Discovery Lab
4.5(1.8K)google
4.7(25)yelp
ScienceInteractiveFamily
Overview
Located within the spectacular Gathering Place park in Tulsa, Discovery Lab is a world-class, state-of-the-art children's museum and creative educational laboratory designed to inspire curiosity through hands-on learning. The museum's striking, modern facility features multiple floors of highly interactive exhibits focusing on science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM). The centerpiece is a massive, two-story climbing structure crafted entirely from heavy-duty adhesive tape, alongside innovative maker spaces where children can build inventions and conduct authentic scientific experiments.
Practical Info
Suggested Duration2-4 hours
Best TimeAn award-winning, state-of-the-art indoor museum for kids directly attached to Gathering Place. To maximize play, visit on a non-holiday Wednesday or Thursday afternoon from 1:30 PM to 4:00 PM after morning school tour groups depart, ensuring open access to the mega Tape Tunnels.
Getting ThereSuperbly positioned on the riverfront at 3123 S Riverside Dr. Drivers should route directly to the museum's multi-level covered parking garage seamlessly attached to the science wing. For public transit, ride Tulsa Transit Route 109 straight to the Riverside Drive entrance platform.
Travel Tips
- Located at the south end of Gathering Place, the main parking lot fills by 10:00 on weekends. Divert to the 31st Street south overflow lot and use the pedestrian connector.
- This highly interactive children's science center hosts large school field trips on weekdays. General tourists should arrive after 14:00 to avoid extreme noise levels.
- The iconic cardboard tunnel and rope courses enforce strict footwear bans. All children and participating adults must remove shoes and wear certified non-slip grip socks.
Reviews
Positive
- A brand-new modern children's science center; the signature massive Tape Tunnel design is stunning, offering top-tier interactive fun and play.
- The indoor public amenities are highly comprehensive, featuring full accessible ramp coverage, plenty of family restrooms, and wide benches.
- The on-site staff and safety monitors are abundant and highly enthusiastic, managing queues for high climbs and slides in an orderly, safe manner.
- Located right next to A Gathering Place, its positioning is superb with easy driving access, standing as an absolute all-inclusive paradise for kids.
Heads up
- On weekends, holidays, or rainy days, visitor density gets overwhelmingly high, packed with crowds and loud noise that severely mars the experience.
- The admission price is heavy for families with multiple children, plus accompanying adults must buy full-price tickets with zero complimentary snacks or water.
- Its dedicated parking lot spaces fill up very quickly during morning peak hours, forcing late arrivals into expensive nearby private lots.
- The venue severely lacks multilingual science description signs; most hands-on experiment instructions are English-only, confusing foreign families.