A Visit to the Euro Space Center!

A friend recently moved to Belgium and suggested we meet a little over halfway to his place, at the Euro Space Center in Libin, Belgium. I couldn't tell what to expect from their website, but the good news was kids under 6 were free, and an audio tour was included in the basic entry price. Also, at about 2 hours from Mainz, it met our 'stop for gas and food' requirements.

After 2 enjoyable hours touring the Center, I highly suggest a visit! The audioguide was very engaging. The story focused mostly on the Western history of space travel, with bits of culture and historical context woven in. Somehow, miraculously, the whole tour captured & kept the attention of 3/4 of the kids (ages 2-4)! There was a nice mix of video, audio, and tactical components, and enough space for little people to run around. We found a very light crowd at the time we went - late afternoon.

A couple of school groups had formal tours arranged and got to try some of the interactive simulations, which looked cool & transfixed the kiddos. We skipped the planetarium, and although the littler kids were a bit frightened during the 3-D movie, they all confirmed they wanted to grow up to be astronauts. Mission accomplished!

After the visit, we stopped by the gift shop where I hoped to find more 'local' souvenirs. There was an awful lot from NASA along with generally available science- and rocket-building kits. We bought a few postcards with photos from space, astronaut ice cream, and an ESC patch, and headed out to the huge play area (which would be amazing in summer!). Since it was covered in snow, we stomped around and made snowballs before continuing on.

Parking was very easy - just outside the center & plentiful. We learned the Center has summer camp programs starting from age 8, for 4-5 days on a number of topics. Opening days can be limited, so definitely check the calendar before planning a visit.

From there, it was a short 80 minutes to Brussels... more to come on kid-friendly activities in the next post!

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