Esplora Interactive Science Centre

Esplora, Malta’s Interactive Science Centre is an informal educational and recreation facility suited to visitors of all age groups. Esplora is located at Villa Bighi in Kalkara overlooking the Grand Harbour. The building was formerly used as a hospital by the Royal Navy. It consists of a number of buildings and outdoor spaces, all interconnected following an extensive restoration and development process. The primary aim is for visitors to experience science as being fun, exciting, and enjoyable. Visitors will also be able to engage with with science through dialogue with scientific experts amongst other activities. Science will be projected as being easy to understand and entertaining through a range of workshops, science shows and debates. Visitors will be able to see the relevance and the presence of science in their everyday lives. Esplora shall offer all the opportunity to discover and understand science at their own pace through a series of hands-on experiences and phenomena – related exhibits. In this way, it will communicate the importance of the scientific processes: consisting of questioning, predicting, experimenting, analyzing and making conclusions. Features within Esplora include a Planetarium, an Outdoor Science Activity Park, an Activity Centre as well as interactive exhibition halls catering for every age and interest. The exhibition entitled “Villa Bighi and its Medical History” shall be housed in the Cot Lift, the entrance to Esplora for visitors arriving by boat, and shall feature artefacts and memorabilia from the time when Villa Bighi was used as a hospital. The novel hands-on exhibits and unique elements of the Centre, as well as the recreational areas including a café, will make Esplora one Malta’s top attractions. The project is being led by the Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST) and is part financed by the EU through the European Regional Development Fund