando, Florida area and want to do something other than the typical theme parks.