In this post, you’ll find my honest and spontaneous thoughts about the Explora Museum in Rome, which I visited with my 2-year-old daughter and my partner, and which, spoiler alert, I will visit again.
Simply put: I loved the place and was surprised because I expected to go there only as a chaperone, but instead, I had a great time with my little one and her dad.
Many recommend visiting this place just outside Rome’s historic center when the weather is bad, but this advice is a bit misleading. We visited Explora on a beautiful spring day when we could have been playing on a lawn, but instead, we wanted to do something different than the usual park. The choice turned out to be more than right.
Without further ado, I’ll reveal what the museum offers and many useful tips for visiting.
My Review and tips for visiting the Explora Museum in Rome
After hearing about this museum through word of mouth, I was hesitant to visit for months. The reason is that my daughter, like most toddlers, is very energetic and hardly stays still to look around, which is what I thought was done in all museums.
But Explora is obviously very different from a common museum, I don’t even know why it’s called that. In fact, a more suitable name to describe it would be: a place full of cool activities and games where children can run around freely followed by their parents.
We had a lot more fun here than at the Bioparco (aka Rome’s ethical zoo.)
Location and How to Get There
The museum is located in the Pinciano district, one of the city’s most “in” areas. With a very short walk, you reach the Borghese Gardens, another perfect place for families, and the beautiful Piazza del Popolo, right in the historic center.
Right on the street where the museum is located (address: Via Flaminia 62), there’s the tram stop for lines no. 2 and 19.
A few steps from the museum is the Flaminio-Piazza del Popolo metro A station.
We got there by car (we live in the countryside north of Rome). There’s no parking in the immediate vicinity of the museum, you have to move a bit in the nearby streets. Or you can use the parking garage in agreement with the museum (which has limited spaces).
Access to the museum
Access to the museum is at fixed times. During the period we visited, you could enter at 12, 3, and 5 PM. The visit, which is always independent, lasts 1 hour and 45 minutes, after which you exit quickly to allow for the tidying up of areas and the entrance of the next group.
We got in at 3 PM and found this time convenient, there were other families but I wouldn’t say it was crowded, quite the contrary.
Since we arrived more than an hour before our turn, after purchasing the paper ticket and asking all the questions we wanted to the very kind operator, we stopped to eat at the pizzeria inside the museum.
There’s also a small bar where you can get drinks or snacks, but it lacks tables.
Staying outside the museum is impossible for those with small children because there’s only a narrow sidewalk and then immediately the road where private cars and public transport pass.
Eating at the Museum (and Nearby)
Just past the entrance to the museum, we saw that a part of the space next to the ticket office included the famous Pizzeria Da Michele, one of the most famous in the world for Neapolitan pizza.
The pizzeria is known for hosting some scenes of the film set in Rome and Naples with Julia Roberts Eat Pray Love.
The girl who sold us the tickets naturally recommended eating at the pizzeria. We had in mind to grab some sliced pizza at Pizza Rustica, a street food shop a little further on, which my partner knew from his university days.
In the end, we still decided to eat at the museum’s pizzeria because it’s more convenient and there’s more space to sit (at least on a weekday).
We found the space comfortable, the atmosphere welcoming, and the staff very friendly and attentive. At this pizzeria, you eat pizza, salads, and two types of pasta that are Italian children’s favorites, namely with tomato sauce and in white (seasoned with oil and parmesan).
My daughter had the pasta, good quality and generous portion (€8), I had a plentiful fresh salad (€10) and dad had a pizza with raw ham (€14).
The only thing we didn’t like was the pizza dough which wasn’t cooked enough, maybe a problem with the oven temperature? The toppings were excellent.
Waiting
Since you can only enter at pre-established times and we arrived well in advance, we had to wait some more after exiting the pizzeria. Nothing could be more pleasant!
In the space between the building with the ticket office and the one that houses the museum proper, there is a play area that my daughter really enjoyed along with the other children we met there.
There are also benches to sit on and a small lawn.
I imagine that in summer and on busier days (weekends and holidays), the wait may not be too pleasant, since the space is limited. The consideration is relative to the fact that Explora is the only children’s museum in Rome, a metropolis with 4 million inhabitants.
Entrance
The entrance to the museum was one of the most exciting moments for me. It wasn’t easy to drag my daughter inside because she really liked the outdoor play area.
On a weekday in spring, at the 3 PM turn, we were about 40 people, including children.
After the staff scanned the ticket, we entered this bright and covered space, on two floors, not immense, but large enough for the attendance.
My daughter, as soon as she realized she was in a place that was made especially for her, dashed off following the flow of children running in all directions.
We followed her, and from that moment on, it went on like this until they announced over the loudspeaker that the turn was about to end and we had to drag her out by force.
The Museum
I’ll start by saying that there is a small area reserved for children from 0 to 3 years old, but we didn’t even see it at the beginning, because it was right to the right of the entrance and my daughter immediately ran forward. But that was better.
The many other areas that make up the ground floor, which is where children interact practically with the attractions, are surprising and we had so much fun, time flew.
Among those I remember (there was no time to look at the map, it’s not even necessary because it’s one big room), there are:
- The supermarket area with cash register and food
- The large interactive basin that showed some elements of hydraulics, such as pumps, but also had aprons and bowls for the typical Montessori puoring games. By the way, if your little children play here, they might need a change of clothes, keep that in mind.
- The area with tree trunks where you could hide
- The vegetable garden area
- The assembly line area where by pedaling and maneuvering handles you made colored balls progress along a path (this is my favorite)
- The area for coloring on a sheet by pedaling a unicycle. We didn’t do this because my daughter couldn’t reach the pedals, but we saw others doing it and it seemed fun, then you can take the drawing home.
- The train wagon
- The firefighter truck
The second floor is more “conceptual”, there are activities that include observing screens and making “economic” reasoning, we didn’t dwell on it because it was a bit boring, and our daughter is still too young.
The last half hour available my daughter spent in the area reserved for small children, where you enter without shoes (or covering the shoes with small plastic bags). She really enjoyed it. There are percussion instruments hanging on the wall and lots of soft cushions to climb on.
Pulling her away from there was not easy.
Recommended age
The museum features fun activities for children from 2 to 8 years old.
Bathrooms
The bathrooms are another plus point of this museum. There are 5 bathrooms that have toilets for children and adults and a sink. Two of the bathrooms also have a mat for changing diapers. Outside the bathrooms, there is a low sink for children.
Price
The ticket for adults costs €10, while for children the price is reduced according to age groups.
Wrap-up
Even though I was skeptical about this museum, I was quickly proven wrong. We all had a great time, tried all the games we were interested in, and the environment is more than welcoming.
The museum’s location is convenient: the museum is within walking distance of other pleasant places to visit with children, such as Piazza del Popolo and Borghese Gardens.
In a chaotic city like Rome, this museum is an oasis for children and parents.
The waiting areas are welcoming, the staff is very helpful. After visiting, I understand why there is also the option to purchase subscriptions.
I can’t wait to visit again!
But I have one objection: most of the objects and furnishings in the museum that children come into contact with are made of plastic.