Planetarium - Planetario de Madrid

Close to the IMAX, the Planetarium has seasonal exhibitions on the solar system as well as 45- minute shows. Like the IMAX, the narration here is only in Spanish and may test your kids' interest in the heavens if they are non-Spanish speakers.

Address Parque Tierno Galván, Legazpi, South of centre

Transport Metro Arganzuela-Planetario .
Telephone 91 467 34 61
Shows vary; phone to check. Closed 1st 2wks Jan.

Admission €3.40; €1.50 2-14s, over-65s.

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Ice Palace - Palacio de Hielo

The Ice Palace is a huge leisure complex dominated by a 1,800-square-metre ice rink. With a curling and skating school, a 24-lane bowling alley and a 15-screen cinema this is good option for a rainy day with teenagers. The site, out towards Barajas Airport, also has a shopping centre and a nursery for kids aged three to 11.

Address C/Silvano 77, Eastern suburbs
Transport Metro Canillas.
Telephone 91 716 01 59
Open Sept-May 8.45pm-10pm Wed, Thur; 5pm-11.30pm Fri; noon-3pm, 5-11.30pm Sat; noon-3pm, 5-10pm Sun. Closed June-Aug.

Admission €4-€10.

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Faunia (zoo/theme park)

Part zoo, part theme park, Faunia recreates the world's different ecosystems in a series of domes. Best of the bunch is the Amazon jungle house of Faunia, which echoes with the screech of exotic birds; an intense tropical storm is simulated every half hour. And in summer Penguin World of Faunia, an impressive reconstruction of a polar zone, where you can see the little fellas zipping about, is wildly popular. Faunia is not a cheap day out and queues can be long, but it is worth every cent.

Address

Avda de las Comunidades 28,
Eastern suburbs
Transport Metro Valdebernardo.
Telephone 91 301 62 10
Open Feb, Mar 10am-6pm Wed-Sun. Apr, May, last 2wks Sept 10am-8pm daily. June-mid Sept 10am-9pm daily. Oct, Nov 10am-7pm Wed-Sun. Dec 10am-5.30pm Wed-Sun. Closed Jan.

Admission €22; €16 3-12s, over-60s; free under-3s.

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Madrid Travel Guide: Railway Museum - Museo del Ferrocarril

Housed in the elegant but disused Delicias station, with ironwork by Gustave Eiffel, Madrid's railway museum has an evocative collection of models, old locomotives, railway equipment and memorabilia. There is also a room dedicated to clocks, including the one that marked time when Spain's first ever train chugged from Barcelona to Mataró. Here in the Railway Museum, you can climb on the trains, have a drink in an old restaurant car or watch film footage of Spanish railways. This great Railway Museum for kids offers occasional theatre performances, a bring-and-buy market for model train enthusiasts, and more. The Railway Museum is located about 100 yards off the main road, behind the national railway offices.

Address Paseo de las Delicias 61

Transport Metro Delicias .

Telephone 902 22 88 22

Open 10am-3pm Tue-Sun. Closed Aug.

Admission €3.50; €2 concessions. Free to all Sat

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Madrid Travel Guide: Natural History Museum - Museo de Ciencias Naturales

The Natural Science Museum occupies two spaces in a huge building overlooking a sloping garden on the Castellana. Much of the north wing is given over to temporary exhibitions: generally a couple of small-scale ones are held annually and a larger, more ambitious one, lasting about a year, is organised every 18 months. They tend to be hands-on, interactive and fun for kids. Permanently in this wing is 'Mediterranean Nature and Civilisation', a large exhibition of Mediterranean flora and fauna, illustrating the region's biodiversity.

The smaller space to the south contains a simpler, more old-fashioned presentation of fossils, dinosaurs and geological exhibits. A replica of a diplodocus dominates the two-floor space, surrounded by real skeletons of a glyptodont (giant armadillo) and other extinct animals. The most distinguished skeleton here, though, is that of the Megatherium americanum, a bear-like creature from the pleistocene period unearthed in Luján, Argentina, in 1788.

Address C/José Gutiérrez Abascal 2
Transport Metro Gregorio Marañón .
Telephone 91 411 13 28
Open Sept-June 10am-6pm Tue-Fri; 10am-8pm Sat; 10am-2.30pm Sun. July, Aug 10am-6pm Tue-Fri; 10am-3pm Sat; 10am-2.30pm Sun.
Admission €3; €2.40 concessions.

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Madrid Travel Guide: La Casa Encendida - The 'Burning House'

This exciting new multidisciplinary centre in a large neo-Mudéjar building was conceived as a space for cultural interchange. Spread over four floors, the 'Burning House' is directed by José Guirao, former director of the Reina Sofía. It offers exhibitions principally by emerging artists working in all genres, but also features cutting-edge performance art and music (including short seasons of video artists) and activities for kids. The centre also includes a fair-trade shop, a library and classrooms for courses in, above all, IT and languages.

Address
Ronda de Valencia 2
Transport Metro Embajadores.
Telephone 902 43 03 22
Open 10am-10pm daily.
Admission free.

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Madrid Travel Guide: Cosmocaixa

Kids and adults uncover the mysteries of science via hands-on interactive exhibits. The clik de los niños (three- to eight-year-olds), where processes can be tried out, is popular, as is the toca, toca (touch, touch) area for small children, where there are animals to stroke.

Address
C/Pintor Velázquez s/n,
Alcobendas
Transport
Bus 157 from Plaza Castilla.
Telephone 91 484 52 00
Open 10am-8pm Tue-Sun.
Admission €3; €1.50 under-16s; €1 over-65s; free under-7s.

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