Although, this particular day happened months ago, it still is very fresh in my mind. My parents in law were visiting us. They are the forever-young-at-heart couple who love exploring and ever enthusiastic about trying out new things and experiences. Be it a game or sport or group activity, they will be the first ones to partake in it. So while planning a Saturday out, Vj looked for places that with suit the interest of everyone in the family! His search led him to the Tom Tits Experiments located in Södertälje, Stockholm!

I am sure all English speakers are intrigued by the name and you are wondering what this place is all about. Here’s a little intro,

In the late 1800s, Tom Tit was a fictional figure who tried out numerous scientific experiments in the French newspaper L´Illustration and several books that followed around that time. In November 1985 a science exhibition was held in Stockholm. Since the exhibition became an instant hit with people, it was decided to be kept permanent. Thus Sweden’s largest science center and the first outdoor facility with experiments came into being.

This four floor museum + park with experiments’ primary goal is to evoke interest in science and technology in the minds of children, teenagers and adults through pleasure and discovery!

The first floor consists of numerous little brain-teasing games and experiments.

The terms ‘science’ and ‘experiments’ can sound quite daunting for not-so-studious-ones like me. But trust me, everyone, kids and adults alike, will thoroughly savor trying out the various exhibits irrespective of their knowledge in science or technology.

The Bubble lab was one that we all completely enjoyed!

Who ever knew the endless shapes and sizes of bubbles we can create!

After all the fun we had with the soap water, we were in for a spectacular workshop of much bigger bubbles!

In our excitement we spent nearly half our day in the first floor. Soon after the bubble workshop, we all were hungry. We headed to the picnic room to enjoy our picnic lunch that we had packed from home. This room seats 100 people and has a cool Digi Wall that kids can climb on.

Just as we were having our lunch, we noticed people screaming and dropping down from a hole in the wall. Later we figured it was a slide exit. The slide starts in the fourth floor and runs 40 meters long landing in the first floor picnic room! Being slightly faint of heart, I stayed back and everyone except me, went on the slide. I stood at the exit of the slide and warmly welcomed my hollering family members!

We then headed to the second floor. The fountains, the mind ball, the long ball track and the mirror maze are few of the fun things I can recollect trying out.

The third floor had less of hands-on experiments and more of mind games and observatory puzzles to be solved. Our little ones got restless, so we quickly made our way to the next floor.

On the fourth floor, the Space Ball is supposedly quite an experience. Again, I didn’t dare to try it. But Vj did and he appeared to have quite a blast!

The other experiments are little more laid back and informative on this floor!

The four floors consists of nearly 600 experiments. We spent almost our entire day indoors patiently figuring out each experiment not knowing what awaited us in the outdoor park!

The number of experiments and activities in the outdoor park are simply too many.  Unfortunately, when we stepped out, it was nearing closing time and most of it were shutdown. Although we missed trying out some fun stuff like the rope cycling, we still had a great time crawling the culvert as a family, pushing and working the Geyser to pump out hot water, finding our way through the bushy maze and blasting the water rocket. How can I forget the crazy Robocoaster ride we adults went on and the little ones being lifted by a large Yo-Yo? It was too much fun!

Just when we were contemplating to leave, we discovered the Fountain of Motion. It consists of two hexagonal shaped platforms – one consists of the fountains and the other a black plate that has sensors attached under it. Water is ejected from places that correspond to the places at which visitors stand on the black hexagon plate.

The kids stood on the fountain hexagon and we adults kept jumping on the black plate.  The littles had the times of their lives in the fountain!

Our day at the Tom Tits Experiments was definitely an unforgettable one. As kids grow, their understanding and their knowledge of the world around them evolves and these experiments will begin to make more sense to them! Therefore, this is the kind of place we would want to take our kids to at least once a year.

Tips to Plan Your Visit

• Note: the Tom Tits Experiments is fully functional only from June to August
• Price: Low Season (1st Sep to 31st May) – Adult SEK 190, Children (3-14 years) SEK 150. High Season (1st June – 31st Aug) – Adult SEK 225, Children (3-14 years) SEK 175. Children under 2 years go free of charge.
• Getting there: Commuter trains from Stockholm Central to Södertälje Centrum run approximately every 15 minutes. From Södertälje Centrum station, board Bus 754 and disembark at the “Centrifugen” bus stop that is right beside the building.
• Ensure you arrive at 10 am when the museum opens to make the most of your time and money.
• Plan at the very beginning how much time you intend to spend on each floor, just so you do not regret running out of time.
• One way to make smart use of your time – visit their website and make a list of must-try experiments that would suit your family. Once you finish experimenting everything on your list, you can enjoy the rest of your time in a relaxed manner.
• Important: At the reception, make sure you ask about the special workshops lined up for the day, its timing and the venue. DO NOT miss it!
• Although the museum has an excellent cafe and restaurant, you can carry a picnic lunch which you can enjoy both indoors and outdoors. There are even microwaves available.
• Dress comfortably. You are guaranteed to get wet and dirty outdoors. I would recommend you carry spare clothing!

For more detailed info, visit the official Tom Tits Experiments website!

If you found this to be interesting, you got to read my review of the Tekniska Museet – The Swedish National Museum of Science and Technology!