Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie | City of Science and Industry – discover science at any age

When I was studying chemistry in Belgium I made some good friends – lucky me! My dear friend Mimi is from Luxemburg and comes to visit us once a year. Last November she came with her boyfriend and 2 and a half-year-old son. Since we wanted to have some time to talk, we looked for activities that were both cool for us and the children. So we went to visit the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie (translation: City of Science and Industry).

Update: Due to the pandemic, all temporary exhibitions are currently being done online. Having been a speaker in an online olfactory exhibition myself, I know they are receiving great feedback. The CSI has succeded in attracting their public online by organising talks, conferences and even workshops for children. Don’t be shy, take a tour!

Where is the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie and how do I get there?

The Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie is at La Villette in the 19th arrondissements. La Villette is a historical and popular district in the north-east of Paris. In earlier days this district hosted the big slaughterhouse of Paris from 1859 until 1967. Otherwise, it is known for its cultural parc that includes restaurants, playgrounds, a cabaret, the conservatoire of Paris, la Géode – a huge 360° cinema, the Zénith – a concert hall, a library, a theatre, the philharmonics and many more.

The address of the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie is 30, Avenue Corentin-Cariou in the 19th arrondissement. You can get there easily by metro line M°7 Porte-de-la-Villette or Corentin-Cariou. If you take the RER E to Pantin you will have to walk across the parc which is rather big!

What is the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie?

To make it short, the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie (CSI) is a science museum. But in reality, it is so much more.

The CSI has been created to share scientific and technical knowledge with a large public, with a special focus on teenagers and children. You can access the permanent exhibition Explora, the cinema Louis-Lumière, the Géode 360° cinema, the submarine boat l’Argonaute or the Cité des enfants/ City of children and even the Cité des bébés/ City of babies.

Why visit the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie with my children?

The exhibitions are spectacular and interactive. They open the children’s eyes to the world. They can touch, try, see, hear or experiment.

As soon as you arrive in the entrance hall, you are greeted by a robot who you can ask for help.

Cité des bébés: 0-2 years old

It’s a large room with cushions, toys and learning opportunities for the little ones. You have to book it in advance and as there are only a few time slots, it is often sold out.

Cité des enfants: 2-5 years old

On 1700m² young children can have lots of sensory experiences. They can touch, see and test everything. Through a playful course, you can visit 5 different parts: “I discover myself” where they can get to know their body, “I know how to do”, “I find my way” with a labyrinth, “I experiment” and “all together”. There are mirrors, water games and many other fun things to do. You can help, explain or just watch them play and have fun.

Visit time: 1h30.
Book your time slot in advance and check the internet to be prepared. Don’t try to see the whole exposition but rather limit yourself to 2-3 themes.

Cité des grands enfants: 5-12 years old

Here you can also find different sorts of themes: the body, communication, the garden, TV-studio, the enterprise. The children will see a giant anthill and learn about ants, there are a recording studio and water games.

You can also book diverse workshops for your becoming artists.

Explora: the permanent exhibition

As you can imagine, the building of the CSI is huge. On every floor, you have several exhibitions: the brain, transportation, energy, mathematics, robots etc. For each exhibit, you will see an age recommendation.

We bought tickets for Explora and the expo Cabanes/ Playhouses. Our 2- and 3-year-olds had great fun at Cabanes. The museum has built several lodges where children can play, jump and have fun. There are playhouses made of big plastic bottles, of fishnet, of books, of recycled cardboard with luminescent stars and so on. There is even one platform where children can build their very own cottage. I really recommend you went to see for yourself!

After this, we went to the exhibition about sound and we learned a lot. We were able to try out some challenges and discovered many interesting facts about sound and music.

If you want to, you can also learn about stars and the universe in the planetarium. Or see a movie about ants in the salle Louis-Lumière. It’s a movie theatre with films and animations in relief that helps to explain science to children.

Where can we eat at the CSI?

Well, this is a good question! Most children don’t like to eat salad or sandwiches so the two small sandwich shops on level 0 and level 1 are not that interesting.
However, on level -2 you can find a Burger Kind and the “Resto”. The restaurant offers 2 children’s menus and has high chairs and colouring pencils for your young ones. The quality of the food is ok but not exceptional and the service isn’t top-level either. But hey, there is a large aquarium right next to it so the wait for the food won’t be too long.

Roundup

What? Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie
Where? 30 Avenue Corentin-Cariou – 19th M°7 Porte-de-la-Villette, M°7 Corentin-Cariou or RER E Pantin
When? Tuesday to Saturday 10 am – 6 pm, Sunday 10 am to 7 pm, closed on Mondays
Price: Explora: adults 12€, <25yo 9€, <6yo for free except Cabanes or other exhibits for children
Cité des enfants: adults 12€, children 9€
Age: babies and 2+ years
Time: 1h30 but all in all you will probably stay half a day
Website: www.cite-sciences.fr