Eight Reasons Why Scitech is Better Than the Zoo

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I'm going out on a limb and declaring that of all the brilliant, kid-friendly attractions that Perth boasts, Scitech comes out a clear winner.

Here are my reasons why:



1. Cost
A Sci-trekker membership which gives you unlimited entry for a whole year is the bargain basement price of $44 for adults and $28 for a junior (4-15 years). A family membership of two adults and up to six kids (yup, you read that right Brady Bunch) is only $127.

To put it in perspective, a Zoo Friends membership is $75 for adults*, $45 for kids and there is no discount for a family.

Please don't send hate mail, I love the zoo and I am a proud Zoo friend but for value-for-money, Scitech wins hands down.



2. Parking
Recently City West has introduced boom gates in its undercover parking area and started charging parking fees of $5 for 2-3 hours and $15 for 3-4 hours. This is to discourage city workers and means more bays are freed up for Scitech and CityWest shoppers.

Don't want to spring for $15 parking? Fear not: take your parking ticket to the desk inside Scitech and they will validate it for you: that's eight hours of free parking. No messing around with coins or credit cards.

Free parking. All day. Undercover. Sorry, City of South Perth and Wilson Parking, but you simply can't compete with that.



3. It's inside
We've all been caught at the zoo, a thousand miles from anywhere when it starts to rain. The walk back to the car is a long one with wet, whinging toddlers and mud all over your favourite new shoes. Scitech is blissfully indoors, and if you park in the undercover basement you never need to see the light of day. Eugh, sunshine.

That means no hat, no sunscreen, so umbrellas and no puddles. You can leave that extra bag at home.



4. It's contained
All parents know that feeling when you turn around and you're missing one of the kids. The zoo is an impressive 41 acres, that's over 600 tennis courts.

Scitech, however, while apparently big enough to fit half of Perth during ToddlerWeek, is somewhat contained with only one main exit and entrance and no wild animals which eat small children**.

Discoverland is even more contained, as long as you park somewhere by the entrance, and even the most errant toddler can't escape.



5. It's all-inclusive
It's the extras that get you. Well, it's the kids that harass you for the extras: $5 to feed the giraffes, a $4 ride on the Carousel, photos with the lions.

At Scitech, everything (except the gift shop) is included, including whatever special exhibit they have on at the time, plus all the puppet, theatre and Planetarium shows. That's 27 shows a day.

6. They have seats
One of the best things about Scitech is when your little Scitrekker is going mad building a wall or making sure the balls don't stop rolling, you can park yourself on a padded seat and simply enjoy the serenity (of hundreds of kids barking orders to each other).

Sure, the zoo might have lions roaring and the gentle bellow of elephants, but the benches at Scitech are padded. No contest.



7. You can catch the train
The City West train station is a short stroll to Scitech, and once you add a train ride to lasers and rolling bowling balls you have a complete day out for kids of all ages. It's true that trains don't compare to the awesomeness that is the Ferry which goes to South Perth, but the walk is much shorter.

8. You can have a nap
Have you been to the Planetarium? The seats recline a bit like first class on an airplane (so I have been told), and the shows go for 50 minutes. That's a decent cat-nap by any standards, and it's so dark in there, not even your own kids will know you've dropped off.

Those in the know, know that the seats in the centre of the room afford the best view (although they're further away from the doors in case of motion-sickness). Don't let your snoring give you away.

So those are my eight reasons why Scitech is better than the Zoo. Controversial? Perhaps. Superficial? Definitely.

%%*I am aware of the fact that the zoo has significant costs associated with it that Scitech doesn't. Like all those animals they have to feed and plants they have to water. That sort of thing.

Oh, and I'm pretty sure that there aren't too many wild animals at the zoo that will eat your small child. Then again …
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Scitech is open every day of the year except Christmas Day and Boxing Day. Open from 10am to 5pm on weekends, school holidays and public holidays and from 9.30am to 4pm on weekdays during term.

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