Where is it? - 50 Pacific Quay, Glasgow G51 1EA, just off Pacific Drive and Govan Road. The road in can be quite tricky if you’re driving, but it is well signposted.

How to get there?- McGills buses run several services that run along Pacific Drive; 23,23A and 26 all leave just a short walk to the centre. The Stagecoach X1 also passes along the same road. If you take the Glasgow Sightseeing tour bus that will take you right to the door and this will also get you a small discount on your admission fee. You can take a train to the Exhibition Centre (SECC), which will leave you around a ten minute walk. You can also walk along the riverside that will take around 25 minutes from Central Station. Cross over at the squinty bridge and pass the STV and BBC headquarters and the centre is just on you’re left.

What is there to do? – Prepare to be educated! Have fun whilst you learn as the centre is a hive of activity. Visual displays learn about airflow, water density, rubbish, radiation and electricity flow to name but a few of the experiments that all the family can take part in. Take a ride up the famous Glasgow Tower for the best views of the city, although there is an extra cost for this. The practical experiments are set-up to make them fun-but you are learning as you go. There’s an IMAX cinema, gift shop, cafe and coffee shop- practical science can be thirsty work. A science show theatre explains the inner workings of wind, flames and gasses that air at 11.00am, 12.00pm and 1.00pm daily. For younger kids (under sevens) there is a separate play area called ‘The Big Explorer’ that is completely cordoned off where they can learn and -with a sea/ship themed play area. See how whirlpools are created, how doctors measure patients strengths and learn how to tie a rope like sailor all in one day. The face changing machine asks you to put in your age, sex and ethnic origin-but that can all change with the touch of a button; see how you will look when your older, younger, black, east and west Asian-you can even see how what you would look like if you were a monkey! Stick your hand into a tornado or look at cockroaches through a microscope, there’s something different at every turn. The third floor is all about how the body works and all its intricacies. Do you know how your elbow works? See how it all happens with the life size models that show how your bones move. Test yourself like an athlete (or watch as the kids do it) on the machines that test and monitor how you; sprint, jump, cycle and hang-then check the results on the barcode machine when you are finished. Test how your brain works, or become a detective for the day using DNA and fingerprinting-all of this can be done under one roof. Do you have a head for heights? The Glasgow Tower is 127 meters high (the height of 30 double-decker buses) and is the tallest free standing building in Scotland. It’s also in the Guinness book of records, as it is the highest building that can rotate 360 degrees, giving panoramic views of the whole city and far beyond. It has been dogged by some problems since opening in 2002, but since opening back up in 2014 the tower now operates between April and October.

Anywhere to eat? There are two cafes; one that offers a more upmarket meal with table service and one that sells sandwiches, coffees and cakes. There are picnic tables surrounding the building that, on a nice day, would make the ideal place for a spot of lunch.

How much does it cost? - Admission to the science mall (excluding Glasgow Tower) costs £10.50 for adults and £8.50 for children/concessions. These are for day visitors, however you can buy a ‘Science Passport’ that costs £24 for adults and £18 for children/concessions that gives access to the mall for the full year. The Glasgow tower costs £6.50 for day trippers or £3.50 for those with a science passport.

Opening Times? - Summer opening hours are 10am- 5pm seven days a week to the science mall. The Glasgow Tower is open from 11am- 4.30pm.

Anything else I should know? The centre is running a variety of different workshops and programmes over the summer months. June/July will see ‘shadow puppets’ explorer light and dark. August/September are ‘huff and puff’ months that will explain air. July/August will explain ‘lung dissection’ and you can find out exactly how your lungs work. Flame–On Will run from June27- August 31, and September will be awash with water shows.

The IMAX cinema shows 45 minute science documentaries, although there is a further £2.50 charge to view.

Contact details are: Glasgow Science Centre, 50 Pacific Quay, Glasgow G51 1EA.

Telephone: 01414205000

Email: call.centre@glasgowsciencecentre.org