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Telus Spark
Category: Arts & Entertainment Museums Museums [Edit]
220 St George's Drive NECalgary, AB T2E 5G1
(403) 817-6800
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
9 reviews for Telus Spark
9 reviews in English
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Review from Derek F.
4/13/2012
Telus Spark is not a science center, it's an applied science center. If you have any budding engineers, send them here. My kids made a lot of things while they were here and there was plenty of science behind their creations, but not a lot of it is apparent. Even a few placards here and there at each of the stations would greatly improve the learning potential of this place. There were a LOT of staff and volunteers, but they were mainly showing the kids how to use a glue gun, picking up hula hoops, or making their own crafts.
I have two girls and the station that they spent their most time at was...the dress making station. WHAT? Someone please tell me what dressing mannequins has to do with science.
I would happily bring my kids back here, but won't be under any allusions that they're coming to learn some science. -
Review from Maria H.
Calgary, AB
1/3/2012 3 Check-ins Here
I was there for the Adult Night, we got a little late so we were in a rush to see everything but I loved it.
Yes is a bit pricey, but think about it, getting the membership is a much better deal. They are still very new and knowing some of the people that work there I can say they are doing their best to make it exceptional and unique for kids, teens and adults, so don't give up on them so soon.
I will definitely go back to Adult Night and other times when there is new exhibits!!! -
Review from Madita A.
Montréal, QC
12/29/2011
In comparison to other science centres I have visited, this one is mediocre. While it was certainly entertaining for the kids, there was not much educational value in it. Explanations would improve many of the experiments. One notable exception was the little show with experiments on temperature, which was very nicely done.
Overall it was more of a playground than a science centre.
The adults in our company missed chairs to sit on while waiting for the kids. There is nothing to sit on within the exhibits that is not part of the actual experiments.
For what it is, I think the place is too expensive (20$ for adults, 16$ for teens and 13$ for kids under 12). A family of four can easily spent 100$ on entrance fees, parking and average quality cafeteria food. -
Review from Jason B.
Calgary, AB
5/22/2012
I had been looking forward to seeing the new science centre for sometime. I had the chance to visit it this weekend.
Wow, what a disappointment. It's expensive and there's not much there. There were three or four exhibits. Each of the exhibits were very hands on but not much in the way of science. For example, there were a few stations for creating animation and music sampling. This was entertaining but it was a multimedia experience with no science background. There was also an exhibit on climate change. The stations seemed more like a few snippets of information than anything substantial.
It costs $20/adult plus $5 for parking. I feel it's more flash and little substance, a giant building with four exhibits. We saw everything in just over an hour. We left wondering why there isn't more there to do. They definitely could have taken a cue from cities like Seattle and Vancouver.
Kids will have fun but if you're interested in astronomy, physics or chemistry you'll be disappointed. -
Review from Wendy P.
12/11/2011 1 Check-in Here
Telus Spark. I came to visit you for your first adult only night. This, frankly, is a great idea. I can't wait to experience more of you with no minors around (especially since I don't have any of my own).
What I'm fond of:
- Your music and animation exhibit. I had a great time making music while painting colours and creating my own animation movie. Extra points for being able to email that to me.
- The jungle gym in the kids area. Uber fun, who doesn't love crawling around?
- That you are teaching people to solder. Also cool.
- Your volunteers. They were amazing! And engaging. I had several come up to me to explain what I was supposed to be doing (and challenging me to build a taller pipe than what your average 8 year old would do).
What I'm not as fond of:
- That it costs $5 extra for parking. I'm already paying $20 to come inside. The nice thing is that there's a Ctrain stop right near you. The not so good news is the fare for the Ctrain will pretty much even out what I'd pay on parking. I hate paying for parking.
- More soldering stations. If you do this again at an adult night, have a table for like 20 people to sit at... not just 4.
- More... coolness. Where's the cool? It's in your light, music and animation section. You're the science centre. Show me something really amazing and science-y. Like, the little boards you have by the window. Instead of having them be activities like, "Look for someone wearing a backpack," I was expecting even some weird light refraction thing or something that'd change what I was seeing through it when I looked around the room or out the window.
All in all, you're alright. I get that you've only been open for a month or so. But I wasn't wowed. And I certainly didn't feel like I got my $20 worth. I am contemplating buying the annual membership for $90. I think the adult nights will be the times I come visit you, and that just seems like a helluva better deal (not to mention the complimentary parking that comes with it). -
Review from Matt H.
11/6/2011
Sorry, the bang for your buck is NOT there. The building is big and new but it is just ..MEH! I went with a B-day party of 10-12 kids, will they were running around and playing and exploring it got old and boring fast for them. This place is something that you go to once maybe..... and that is it. there was a family that bought a season pass before going into the play area.. they were asking if they could get a refund for their family because like we at the Bday party experienced, there is not much more you can do that cant be done once.
The education is very good, but the value is not. plus you will have to pay $5 to park your car.... -
Review from Reginald T.
Calgary, AB
The New Science Centre, otherwise known as TELUS Spark, is much, much larger than its predecessor.
