Museum of Illusions Orlando

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Ready for some mind-bending fun? Step into the Museum of Illusions with friends or family at Orlando's ICON Park. Beneath the towering Wheel at the ICON (formerly the Orlando Eye), enter the deceptively low-slung orange building to expand your mind and learn how some of the most common optical illusions occur.



While the order with which you may check the illusions may vary, don't be surprised if you miss some on your first time through. We found the best way to confirm we'd done everything we wanted to accomplish was to check the photos at the end … go back and do anything you may have inadvertently skipped.

First stop for us was the rock wall. Only two of us could participate at a time, and no bell at the top, but great fun as a first event.

Next, read the wall art that really are illusions and spend the time to figure it out. Yes, it adds to the time you'll spend at the Museum, but it's the best way for the edu-tainment promised. This combination of education and entertainment is every mother's dream.



Our next stop served our individual heads on a platter. This is where I learned the value of checking out photos in advance so that you can have the best idea of where to look. With each adjustment, the illusion became that much more captivating.



Some of the illusions are surprisingly difficult to perform. In one, we three entered the room and leaned backwards… perspective and mirrors combined to provide the image of falling.

Pro Tip: The staff recommends you ask for their help if you want your entire group in photos. Take them up on this. Their expertise adds to the illusion.



The surprisingly rigorous trick occurred with an iron rung ladder on the far side of a mirrored wall. It took significant strength to hold on with the left arm and contort the right into some fairly majestic sights. Funny or profound, your choice.



Continuing through the museum, the mirrored never-ending room proves the biggest challenge is knowing where to put your camera.
With perspective worthy of Peter Jackson, you can be larger, smaller, or flying through the air.

For the vertigo prone, forewarned is forearmed when you enter the cylinder with flashing lights. No one I saw enter made it through without falling to one side or the other. It's remarkable how the illusion can trick your senses, and make you laugh as it happens.



Ever short a player for a card game? One of our favorite illusions was the ability to play poker … all by yourself. We were especially surprised to find only one stool physically present, it really seemed like there were two or three.

Take the time to play and learn through a spectrum of illusions that allow you to pose, climb, and move around floors and walls. While it's not a common thing for adults, perhaps it should be.

Challenging our assumptions of the world in a playful way is one guarantee of new thoughts about how to improve things in the future.



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