Not long ago we had the opportunity to visit and review Ripley’s Believe It or Not! London with my family. We hadn’t been there before so we were all pretty excited about visiting this well known London attraction. We don’t live too far from central London, so our journey was straight forward.
Before I start with my review. I would love if you could watch this video we filmed of the day. I hope that you like it! 🙂
I will start my post with a brief explanation of who Mr Ripley was and what he achieved so you can understand a little bit more about this fantastic attraction. Robert Ripley (1890–1949) was a cartoonist, explorer, reporter, adventurer, and collector, who travelled to 201 countries over 35 years seeking the odd, the unusual, and the unexplained.
He was nicknamed “The Modern Marco Polo”, and he acquired hundreds of exotic artefacts from around the world in his endless search for unbelievable stories to draw in his popular newspaper cartoon feature. Mr Ripley published lots of Believe It or Not! books and collections of his newspaper cartoon drawings. The success of the first book led to Ripley hosting a wildly successful live weekly radio show. After this he launched a weekly television show that was based on his successful radio show format. Ripley displayed some of his artefacts, drew cartoons on camera, and re-enacted fantastic unbelievable stories, followed by interviews with the actual “stars” of the stories.
Ripley’s television show was the first “reality” show and grew quickly in popularity until he had a heart attack while on stage. He will be remembered for creating one of the most recognised and used phrases in the English language: Believe It or Not!
In 1950, the first permanent Ripley’s Believe It or Not! attraction was launched in Florida. Today there are 32 Ripley’s Believe It or Not! attractions in ten countries, dozens of Ripley books, a huge internet web presence, and hundreds of television videos.
This attraction is ideal for family days out as your kids will be amazed with all the things that they can see and learn there. It is the ultimate home of the UNBELIEVABLE! Their imagination will run wild as they explore wonders from around the world all under one roof! They can see the Harry Potter Hungarian Horntail made from recycled bike parts, London’s Tower Bridge made from matchsticks and a transformer! The idea is for the whole family to experience a day out of the ordinary.
There are so many fantastic things to see there. Even my little Sienna who is only 2 years old had a great time walking around this amazing collection of very weird and wonderful things. You and the family get to step inside a world where the bizarre and the unbelievable come to life and amazement waits around every corner. Things I found particularly fascinating were an actual chunk of the Berlin Wall, Amazonian shrunken heads, a knitted Ferrari and a chewing gum sculpture! How fabulous is that?
There are lots of interesting areas within the whole exhibition, which include:
AMAZING ART
Gallery of Great – Here you can find a collection of amazing art created from unusual materials, including plastic cutlery, butterflies, laundry lint, toast, computer keys, matchsticks and even cow dung! I was amazed with this section
Famous Faces – Robert Ripley travelled the globe looking for the unusual and unexplained and was particularly fascinated by the Far East. We found many famous faces and icons here, including Michelle Obama made from bottle caps, Michael Jackson made out of sweets, The Duchess of Cambridge made from lipstick kisses on a canvas and even incredible art made from toast! This was fantastic!
CURIOUS CULTURE
Exotic Treasures – Here you will find rare objects such as decorated cannibal skulls, shrunken heads and intricately designed headdresses. We went through the Hall of Exotica in search of these rare relics and admired the Beauty Room to discover how beauty is perceived in different cultures around the globe. This was very interesting.
REMARKABLE PEOPLE
Mr Ripley was fascinated with people with amazing talents or could perform phenomenal feats. One such person was one of his friends, Robert Wadlow, a gentleman with a height of 8ft 11 inches making him the tallest man to have ever lived! Bella was very interested about the story of this man and I must admit we all were!
They have so many curious characters such as a Lizard man who has had a lot of body modifications in order to look like a real lizard! How odd is that? We also saw Johnny Eckhardt who was born with a truncated torso but went on to enjoy an extensive career in entertainment and the lighthouse man who is a Chinese street guide who drilled a candle into his head in order to give night tours of the city of Chongqing!
