What is the Paradox Museum?
The Paradox Museum joins the likes of Dopamine Land, the Twist Museum, the Balloon Museum and Bubble Planet on the ranks of what I can only describe as ‘Instagrammable immersive family attractions’. They’re 2024’s answer to the escape room fad of London circa 2018.
Where is the Paradox Museum?
Located in a plum spot in Knightsbridge, bang opposite Harrods, it’s palpably fancier than some of its peers, and on its first Sunday of operation was doing a roaring trade (we had timed tickets but it still took about half an hour to get in).
What happens at the Paradox Museum?
You’re not going to learn a lot about famous historical paradoxes here, although there are QR codes to scan if you’d like more information.
For the most part it leans on optical illusions and cool mirror-based tricks, less so actual paradoxes, though there are fun nods to things like Schrodinger's Cat, and a general tongue-in-cheek quality to the descriptions that separates it from the bland tone adopted by many comparable attractions. Some of it is just goofy fun: a sofa where one person’s torso sticks out of one side and another’s legs the other is nothing more than a photo opportunity, but a pretty good one. There are some broad-brush London allusions for the tourist crowd, from an upside down tube station to a David Bowie mural. I’m not above being pleased by this stuff and was particularly taken with the ‘paradox tunnel’, a room with rotating walls that makes you feel like you’re rotating (okay it’s an old ghost house trick but it’s pretty cool).
Is the Paradox Museum any good?
It is fun and the sort of thing you feel might make a good kids’ adjunct to an actual museum. On its own it feels a little lacking in thematic coherence. The queues are not ideal. And its star attraction was poorly handled. The ‘zero-gravity room’ is so popular that you need to reserve a spot in an online queue to see it, but this simply didn’t work on my phone and the member of staff I was directed to for help was impressively unsympathetic (I stuck my head around the corner and it seemed to be a big spinning padded room rather than a literal negation of gravity).
All in all the Paradox Museum feels on its way to being the sort of slick, slightly trashy attraction that slots seamlessly into the touristy bit of central London. You might head there after a tough morning at the Sherlock Holmes Museum or Madame Tussaud’s or a big sesh at Harrods itself. It seems to be somewhat struggling to deal with its crowd sizes, but it is early days.
How to get tickets for the Paradox Museum
Want to experience the illusions for yourself? Tickets start at £17.50 for children and £22 for adults, with concession and family discounts available. Each time slot allows you 90 minutes access to the attraction so you have plenty of time to make the most of every bit of fun. You can book your visit on the official website here.
On the hunt for more family-friendly fun? Check out the best things to do with kids in London