Museum of Illusions Atlanta: Experience Mind-Bending Fun

The Museum of Illusions Atlanta confuses the human mind with its never-ending brain twisters, visual oddities, and baffling (yet hysterical) photo opportunities. Up is down, black is white, right is left, and every other mind-altering direction goes at the Museum of Illusions Atlanta. Kids will LOVE the new museum, which opened this weekend at Atlantic Station, for its hands-on approach of upending everything you see in the world.

Fall down the rabbit hole of this topsy-turvy Wonderland to take a whole new look at the world of through the Museum of Illusions Atlanta!

Enjoy even more Atlanta museums by checking out some of our favorite spots to bring kids, including the Center for Puppetry Arts, the Georgia Aquarium, and World of Coke! 

Mirrors and mind-bending patterns push the fun in the Infinity Room. Photo courtesy Museum of Illusions

Museum of Illusions Atlanta: Matter over Mind

Museum of Illusions Atlanta is the newest, and largest, location open from the private museum conglomerate. The popular attraction has many locations, including Orlando, New York, and Philadelphia, as well as international spots in Paris, Dubai, and Madrid. Since everything is bigger and better in The A-T-L, the Museum of Illusions (MOI) upped its game here by creating the largest of all its present locations, with 10,700 square feet of puzzles, illusions, and tricky exhibits!

Mark Twain visits every guest upon arrival at Museum of Illusions Atlanta...just watch out for those eyes! Photo by author

Illusion Rooms

Kids will love wandering inside the various illusion rooms. The Tilted Room shakes any type of perspective around; the Reversed Room puts your kids upside down (or perhaps right-side up) with a change in horizon; and the Vortex Tunnel will have parents (and probably kids) holding on to railings for dear life as they walk through. (Seriously, if you or your children have any type of motion sickness, just take a look at the Vortex Tunnel through the entrance but don't attempt to walk through...it's complete sensory confusion.)

One of our personal favorite illusion rooms is the one where you get to pretend your head is literally on a platter. I won't give away the solution to the illusion (on any of these), but this one is a good time, especially to catch on camera.

This is what happened after I demanded my kids eat more green veggies. Oops! Photo by author

Installations

Museum of Illusions installations rely on classic brain teasers, and many seem to be created out of the insanely creative geniuses who work at MOI. Some of these interactive installations work best with two people (ideally of similar height), so siblings or children will love melting their minds together. Kids can swap noses with each other, make limbs disappear, and clone themselves at various installations. 

A great installation is the Beuchet Chair, where kids can instantly outgrow their parents with the help of smoke and mirrors (and again, an appropriately placed camera). Kids will also love the full-body pin impression installation (like those toys where you make an impression of your hand through soft pins), where they can press their entire bodies into the installation and see what they look like from the other side.

Children will love "cloning" themselves at this installation! Photo courtesy of Museum of Illusions

Images

Unlike other museums that feature beautiful, yet static, art upon the walls, Museum of Illusions shows off images that change the way you view the world. This may date me but it reminds me when Magic Eye art hypnotized everyone straining to see 3D images back in the day. The images at Museum of Illusions are WAY less frustrating than those '90s agamographs (the official name for that type of art), and kids will love witnessing holograms—including the science about how they're made.

Check out eerie holograms and the science behind them! Photo by author

In addition to just being pretty, these images and optical illusions play with perspective and confuse vision as your mind tries to make sense of a nonsensical sight. Watch out for Mark Twain (and his wandering eyes) as you peruse the halls.

Museum of Illusions Atlanta: Know Before You Go

• Museum of Illusions Atlanta is located at Atlantic Station (near Publix) at 264 19th Street NW.
• Tickets start at $24 for children (ages 5-12), $29 for adults (ages 13 and over), $26 for seniors and military. Children under 4 are free. Guests are encouraged to purchase tickets early as they can sell out in advance.
• The museum is open seven days a week, Sunday-Thursday from 10am to 9pm, and Friday-Saturday from 10am to 10pm.
• Though MOI is made for all ages, toddlers and young children may not understand the illusions (and perhaps get a little scared). Stick with older kids, tweens and teens who can really appreciate the clever trickery.
• Make a whole day of your Atlantic Station MOI visit by grabbing lunch at one of the nearby restaurants, go shopping, catch a movie, and maybe stop by the Tiny Doors ATL studio.