Biosphere 2
Earth On A Small Scale
Back to Biosphere 2
Terrific tour, very fascinating to see. Read the true story online before going. The tour skips all the wierdness that caused it to be built and the way "science" was conducted during the experiment. They also skip the relationship problems and sanity problems the "crew" encountered. The tour would be a lot more fun if they included that and not make it any less interesting or devalue the real science that is now being conducted. Real science is now being conducted there by Univ. of Arizona. Absolutely, positively worth the visit. For fun watch Biodome with Pauley Shore before going after reading online about what went wrong and why with the experiment. None of the pretour movies are interesting enough to watch they are so sanitized about the how and why of the beginning that they are super boring. If you need to kill time before the must see, must do tour, enjoy the walk on the grounds from the visitor center/ticket booth to the start of the tour.
Reviewed by: A Yahoo! Contributor from on Aug 30 2009
I would have preferred a longer tour, but it was very informative and I greatly enjoyed it. I was glad to finally see the inside of Biosphere and its inner workings. The tour guide wasn't very friendly, but you could walk around the habitat by yourself and look at the living quarters & animal pens.
Reviewed by: A Yahoo! Contributor from on Mar 27 2007
I'd always been interested in the biosphere, and I was pleased to have the chance to tour it. The science involved was fascinating. The structure was beautiful, the sphere and the big greenhouses. I felt like somebody discovering a previously unknown civilization, and wondering about the inhabitants - where were they? what were they like? It almost looked as though they would be back soon, had just stepped out for a moment. The system that was used to keep air pressure constant inside the sphere was spooky but particularly interesting. I really enjoyed the tour.
Reviewed by: A Yahoo! Contributor from on Jan 24 2007
I took my friend as a treat and we were sorely disappointed. The tour guide had an accent so thick we couldn't understand him 80% of the time. We were told upon entering that we HAD to stay with the tour the entire time and that we could NOT go back to leave under any circumstances. We wanted to leave after 15 mins. and get our money back but could not. The receptionist said, "Don't worry, just write to the email address on the back of the brochure and they will refund your money." I was contacted by John Adams, Associate Director for Public Outreach, whatever that is, only this morning to be told that I would not be receiving a refund but could go again for free anytime! Not only is the idea of this absurd, but I live in Hawaii, and have no intentions of ever going to visit this non-descript ghost town again. Be warned... a complete waste of time and money!
Reviewed by: A Yahoo! Contributor from on Oct 18 2006
Biosphere 2 was $19.95 per person and the "tour" took about 1/2 hr. Our "tour guide" was obviously a disgruntled employee who has barely managed to hold on to his job since the major cutbacks over the years. He rushed us through what little areas we were allowed to see, would answer questions with quick, opaque responses. Many, many steps are present and you are not warned of this beforehand. My husband has bad knees and I have arthritis in my knee and back and it was awful. The "guide" informed our group that Biosphere 2 is currently up for sale. Our recommendation is that you skip this site during your sightseeing of Arizona.
Reviewed by: Maggie from on Feb 05 2006
This project has been cursed since Ed Bass put his money into it. It was a great idea, but the realization wasn't. And when it was discovered that the "scientists" inside of it had cheated and destroyed the value of the project, it's been all downhill. If you had never been in a greenhouse or seen large tropical plants growing, I guess it might be interesting. If you've traveled at all and ever been to a truly great exhibit of flora and fauna, you're going to be walking away saying "whaaaa?" That is if you can get in. Columbia has abandoned it and the no new buyer, as of today, has come to rescue it.
Reviewed by: A Yahoo! Contributor from on Apr 11 2005
excellent, lots of fun, very different, for people that think out of the box and now in!!
Reviewed by: A Yahoo! Contributor from on Mar 03 2005
This is a waste of $20 per person. The tour is short, uninformative, and uninteresting. The domed gardens in St. Louis cost less and are more interesting.