I went on opening day on my own to check it out, and was impressed by how much space there was to play in. Some parts of the centre were either still under construction or not open yet, but the four main exhibits that were open all offered plenty of opportunities for all ages to explore science and to be creative.
Like the old Science Centre, most, if not all of the exhibits had a hands-on component to it. You could experiment generating and playing with electricity in a variety of ways, attempt to create craters or dams, build windmills and pipelines, test your reaction time, create music, and so much more. I spent at least three hours on my own just exploring and playing around. In fact, the four main exhibits are perfect if you want to bring along the kids, or even a friend or a date as there are many opportunities to play together collaboratively.
There's a presentation theatre that has special presentations every hour, and various group activities routinely occur in the atrium area as well.
The Creative Children's Area (which you can only enter if you have a child, or know a staff member who'll clear you for entrance) is much bigger than before as well, with a giant water table, illuminated tables, padded play areas, and a wicked cool jungle gym with an air cannon on the second level that the kid in me really, really wanted to try. The best improvement of all though is the fact that washrooms are now installed within the area, which makes it much easier if you're a parent with a child.
As of this writing, some areas of the centre weren't open yet. Those include the Dome Theatre and the external exhibits area where special or traveling exhibits will eventually debut. For now, the centre is focusing on showcasing their four permanent exhibits.
My only complaints with the venue is that there is no obvious pathway from the Zoo LRT station to TELUS Spark. I'm a transit user myself, and while it's a short distance away from the station on foot, you'll be crossing parking lots and a couple of grassy areas to get there.
Also note that the gift shop and the cafe is considered outside of the exhibits, so if you want to do some quick shopping or grab a bite to eat and then go back in, you'll need to show security your ticket or pass again. A minor annoyance, especially if you're not expecting it, so don't lose your ticket! Also, I could totally see the cafe running out of seating if it's a busy day down there. Not sure what more can be done about that though, and it isn't like the old location had a lot of seating as well.
Considering this was opening day, the venue was a little rough around the edges, and parts of the centre either weren't ready, had a few kinks to work out, or were still under construction.
That said, it's an interesting space that shows a lot of promise and potential, and is much better suited than the old space downtown. There's something to see and do for everyone, so it's definitely worth checking out, even if you're an adult. -
Review from Tiffany N.
Calgary, AB
12/19/2011
Ooh, Telus Spark. More like Telus Bottle Rocket. All fizzle and not much spark, just like a July bottle rocket. I had been to the Science Centre downtown and was generally unimpressed with the interactive exhibits, but after watching Spark take shape all this time during drives down Deerfoot; I guess my hopes were set a little too high.
But the place has potential! The music and animation exhibit was probably the most fun (next to the jungle gym full of grown-ups on Adult Night!) and the area with facts about the human body and relationships was kind of neat. Placing the relationships station right next to a bunch of STI factoids is a bit of a buzzkill, though. The volunteers were pleasant and funny, without being cringeworthy.
Parking costing $5, I do agree is kind of lame, but expected. I've never been to a museum, aquarium, zoo or theme park where parking wasn't extra. If there's a C-Train station nearby, Google doesn't seem to know it yet, since their suggestion was to take the train to City Hall station and then hot-foot it for 45 minutes to Telus Spark. A $5 flat fee is actually kind of reasonable when you consider the cost of parking at other places. Maybe I've just been conditioned to think so, since parking in Calgary in general is unreasonable.
DJ Teddy Celebration at Adult Night seems to like German New Wave, which, I don't really mind, but I could understand why no one wanted to dance among the LED balloons (heyo, I just caught that pun). The hula hoops were a nice touch.
Adult Night needed to have more structure and more interesting... Adult related things to have been a hit. Not that I didn't love feeling 8 years old while climbing and exploring the jungle gym, or building pipes, but I feel like the description on the website was far more interesting than the actual activities. But, since it was just the first one, I'm sure the upcoming ones will be a lot more fun :). -
Review from Helene R.
Calgary, AB
12/15/2011
Personally I preferred the original Telus Science Centre to the new Telus Spark. It seemed to have more stuff and I personally didn't mind the layout at all. True, this new facility is huge but found that a lot of it is office space or theatres/galleries which didn't have anything going the time we went in.
On the top level, there is a wonderful discovery area, the kids particularly loved the music and animation studios. There is also a cafeteria up there too, I just found that there were strange separate entrances to the upper levels that the public had access to which lead to conference rooms. The dome theatre was not open so that was a let down, and found the Being Human exhibit was blah.
The kids loved the indoor jungle gym and water discovery area on the main floor but the rest of that section seemed to be less than stellar. On the other side, there was a feature presentation area with nothing presented and 2 other exhibits, the Energy and Earth & Sky, yawn, again nothing to rave about.
The staff and volunteers were all great, many described the stations and helped out, thanks guy who helped us record our jumps!
Would I come back? Well, the entry fees are INSANE!!! SERIOUSLY! A family of four if eating in the cafeteria could easily drop $100 for a couple of hours, personally not a great value in my opinion considering there were no feature presentations or exhibits, no dome theatre, yet, and topping it off with gauging us for parking in their own lot, ya, not going to happen again.
I will let my little ones enjoy it with their school field trips from now on.
Pass.
