Cosmocaixa, indoor activities for families in Barcelona

Barcelona is a city that's worth to walk, specially in a sunny spring day: Plaça Catalunya, la Rambla, Port Vell, Barceloneta beach...

But if you are not so lucky and you have a bad weather day, the Cosmocaixa Science Museum is a good option for children over five years old.

In this video (available in English version) you can see what offers this museum so unique.

An overview of Cosmocaixa

Cosmocaixa is located at the foot of Collserola mountain, in the wealthy neighborohood called Sant Gervasi – la Bonanova.

Museum admission is by the Modernist building (1904 - 1909), but most of the activity is on the new glass building. The exhibition area covers 30.000 m2, to which must be added an outdoor plaza and a picnic area. Don't miss the views of the city from the plaza!


The circuit takes visitors down to the sixth basement floor, where a Foucault pendulum demonstrates the earth rotation.

Just behind the pendulum begins the area of science. Lots of interactive experiments and learnings are waiting for you to touch, pull or press. Older kids will be able to understand why different things happen, but the younger ones will also have fun pressing the buttons and being surprised by the events.

One of the walls is called the Geological Wall, seven giant blocks of real stone to show the developing of rock formations and the phenomena involved.

Walking through the permanent exhibition about the History of Matter,  from Big Bang to actuality, the Museum shows the fundamental laws of nature,
life and how intelligence emerges from neurons and develops until our civilisation.

At the end of the enormous room, in an especially heated area, there is the Flooded Forest, a reproduction of a Brazilian Amazonian forest (1.000 m2) with more than 100 living species that are possible to watch both from underwater vision and from earth paths. Find the little door that leads to the inside.

























Next to the flooded forest there are some aquariums and terrariums that will captivate kids with their colours.

Through a large ramp that explains the timing of evolution of life on Earth, you get to the upper floors, which house specific workshops, a planetarium and conference rooms. Almost at the end, there is a small hallway with the indication "meteorological station" that leads you to the outside plaza and lets you play and understand the performance of an Arquímedes screw.

Besides, just at the entrance next to the Foucault Pendulum, there use to be temporary exhibitions, you can find updated information at the web of Cosmocaixa.

Schedules and prices

Cosmocaixa opens from Tuesday to Sunday 10-20h. On summer and school holidays it also opens on Mondays. 

The entry ticket that includes the museum and the temporary exhibition costs 4 € and it's free for children under 16 years old. 

Special activities like workshops and Planetarium costs 4 € each one.

How to get there

Address: Isaac Newton, 26, Barcelona
Phone number:  93 212 60 50

Bus: 17, 22, 58, 73, 75, 60 y 196

Train: FGC - Station: Avinguda del Tibidabo

Best route with public transportation here.

Dinopolis and the land of the dinosaurs (Teruel)

Land of Dinosaurs

More than 128 Millions of years ago the region of Teruel was the mouth of a large tropical river, where lived large dinosaurs, who fed on the vegetation that grew in the swamps. 

This is known because of the fossilized dinosaur tracks found in the area (thanks to a tsunami,  that fortunately buried them until today). 

Dinópolis

Dinópolis is a theme park that combines education with fun. A full visit will take you almost all the day, it's opened from 10h to 19h or 20h depending on the date. Here is the calendar with the opening times.

Dinopolis is part of a net of six parks called Territorio Dinopolis and it is possible to buy single or combined tickets.

Main activities  

• Time travel: mounted on a wagon train we'll learn about the period from the Big Bang to the extinction of the dinosaurs. 
• T-Rex: recreation theatrical with a robotic Tyrannosaurus Rex.
• Terra colossus: live the adventure to escape the attack of dinosaurs in a 4D simulator (3D movie + moving armchairs).
• White Tyron: a 3D movie about a dinosaur baby.
• Theater: different educational shows are played along the day, check schedules not to miss them. 
• Paleosenda and Sauriopark: playing areas of different ages.

• Last  minute: a boat tip through the last 65 million years.    

• Paleontological museum: where you can see real size reconstructions of dinosaurs and other original bones of Riodevensis Turiasaurus, the largest dinosaur in Europe and one of the world.

What to visit in Teruel 

Teruel is a nice city to visit with kids, it's the smallest province capital in Spain, with only 36.000 inhabitants, so it's easy to walk around. 

Children will enjoy the legend of Teruel Lovers,  they can play to see who finds the Torico before (it is a very small statue of a bull on the top of a tall column above the fountain in the main Square), and they will sure be  happy to climb the mudéjar bell tower of San Pedro.

Where is Dinópolis - Teruel?

Artigas Gardens, Gaudí hidden legacy

When Gaudí was visiting the location of the coal mine engineer's house he was commissioned to design for Eusebi Güell in Catllaràs (Lillet Valley), he stayed in the house of Artigas family, friends of Güell family in the textile business. 

As a gratitude to his lodging, Gaudí designed Artigas Gardens, in a wild environment around the river and the factory, which became the only humid gardens he projected.

The aim of the architect was to integrate the gardens in the environment, in absolute respect for nature, so stone is the most used material and the gardens are full of stairs to follow the natural shape of the valley.

A wide explanation about Modernism and Artigas Gardens is available here. It is possible to book a guided tour at the Tourist Office (938 236 146).

Taking again The Ciment Train, in the next (and last) stop, you can visit Asland Cement Museum. 

How to get there

A nice way to reach Artigas Gardens, specially travelling with kids, is taking The Cement Train, the line to the cement factory owned by Eusebi Güell, which was supplied with the extracted coal of Catllaras mines mentioned above.

This is now a touristic train, working from April to October, in a 3,5 km route with four station: La Pobla de Lillet (parking) - La Pobla (center village) - Artigas Gardens - Cement Museum in Castellar de n'Hug (and parking).

It is also possible to reach the gardens by car or walking, following the railway from La Pobla de Lillet.
Information about travelling from Barcelona by public transport is available in this site.

It is not advisable to bring baby carriages because there are many stairs in the tour.

View FGC Tren del Ciment in a larger map

The surroundings

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In Castellar de n'Hug is worth a visit the source of Llobregat river, which flows to Barcelona, and all the long of its course is it possible to visit the textile past heritage of Llobregat valley.    

Pedraforca mountain will offer you a spectacular landscape if you drive to Gosol and Saldes.