Family-Friendly Entertainment Centers in the Manila Metropolitan Area

Educational, diverse, and most importantly, fun! These are some of the basic elements parents or caregivers consider when checking out attractions suitable for children. And when traveling with kids, it’s important that they enjoy and have a good time as well. Create shared memories with the children while exploring the Manila Metropolitan Area, the country’s entertainment hub, which offers some of the best interactive museums, amusement parks, and zoos.

The Science Museum – Mind Museum is located in Bonifacio, Taguig, and it is an excellent treasure trove of knowledge for curious and young minds. The museum is situated in JY Campos Park, covering an area of 12,500 square meters. It showcases over 250 interactive exhibits divided into five fascinating galleries: Atom, Life, Universe, Earth, and Technology. This project, owned by the Bonifacio Art Foundation, is a source of pride for Filipinos, as most of the displays are works of local artists and craftsmen who collaborated with local and international scientists to accurately depict scientific principles.

The Science Museum is not limited to its indoor exhibits; it also has two outdoor sites: ‘Science in the Park’ featuring four play areas – Water, Math, Music, and Living, as well as a rich and abundant garden known as JY Campos Park. The museum facilities include an auditorium, two classrooms, and a laboratory.

What better way to teach children about marine life than to let them explore up close the enchanting beauty of the underwater world? Manila Ocean Park, with its Oceanarium, allows you and your children to do just that and more. In the Oceanarium, the whole family can enjoy a pleasant stroll through a 25-meter tunnel submerged in water, surrounded by 14,000 marine creatures belonging to over 200 different species, many of which are endemic to the Philippines and Southeast Asia. For a unique experience, the aquatic park also offers glass-bottom boat rides for those young visitors who prefer to observe the subaquatic creatures beneath their little feet.

The park also presents entertaining and educational shows featuring South American sea lions in the Sea Lion Show. You’ll also have the opportunity to marvel at the fascinating jellyfish, known as the “dancers of the sea,” gracefully gliding in the water in the Jellyfish Exhibit. In the evenings, you can witness the spectacular Musical Fountain Show, a dazzling performance combining lasers, water, and illustrated characters from the underwater world.

In Manila, Roxas Boulevard corner South Drive, also known as the Children’s Museum, is a museum designed for young explorers. Allow your children to think, learn, and discover new things while using their senses in this interactive museum. The museum also offers monthly activities and events in which children can participate. Artworks and handmade crafts created by children are also displayed in the gallery.

The museum’s facilities include a library where you can join storytelling sessions with other children, a souvenir shop filled with educational books and games that you can purchase and take home, a theater for concerts, performances, and theater presentations, and a playground. The museum also has a multipurpose hall that can be used for gatherings and family celebrations.

Frontera Verde Ortigas Avenue, Pasig City
This wildlife park, mostly located inside a building, provides you with a glimpse into the lives of animals in nature, such as white tigers, lions, and red pandas from the Philippines, all through a transparent glass wall. The view, as you correctly guessed, resembles Noah’s Ark. Young guests can feed rabbits, chickens, and even goats. Right next to the animal enclosure is Fun Ranch, where children can play and enjoy amusing rides. Afterward, parents can engage in some serious shopping at the nearby stalls.

Pasay City in the Mall of Asia Complex

The ice skating rink, Olympic-sized, is located within the mall complex. You can try ice skating alongside young and professional skaters. The place also offers official lessons for those who want to learn how to walk and glide on ice.

In a variety of malls from the SM chain in the metropolitan Manila area, you and your children can enjoy a wide range of different attractions in SM Storyland amusement parks. These parks are considered among the largest indoor amusement parks in the country. The SM Storyland network is part of the family entertainment center owned by SM Prime Holdings, consisting of six indoor parks and one outdoor park with over 80 children’s attractions.

The most popular branch in the network is the only outdoor amusement park, Bay Amusement Park. This entertainment strip stretches over 1.5 kilometers and offers a variety of attractions for visitors. The most popular of these attractions is the giant Ferris wheel, from which you can enjoy a panoramic view of the shopping complex and the nearby buildings. Additionally, there’s the massive Viking ship ride, where people are securely fastened with chest harnesses, and the ship swings back and forth, growing more and more thrilling with each swing.