INCREDIBLE NATURE
Ripley was intrigued with animal oddities, pre-historic discoveries, space-age souvenirs, curious creatures and much more.
The section also has prehistoric shark teeth, an albino alligator, whale harpoon and much more! This area was interesting but wasn’t my girls favourite though.
More interesting and fun activities to do with your kids:
Marvellous Mirror Maze
This “infinity effect” maze gives the illusion of continuing hallways, when in fact you are at a dead end! The challenge here is to find your way out again; It could be backwards or forwards. This was actually very fun but there was a moment when I felt scared because we couldn’t find our way back! Bella loved it!
Impossible LaseRace
This activity comes as part of your ticket fee, and can be found towards the end of the tour. Bella was really keen to give it a go. It’s a kind of ‘Mission Impossible’ style challenge set against the clock, in which you need to jump, crawl and twist your way between the various laser beams placed throughout this laser maze. Bella had a go at the LaseRace with Daddy whilst I stayed outside with little Sienna. You can choose various difficulty levels when playing which was a good idea. They thought it was great fun.
Black Hole
The black hole is a rotating vortex tunnel. As you enter it, you will feel that the walkway is moving beneath you but you soon realise that your eyes just might be deceiving you. Despite this, it still feels like the walkway is moving! This was a super experience which we all loved.
As you can see there is plenty to see at Ripley’s Believe It or Not! London. It is an attraction that can be visited not only during the summer holidays but at any time of the year. It is very interesting and I’m sure your kids will find it fascinating!
This attraction is located next to Piccadilly Circus Tube Station in Central London (Address: The London Pavilion, 1 Piccadilly Circus, London W1J 0DA) which is very easy to locate. Also it is always better to buy your tickets in advance as you can save about 15% compared to Ripley’s price on the door. It opens daily including Christmas Day and Bank Holidays from 10 am to Midnight. How fantastic is that?
They also have audio guides in different languages, a coffee shop and a gift shop. It is also a great option for schools and groups as it is a fun and educational visit! You can see their different ticket prices HERE. You can also find more about them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or on YouTube.
What do you think of Ripley’s Believe It or Not! London? Have you been there before? What area did you like the most? Will you take your kids to this attraction? Leave a comment below so I can read what you think about it.
*Disclosure: I was sent family tickets to go to Ripley’s Believe It or Not! London in exchange for a blog post. However all thoughts and opinions are my own.
Thanks for stopping by,
Love you all ❤️
Franca 💋
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Very interesting. Been by it and in the reception area many times. Children looked like they were having a great time.
I’ve seen it loads of time in London but never been – will have to next time I’m down! I’ve been in a similar black hole thing before – it just made me feel sick haha #kcacols
Oh this sounds amazing and so interesting! It’s somewhere that’s been on my list of places to visit in London for a while now so good to see more about it. x #kcacols
You get to do so many exciting things! I’d love to go to this but it’s so expensive and my kids are too young really. I’d enjoy it though #KCACOLS
This looks like a really fun day out for kids. I’ve never been to a Ripley’s but have always wanted to go. #kcacols
Your pics look so good. It looks like you had great fun. I went about a year ago and I thought it was good but a bit oldish Probably me being too demanding…#KCACOLS
I’ve never been to a Ripleys attraction before but looks like you guys had so much fun! The art made out of random objects is so cool #KCACOLS
I LOVE Ripley’s. The books are fascinating and the attraction is definitely worth a visit. It is one of the few attractions that everyone will enjoy – from young kids to the adults. I hadn’t realised that there were so many outlets round the world – I wouldn’t mind visiting each one. Thanks for hosting #KCACOLS
Looks like a fun place for everyone. My girls would love this place…esp the vortex and the mirror exhibits.