Reviewed by: A Yahoo! Contributor from on Aug 22 2004
Earth On A Small Scale
Back to Biosphere 2
Terrific tour, very fascinating to see. Read the true story online before going. The tour skips all the wierdness that caused it to be built and the way "science" was conducted during the experiment. They also skip the relationship problems and sanity problems the "crew" encountered. The tour would be a lot more fun if they included that and not make it any less interesting or devalue the real science that is now being conducted. Real science is now being conducted there by Univ. of Arizona. Absolutely, positively worth the visit. For fun watch Biodome with Pauley Shore before going after reading online about what went wrong and why with the experiment. None of the pretour movies are interesting enough to watch they are so sanitized about the how and why of the beginning that they are super boring. If you need to kill time before the must see, must do tour, enjoy the walk on the grounds from the visitor center/ticket booth to the start of the tour.
Reviewed by: A Yahoo! Contributor from on Aug 30 2009
I would have preferred a longer tour, but it was very informative and I greatly enjoyed it. I was glad to finally see the inside of Biosphere and its inner workings. The tour guide wasn't very friendly, but you could walk around the habitat by yourself and look at the living quarters & animal pens.
Reviewed by: A Yahoo! Contributor from on Mar 27 2007
I'd always been interested in the biosphere, and I was pleased to have the chance to tour it. The science involved was fascinating. The structure was beautiful, the sphere and the big greenhouses. I felt like somebody discovering a previously unknown civilization, and wondering about the inhabitants - where were they? what were they like? It almost looked as though they would be back soon, had just stepped out for a moment. The system that was used to keep air pressure constant inside the sphere was spooky but particularly interesting. I really enjoyed the tour.
Reviewed by: A Yahoo! Contributor from on Jan 24 2007
I took my friend as a treat and we were sorely disappointed. The tour guide had an accent so thick we couldn't understand him 80% of the time. We were told upon entering that we HAD to stay with the tour the entire time and that we could NOT go back to leave under any circumstances. We wanted to leave after 15 mins. and get our money back but could not. The receptionist said, "Don't worry, just write to the email address on the back of the brochure and they will refund your money." I was contacted by John Adams, Associate Director for Public Outreach, whatever that is, only this morning to be told that I would not be receiving a refund but could go again for free anytime! Not only is the idea of this absurd, but I live in Hawaii, and have no intentions of ever going to visit this non-descript ghost town again. Be warned... a complete waste of time and money!
Reviewed by: A Yahoo! Contributor from on Oct 18 2006
Biosphere 2 was $19.95 per person and the "tour" took about 1/2 hr. Our "tour guide" was obviously a disgruntled employee who has barely managed to hold on to his job since the major cutbacks over the years. He rushed us through what little areas we were allowed to see, would answer questions with quick, opaque responses. Many, many steps are present and you are not warned of this beforehand. My husband has bad knees and I have arthritis in my knee and back and it was awful. The "guide" informed our group that Biosphere 2 is currently up for sale. Our recommendation is that you skip this site during your sightseeing of Arizona.
Reviewed by: Maggie from on Feb 05 2006
This project has been cursed since Ed Bass put his money into it. It was a great idea, but the realization wasn't. And when it was discovered that the "scientists" inside of it had cheated and destroyed the value of the project, it's been all downhill. If you had never been in a greenhouse or seen large tropical plants growing, I guess it might be interesting. If you've traveled at all and ever been to a truly great exhibit of flora and fauna, you're going to be walking away saying "whaaaa?" That is if you can get in. Columbia has abandoned it and the no new buyer, as of today, has come to rescue it.
Reviewed by: A Yahoo! Contributor from on Apr 11 2005
excellent, lots of fun, very different, for people that think out of the box and now in!!
Reviewed by: A Yahoo! Contributor from on Mar 03 2005
This is a waste of $20 per person. The tour is short, uninformative, and uninteresting. The domed gardens in St. Louis cost less and are more interesting.
Reviewed by: A Yahoo! Contributor from on Aug 22 2004
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