Visiting The National Planetarium In Kuala Lumpur With Kids

Planetarium Negara is a great activity to boost your little ones’ knowledge of space, satellites, science, and astronomy. Be prepared – it’s literally a hike up, 120 concrete steps to be exact, to get to the entrance. The public car park’s location at the far end of the facility makes access to the planetarium, not very stroller or toddler-friendly. This more of a family activity if you have kids who are five years and up. But worth the hike!

In spite of the initial hurdle, the planetarium is an exciting experience with plenty of hands-on interactive exhibits and optical illusions. Enter through a teleport-like chamber: once inside, feel what it’s like to be in an anti-gravity room, before whooshing down the escape slide and falling through a black hole simulator.

Also, check out the Ariane IV space engine. Some history trivia– it’s this very rocket that launched Malaysia’s first satellite into space. On display, is also the space suit worn by the country’s first astronaut plus meal packs he took into space (with such highlights as the nasi lemak, Malaysia’s national dish).

Be sure to slip into the mock-up space pods for a chance to experience life in space – try out sleeping bags and specially-built toilets. Feeling adventurous? Take a spin in the Space Ball, a human-sized gyroscopic device.

Don’t forget to ride the elevator up to the Viewing Gallery in a minaret-like tower for splendid views over the Lake Gardens or at the space observatory, try to spot distant planets through a telescope.

However, the planetarium’s full-sized domed auditorium is the star attraction! Here, while sitting on reclining chairs, you’ll watch some great space movies and documentaries projected onto the ceiling of the dome. Different films are screened daily- do check the screening schedule on the official website below.