Museum of Illusions
NYC is no stranger to unique pop-up museums. Attractions dedicated to candy, eggs, pizza and beyond have been arising all over the city, but you’ve never seen anything like the Museum of Illusions.
The franchise has been making an international impact with sites everywhere from Austria and Greece to Malaysia and Oman. Now Museum of Illusions is coming to the US in NYC on September 20 and Kansas City, Missouri next month. Best part? It’s open permanently.
This spot specializes in all things sensory and shocking. Exhibits will have the kids (and grown-ups) questioning their own perceptions. Five different rooms are waiting to be explored and conquered by your little ones. The Chair Illusion will teach ’em that we perceive the size of things based on surrounding objects. They can watch themselves grow and shrink in the blink of an eye in the Ames Room, then see their reflections everywhere in the Infinity Room’s many mirrors. Most unbelievable may be the Anti-Gravity Room, where they’ll see impossible feats like a ball rolling upwards and water flowing uphill.
Other head-scratching installations include a real-life Bottomless Pit, the Head on the Platter that’ll make your body disappear, The Mirage, which you’ll think is a 3-D object until you try to grab it, and the Hollow Face Illusion, which explores our human need to recognize faces in everythings we see. That’s not including the many holograms, optical illusions and photo illusions on the walls and around the installations and exhibits.
In addition to the museum’s exhibits, the Smart Playroom and Shop are must-sees. Try your hand at brainteasers called Dilemma games, wooden puzzles that break and grown your brain all at once. Attempt solving everything from puzzles to math queries to impossible knots, then shop for more illusions, games or trinkets to take home in the Smart Shop.
Tickets are $19 for adults, $15 for kids and $17 for students, seniors and military. Family tickets for two kids and two adults are also available for $53. Museum of Illusions New York is located at 77 Eighth Ave., New York, NY. For more information, call 212-645-3230 or visit newyork.museumofillusions.us.
