Activities & Days Out / 12 August, 2026 / Ellie Thompson

Mind-Bending Family Fun At The Museum Of Illusions London

Looking for something a little different to do with the kids in London? We stepped inside the brand-new Museum of Illusions on Tottenham Court Road for a brilliantly bonkers afternoon of shrinking children, impossible rooms and plenty of ‘how on earth did they do that?’ moments.

There are museums where you spend your time reminding the children not to touch anything. And then there’s the Museum of Illusions. Here, touching, trying, climbing in and generally getting involved is very much the point.

New to Tottenham Court Road, the Museum of Illusions London is an interactive playground of optical illusions, mind-bending rooms and visual trickery designed to make you question what your eyes are telling you.

With more than 70 interactive exhibits to discover, this isn’t really a museum in the traditional sense. There are no hushed galleries or glass cabinets. Instead, children – and grown-ups – become part of the exhibits themselves.

And yes, your camera roll is going to take quite a hit.

A Museum Where Kids Can Get Stuck In

The biggest win for families is how hands-on everything is. Rather than simply looking at exhibits, you’re encouraged to step inside them, work them out and see what happens.

There are perspective-changing rooms, optical illusions, puzzles and installations dotted throughout the museum. Some take seconds to understand. Others will have the whole family standing around trying to work out exactly what your brain is getting wrong.

It’s playful, but there’s plenty of science going on behind the scenes too. The illusions demonstrate how our eyes and brains process things such as size, perspective, colour and movement, with explanations helping children understand why what they’re seeing isn’t necessarily what’s really there.

Basically, they’re learning without anybody having to announce that they’re learning. Always a win.

Shrink The Kids – No Magic Wand Required

One of the most fun things about the Museum of Illusions is becoming part of the illusion yourself.

The Ames Room plays with perspective to make one person appear enormous while someone standing just a few feet away looks tiny. Naturally, putting children in one corner and parents in the other makes for some excellent photographs.

Elsewhere, you can walk into a giant kaleidoscope, find yourself surrounded by reflections, watch still images seemingly spring to life and encounter rooms that completely mess with your sense of balance and perspective.

There are also plenty of installations designed specifically with photographs in mind. You can appear to climb up the side of a building, serve somebody’s head on a platter or multiply family members around a cloning table.

The children loved seeing the finished photos almost as much as taking part.

The Vortex Tunnel

Then there are the experiences that make you question whether your feet are working properly. The Vortex Tunnel is a great example.

The walkway itself isn’t moving, yet the rotating surroundings convince your brain otherwise. You know perfectly well that you’re walking along a stable surface, but persuading your body of that fact is another matter entirely.

Cue plenty of wobbling, grabbing onto the rails and children finding the whole thing hilarious. You come out dizzy (well, I did) and there’s a conveniently positioned bench to sit on while you catch your bearings.

It’s exactly the sort of exhibit that makes this attraction work so well for mixed-age families. You’re not simply watching the kids have fun. Everyone gets involved.

Surprisingly Educational

What we particularly liked was the balance between silliness and science. It would be very easy for an attraction like this to become a series of Instagram photo opportunities. (Our fav was the Downing Street scene!) There are certainly plenty of those, but there’s more substance to it than that.

Each illusion has an explanation behind it, introducing children to the science of perception in a way that feels accessible and fun.

Why does one person suddenly look enormous? Why does something appear to move when it isn’t moving at all? Why can two identical objects look completely different depending on what surrounds them?

For curious children, there’s lots to talk about as you make your way around.

Of course, whether they actually want to stop and read every explanation when the next bonkers-looking room is waiting for them is another matter.

Brilliant For Photos

A fully charged phone is essential. Some of the illusions only really reveal themselves when you see the resulting photograph, and there are lots of opportunities for funny family pictures along the way.

The staff are on hand to explain how exhibits work and help you get the right angle for photographs, which makes a difference. Some illusions need to be viewed or photographed from a particular position before everything suddenly clicks into place.

It’s one of those rare family attractions where you come away with photos everyone actually wants to look at afterwards, rather than 47 slightly blurry pictures of the backs of your children’s heads.

How Long Do You Need?

We’d allow around an hour to explore, but how quickly you get around will probably depend on your children’s age and how long you spend playing with each exhibit – not to mention how determined you are to get the perfect photograph.

It’s compact enough that younger children shouldn’t become exhausted halfway through, but there’s enough going on to keep everyone moving from one thing to the next.

Its central location is another bonus. You’ll find the Museum of Illusions at 15–17 Tottenham Court Road, making it easy to combine with lunch, shopping or another London attraction.

It’s also an excellent rainy-day option – something every parent planning a day out in London should probably have tucked up their sleeve.

Is The Museum Of Illusions London Good For Kids?

Absolutely. What we enjoyed most was that this felt like a genuinely shared family experience.

There’s enough visual silliness to entertain younger children, puzzles and science for older kids and plenty for adults to have a go at too. Nobody needs to trail dutifully behind while the attraction caters entirely to one age group.

It’s colourful, interactive and just the right side of ridiculous. For families who have done the traditional London museums and fancy something completely different, the Museum of Illusions is a very fun addition to the capital.

Book Your Visit

Ready to put your senses to the test? Head to Tottenham Court Road and discover more than 70 illusions, interactive installations and mind-bending rooms at the Museum of Illusions London.

Museum of Illusions London
15–17 Tottenham Court Road
London W1T 1BJ

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