About

W5 is Belfast’s award-winning science and discovery centre and provides a unique experience as well as fantastic fun for visitors of all ages.

From top to bottom, W5 has been completely transformed. Two reimagined exhibition floors will excite and inspire, with exhibits and experiences covering everything from climate change and nature to film and TV production, optical illusions, built engineering, medical science and much, much more. Daily science shows at a purpose-built Science Bar will be a place for interactive learning and engagement. Meanwhile, a new under 8s area developed by W5’s in-house creative team, will ignite the imaginations as visitors step into a living storybook world, where family favourites are brought to life through immersive roleplay. A refreshed ground floor includes The Lost Planet – a space and dinosaur themed maze of climbing frames and slides that takes soft play to a new dimension – and an eye-catching new ‘Skull Cave’ exhibit features giant replica dinosaur and human skulls.

Opening hours may very. View seasonal opening hours>> 

Climbit: Discover W5's biggest exhibit ever! Climbit is an unusual mixture of physical fun, exploration and art! This huge multi-storey climbing structure, which is a cross between a maze and a jungle gym, takes over the Atrium at the heart of W5. The first of its kind in the UK and Ireland, Climbit is a unique, visually elegant, three dimensional sculpture specially designed for climbing. Oval platforms suspended from steel pipes and cables let visitors traverse over, under and through the amazing structure.

Meet RoboThespian: Meet RoboThespian, W5's permanent exhibit which is completely unique to the island of Ireland. RoboThespian is a life sized, humanoid, interactive robot who can move, speak, educate, interact and entertain! RoboThespian is primarily a robot actor and performer. He is fully interactive, user friendly, and capable of communicating and entertaining in a way that few people will have experienced before. This static, humanoid robot can be controlled by the visitor, via a touchscreen panel, and can sing, greet, inform, act and even do impressions. 

MED-Lab: Step into MED-Lab - an interactive exhibition zone and explore the medical marvel that is the human body! MED-Lab will take visitors of all ages on an extraordinary and fun journey of discovery into us! Learn all about the amazing systems that keep our bodies alive and working. Get up close to some advanced imaging technologies that enables us to see inside, and right through our body. What can go wrong with our body and how we find out what the problem is.

AMAZE: AMAZE is W5’s brand-new technological space that will take you on unique, spectacular and fully-immersive adventures. Incorporating large multi-screen projections, a state of the art ‘immersive soundscape’ sound system and a range of incredible special, sensory and physical effects, AMAZE will deliver exciting, captivating and highly entertaining exhibitions and events for visitors of all ages to enjoy.

More Attractions: The Lost Planet Journey to another dimension, where dinosaurs rule The Lost Planet. Exploration is everything In The Lost Planet! Visitors are encouraged to discover fun facts about the universe as they step into The Lost Planet and morph into space explorers! Encouraging learning through play, explorers will discover interesting facts about our solar system within the activity zone to complete their mission.