Best & Cool Science and Space Museums in Kingston upon Thames

"Ideal for left-brainers, London’s Science Museum celebrates scientific, technological, and mathematical achievements—but that makes it sound so serious. With interactive exhibits, flight simulators, an IMAX theater, and even a milkshake bar, a trip to the Science Museum is far from the snore-worthy science lessons from back in the day. Some of the coolest things to spy?"

"The Science Museum has sections specifically for preschool children. The Garden is an interactive gallery based around water, light, sound and construction where toddlers can learn about floating, sinking, shadows and reflections. The Pattern Pod is a multi-sensory area for children aged under 8, which encourages children to recognise and copy patterns."

"Kings College London only recently opened this permanent site for the Science Gallery, a dedicated space for showing contemporary artwork that explores scientific questions. Its inaugural exhibition is all about addiction, called Hooked, and previous shows in its travelling days have investigated blood, food and orifices. Think of it as looking at science through the eyes of an artist."

"Science Gallery London is an art-science-and-health inspired gallery in London. The free museum has been open since 2018 in London Bridge after a series of pop-up exhibits across London. The gallery aims to bring together scientists, artists, and communities with three themed seasons every year."

": Row upon row of glass jars, with everything from tiny organisms, to strange two-headed beasts, to examples of gross diseases, this museum can be very creepy at times, especially when it’s quiet. However, it’s so much more than the freakshow that it is sometimes made out to be, offering a unique insight into the history of surgery and advances in modern medicine. The next few months are your last chance to see the museum before it closes in 2017 for refurbishment, so get going!"

"The Bonsai House was formerly known as the Alpine House No. 24 prior to the construction of the Davies Alpine House."

"Tucked behind Lambeth Palace, the playground here won’t thrill anyone over the age of about four – though there are things to climb on, a sandbox, and swings. But the location, in central London, make this a good pit-stop between cultural visits – particularly if the Jubilee Gardens playground by the London Eye, with its climbing web and little else, is too crowded. Archbishop’s park is completely cut off from the street, so children can roam freely across the large grassy field."

"On the cusp of Westminster and Lambeth you’ll find the excellently located Archbishop’s Park, which is great for little ones aged four and under. It makes an excellent place to have a rest in between sightseeing and it isn’t known for being too crowded."

"Restaurants Chinese Shaftesbury Avenue. If Hamleys did restaurants, it would probably be a bit like this Chinese hotpot specialist, where dining is an edible construction challenge. Help your kids pick their favourite ingredients from the conveyor belt and dunk them into your own personal soup concoction (tip: it works best if it’s just you and one youngster)."

"Shuang Shuang is best known for its hotpots and invites diners to create their very own from a conveyer belt of ingredients. The restaurant is modern, nicely laid out, and one of the newer additions to Chinatown’s dining scene."

"Overshadowed by a reputation for rudeness which it shed decades ago, Wong Kei is maybe the closest central London has to a communal canteen. In usual times, people, usually tourists, come here in groups but the real spirit of Wong Kei is on the ground floor, reserved for solo diners only, four to a table, sometimes filled with a kind of silent desperation, or the chatter of those comparing their orders. But for now, luckily, there’s takeaway from the counter: the standouts are the huge pork chops, deep fried and either dry with salt and chilli, or wet with gravy and aubergine, the assorted meat ho fun, prawns entombed within tofu, aubergines and green peppers, any of the scrambled egg dishes, and the wonton or beef brisket noodle soups, pungent with ginger and MSG, that will stave away colds for a rapidly oncoming winter."

"Wong Kei was once described as “the rudest restaurant in London” but the service here has improved somewhat. All of the shouting and noise is kind of forgiven as the food here is super yummy and well-priced too. The menu can be rather daunting but skip to the back of it for some seriously hearty dishes that’ll leave you rolling out of the restaurant."

"Make the most of Chinatown’s new outdoor dining permissions with a bowl of wonton noodle soup, some classic Cantonese roast meats, or beef brisket and rice vermicelli in soup. Be sure to add a generous amount of its status-iconic chilli oil to whatever it is you order."

"Head down to fire and stone, whether you are in a large or regular group, and you can have some delicious pizzas. Just a stone's throw from Covent Garden's theatres, they have an impressive menu, including pizzas from cities all over the world: from Casablanca to Mumbai."

"Fire and Stone has loads of vegetarian dishes for any discerning non-meat eater. Their pasta and salad dishes are an obvious choice, but feast on one of their global pizzas – inspired by cities from around the globe – and you're in for a real treat."

"London’s Spaghetti House is one of the capital’s premier restaurant chains. With 11 different locations, mostly in Central London, this kid-friendly group offers stonebaked pizzas, light bites and, of course, spaghetti dishes. Enjoy all of this plus more whilst not breaking the bank."

"Miguel Barclay, who has a huge following for his One Pound Meal book is opening Miguel's Pizza. - a pizza by the slice restaurant that's all about affordable New York Style pizza, made fresh daily and on-site."