She’s an astronaut. She’s a surfer. She’s a hairstylist. She’s a businesswoman. She’s a model, an actress, a lawyer, a fashion designer. She’s anything she wants to be. She’s Barbie. And her world is here for a limited time until the end of May in Santa Monica! The World of Barbie tour is an experience where different sections of the Barbie dream house and other places she frequents come to life for every little girl, Barbie enthusiast and Instagram influencer’s dreams. It’s an amazing concept, but not a cheap one. Depending on what day you go, tickets range from $34-$40 dollars, before tax. Therefore, Her Campus at UCLA checked out the scene to see if the attraction is worth the hype and the money.
The first thing I want to say about the World of Barbie is there is definitely no shortage of rooms. Here is a list of every room/interactive area:
- A Barbie kitchen
- A Barbie Living Room
- A Barbie Walk-in Closet (literally my favorite)
- A Barbie Pool (made out of a ball pit and includes a slide)
- A Barbie Movie Theater
- A Barbie Camping/RV Area
- A Barbie DJ Booth
- A Barbie Box Room (Where one can get into life-size boxes and pretend to be a Barbie)
- A Barbie Salon
- A Barbie Beach
- A little sitting area with a fountain (located under the stairs, very hidden)
- A Barbie Talk Show Set
- A Barbie Lab
- A Barbie Karaoke Studio
- The Museum of Barbie
- A Barbie Walkway
- A Barbie Spaceship
If one truly takes in all these spaces, takes photos and plays with the interactions, one could easily spend 45 minutes to an hour in the space. My roommates and I spent about 45 minutes in the area, and in that time, we visited each room and ended up taking over 500 pictures.
The best thing about the World of Barbie is having the opportunity to take unique pictures and reminisce about your childhood, especially going through the Barbie museum. There are interactive parts, but they definitely remind visitors that at the end of the day, the World of Barbie is meant for kids. For example, the DJ booth and the karaoke mics are about 4 feet tall, and the things placed under the microscope are super simple items such as blades of grass and flower petals. The ball pit (of course for good reason) is only a couple of feet deep, and you’ll find a lot of the seating areas to be a little low. However, that did not stop me and my roommates from having a blast — two of us spent about 20 minutes in the ball pit while the other enjoyed the Barbie movie playing in the movie theater.
Overall, the highlights for me were the ball pit pool, the closet and the spaceship. Each exhibit, but especially those, had great attention to detail and you really got to appreciate the environment and actually feel like you were in a Barbie dreamhouse or toy equivalent. Therefore, even if you aren’t a huge picture person, you might enjoy World of Barbie from just an artistic perspective.
In terms of photos, the biggest thing to be aware of is the majority of the rooms heavily use blue lights, which cameras, especially iPhone cameras will pick up. Therefore, your entire picture can have a blue hue even though it doesn’t look like that in person. However, we found resetting your phone camera (shutting down the app and turning it back on) reset everything to look warmer. This was very successful in her closet, but not so much in the box room where the lighting is harsher. I’m sure using digital cameras could help combat this too.
Overall, I would say The World of Barbie exhibit is worth it if you have the following traits: you love Barbie or have a deep nostalgia for it, you love taking pictures or you are one of those girls who love going to aesthetic restaurants, exhibits, etc. Also, if you are like me, and love getting dressed up to go somewhere, especially following a theme, this is a place for you. I would hold back if you are going for just the interactive sections alone. Also, one should know The World of Barbie does not allude to the live-action movie coming out in July in any shape or form, this is just traditional Barbie. If your idea of fun doesn’t involve getting dressed up for a lot of pictures or observing/people-watching, I recommend saving your money and living vicariously through people on TikTok. For me, it was a great experience, and I recommend it to anyone who idolized Barbie and appreciates her aesthetic.
To purchase tickets, check out this link!