#KCACOLS
How fun!! My dad took me to the Ripleys museum in QLD Aus when I was younger and I had the best time! I can’t wait to go back when my son is a bit older! #KCACOLS
Sounds like a fun family day out, great detailed review. Must check it out next time I’m in London. # KCACOLS
I keep meaning to bring my son here, he is very much into the weird and wonderful which it looks like Ripleys is full of! #kcacols
This looks like a brilliant day out and as always I love your photos! I can’t wait to take Josh to all these sorts of things when he’s old enough xx #KCACOLS
I’ve never heard of this place but anywhere with life-like models is good for me! #KCACOLS
This looks like a great day out! Maybe when Arthur is a bit older I will take him here. Hubby would love it!!!! #kcacols
This is just around the corner from me but ive never been in! I thought my daughter was too young (she’s 2.5) looks like she might actually enjoy it! Thanks for reviewing and sharing #KCACOLS
This is the first I have heard of this attraction, I have to say it looks great! I can’t wait until my two are old enough to enjoy experiences like these.
#KCACOLS
I didn’t even know about this place! thanks for an amazing write up! I really love that there’s also a dance floor there xx
Oh wow this looks awesome! We didn’t manage to make it to the one when we were in Florida even though we passed it daily. I will make sure to add it to our must see list.
And OMG 8ft tall?! Amazing! #KCACOLS
It’s great to know Sienna enjoyed it as I’m always looking for fun days out with Taormina who is two and it can be difficult to suss out what is age suitable. It looks like a great day and worth the venture into London for. x #KCACOLS
What a fantastic post! Looks like you had a great day out. I’ve not been to a Ripleys establishment yet, but I must put it on the families ‘to do’ list (when the little guy is a bit older, perhaps). Thank you so much for a fun post, and as always, hosting the marvellous #KCACOLS.
I’d never thought about taking Rian here, but judging by this I think he would love it! #KCACOLS
We live near London but I didn’t think Gray would be interested in something like Ripleys, now you’ve officially changed my mind! Looks like a day out he would actually really love, will have to give it a go! xx #KCACOLS
I was reading this thinking ‘I’m sure I’ve heard of this before…’ I have walked past it often but never been in. I’m disappointed I haven’t now as it looks amazing! This is definitely on the list for family days out soon.
#KCACOLS
I’ve always wondered what this *actually* was and it look really fun. My LO is still a bit too young for this but I’ll definitely look into it for an outing next year or so when she’s a bit older!
Looks like a really fun day out for kids. I’ve never been to a Ripley’s though
#kcacols
I’ve been to the one in San Francisco, so much fun! Great pics 🙂 #KCACOLS
Wow this looks so different from when we last went about 5 years ago! Might have to swing by. Although the black hole was there when we last went and was terrifying – I just wanted to sit down in the middle and wait until I fell to my death! #KCACOLS
I’ve always wanted to go there, my brother in law has been and said it was good, definitely one to check out when our sons a little older!! #KCACOLS
Love Ripleys…I went there with my hubbie pre children. Will definitely have to go back with the kids one day as it looks amazing fir them! #KCACOLS
I love the look of Ripley’s it seems great fun! Your photos as always are so fabulous! Thanks for hosting xx
#KCACOLS
I actually didn’t even know this existed (although I don’t get to travel to London very often) but it looks like loads of fun. The photos are fab too. #KCACOLS
I really want to get to Ripleys at some point, it looks so fun! I’m hoping that once Marianna is potty trained it will be much easier to get to London for days out without me dying of stress, lol. x #KCACOLS
I’ve never been to a Ripleys before but it looks like a great day out. Definitely one to keep in mind for when my little ones are older! #KCACOLS
Oh my, that looked like a fun day out for you guys! Great pics and really interesting to get the background on someone I’ve heard about but knew not much about – thank you for sharing! Alison x #KCACOLS
Melt eldest went with her school a couple of years ago and loved it. She is inspiring that we go with her and after your thoughts on it, it’s inspiring us to take the request far more seriously #KCACOLS
Ooh, this sounds like great fun. I had never even heard of it. I don’t know whether Cygnet might get a bit scared by some of it. I’ll let you know. Pen x #KCACOLS
I did not know anything about Ripley before, so enjoyed reading it. Looks like a great place. #KCACOLS
This place looks amazing. We’re hoping to do a London trip with the kids at some point and this is definitely going on the list! Great pictures.
