We recently visited The Natural History Museum as part of our trip to London.
It has been on our list for years and I am so glad we finally managed to visit. We visited on a Sunday a week or so before Christmas so it was pretty busy, but some areas were more bearable and I didn't find it as busy as other museums we had been to the previous day.
Read on below to find out more about the museum and what it has to offer.
The museum is huge and there's no way you could see it all in one day. My top tip for visiting is if there's something in particular that you really want to see, make sure you make a plan to see those first and then after you can just wander. We visited with a tween (12) and teen (16) they both enjoyed the museum and found all of the fossils really interesting. Elliot loves Dinosaurs so obviously he really enjoyed looking in this section. We could have easily spent a week in the museum reading everything (if not longer)
If you are visiting with small children, you can leave your pushchairs in the cloakroom but from my experience with young children I would keep it with you because little legs get tired and then they want to be carried everywhere. My 12 year old could have done with a pushchair by the time we were done!
Established over 140 years ago and is the home to over 80 million objects ranging from Zoology, Palaeontology, Botany, Entomology, mineralogy and more there's bound to be something for everyone.
The museum is divided into zones and the map is really easy to navigate. You can find the map HERE
Blue zone: Dinosaurs, Fishes, Amphibians & Reptiles, Images of Nature, Jerwood Gallery, Mammals (blue whale) Marine Invertebrates
Orange Zone: Attenborough Studio Cocoon (entrance) Wildlife Garden (entrance outside) Zoology Spirit Building
Green Zone: Birds Creepy Crawlies East Pavilion Fossil Marine Reptiles Giant Sequoia Investigate Centre Minerals Treasures (Cadogan Gallery) The Vault Waterhouse Gallery
Red Zone: Earth’s Treasury From the Beginning Human Evolution Lasting Impressions Restless Surface Volcanoes & Earthquakes
We didn't have a plan when we visited so we just wandered for a while, We are planning on heading back soon, so we will most definitely be making a plan for our return visit.
Things not to miss
The 126 year old , 25 metre long Whale skeleton in the main hall
The animatronic T- Rex is really popular and this time it was all dressed in it,s festive outfit!
The huge mineral gallery
The Darwin centre
Gardens
I think I could easily list everything!
For the kids
The museum is very family friendly and has lots of touch screens and interactive equipment. There's even a giant termite house you can walk through (not real obviously) You can also find hands on stations where you can get up close to objects and have a feel.
There's self guided tours, quiet spaces if you need a break from crowds and you can also find activities to do at home with the kids on the Natural History Website
Access info
The museum is very accessible with lifts to every floor. There are free companion tickets to paid exhibitions and if you do require any assistance just let the staff know. Very limited disabled parking spaces are available and you must phone ahead to book a space. You can also find a changing places toilet and wheelchair accessible toilets. Wheelchair hire is available (I wish I knew about this as I had hurt my leg so I was in agony all day) Assistance dogs and guide dogs are welcome but pet dogs are not allowed in the museum or gardens so please do not bring pet dogs. Audio Guides, hearing loops, large print guides, Tactile and braille guides are all available. The museum even have a tour group specifically for deaf visitors. How amazing is that! I just love how accessible the museum is for everyone.
Neurodiversity - You can find quiet areas in each zone, there's spaces with objects that you can touch, low light spaces, a prayer room and more. You can also find relaxed morning visits. These spaces must be booked online
Good to know
⭐Booking is recommended although the museum do keep spaces for walk ins.
⭐The main entrance can get really busy but you can enter at the side of the building opposite the V&A museum, which was so much quieter.
⭐Bag searches are random so be prepared
⭐You can take suitcases in but you must leave them in the cloakroom and it's charged by weight
⭐Pushchairs can be left in the cloakroom
⭐Wear comfortable shoes
⭐Changing places, wheelchair friendly, all gender toilets and there's baby changing
⭐Cafes on site including the T-Rex café, we didn't go in but the menu looked very reasonable. You can also find dedicated picnic areas if you want to your own food.
⭐Closest tube is South Kensington which is a 5 minute walk
⭐Water bottle refill stations
⭐Snap a photo of a map or you can get a paper copy for a suggested donation
⭐Looking at other reviews, people recommend visiting early morning. We visited around lunch time and it was very busy.
⭐The museum is free to enter although some charges do apply for special exhibitions. You can easily spend the day here without taking in any exhibitions. Making it a very affordable day out.
⭐There are also limited disabled spaces allowing you up to 4 hours on street but these will go really quickly. The best way to travel is to use public transport.
⭐The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London, SW7 5BD⭐
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