The centre was originally built in 1906 to house the turbines for Johannesburg’s tram system. 100 years later, this old building was transformed into a world-class science centre with a capacity for 650 000 visitors annually.
The centre is aimed towards creating awareness and interest in the world of maths, science and technology. It is the largest and most visited science centre in South Africa and boasts more than 300 world-class interactive science exhibits.
Open seven days a week, the Sci-Bono Discovery Centre is always buzzing with excitement and it is a hive of activity. Curious minds will be kept busy all day with a range of activities from LEGO pits and mini construction sites to a live science show.
The centre also caters for birthday parties, but these are hugely popular and need to be booked months in advance.
A firm favourite with the kids seems to be the Murray & Roberts construction site, where they get kitted out with hard hats and safety vests while they use foam bricks and cement to build walls between steel structures. There is also a soccer themed exhibit which explains “the science of soccer”; their slogan is “play science, learn soccer”.
The Sci-Bono Discovery centre is used as a venue for conferences, launches, exhibitions and kids’ parties.