#KCACOLS
I have never been but would quite like to – it looks like such fun x
How interesting! I cant believe I’ve lived in London all this time and never known what this place was all about. I’d heard of it in the past, but never really knew what it was so its great to see and read your review. Definitely somewhere I can see being a great family day out once our little ones are a little older! It looks like you all had a great time, fab review as always 🙂 Emily #KCACOLS
I’ve never heard of this attraction before, or Mr Ripley but I would absolutely love this! Sounds like a fantastic day out and one that would really get kids’ imaginations going. Brilliant review – you’ve really made me want to visit! Perhaps the next time we visit London as a family xx #KCACOLS
I didn’t realise there was one in London! We went to the Florida one years ago when our oldest was 2. Our 3 would get so much out of it now and would love it. Thanks for sharing xx #KCACOLS
This looks fab! We’re going to London for my birthday next month for a family day out but hadn’t decided what to do yet. Will have a look at this 🙂 #KCACOLS
Looks great! We went to the one in New York before we had the kids, would love to take them to the London one x #KCACOLS
Wow, I’ve never been but that looks fantastic! Such a variety of things to see and do. I would love it – never mind the kids. Next time we do a short break to London I want to check this out. #KCACOLS
Wow, I have always wanted to go but living 4hrs from London means that theres always other things to do when we go to London! I also had no idea there are 32 attractions around the world! What a fantastic day out 🙂
#KCACOLS
That looks so much fun and child friendly place to visit X #kcacols
It looks like a fab day out! I’ve never been but may have to organise a trip to London soon with the family and pay it a visit #KCACOLS
Oh my goodness! This looks like so much fun! So jealous. I really wish that Arizona had this. I think there might be one in California, but don’t quote me on that! 😉
#KCACOLS
This looks like so much fun! We meant to visit when we were down in London in april but didn’t find the time, I think we will definitely make sure we go next year though, my eldest would love that, and me too! Fab photos and it looks like you had a lovely day together too. #kcacols
Looks like a fab day – so much fun for the kids! Thanks for hosting #kcacols great to join in x
This looks like a really fun family day out. It’s definitely something I’ll keep in mind for when my daughter gets a little bit bigger. #KCACOLS
Looks brilliant – my 4yo would love it.
Thanks for hosting #kcacols
We went recently and really enjoyed it. I thought it was really good value and quite a lot to do for the girls. #KCACOLS
I have always wanted to go here. So incredibly fascinating! I’ve actually never been to London so when I do get there I will definitely check Ripleys out #KCACOLS
I haven’t heard of it before but I am so glad that I have read this review as it looks great. Thank you!
mainy
#KCACOLS
My boys love the Ripleys Believe it or Not books and TV programme – they would absolutely LOVE to visit that place! Sadly, it’s so far away for us. Maybe one day… #KCACOLS
I have seen this place so many times when we lived in London but never went – what a Londoner! Must go when we return – the kids will love it. Perfect for a rainy day out during the school hols! #KCACOLS
It looks fun, lots to do. I think I would like to try the laser challenge! I didn’t know he invented the phrase “believe it or not!” #KCACOLS
I’ve never been to one of these thinking Olivia wouldn’t like it but now I have read your review I think she might! Your photos are brilliant looks like you had a great time
I know a lot of the older stuff from Ripleys is mostly debunked but I do think it looks like a lot of fun.
#kcacols
This looks like a perfect place for my kids and us! haha My oldest is 12 and LOVES these sort of things.
#KCACOLS
This places look incredible. My kids would love it. Hopefully get to visit one day.