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London Museums

Travel Guide Europe United Kingdom England London London Museums

Introduction

Science Museum London

London boasts over 200 museums, covering a bewildering range of topics. Whether the visitor is interested in science, heritage, sewing machines, or packaging and advertising, there is a museum which meets the need.

Entry and Tickets

Many of the museums are free to enter, but benefit from visitor donations. Other museums charge for entry and seeking advance museum entry tickets can save money. Some museums who do charge a fee are part of special ticket groupings which allow entry to several attractions at a discounted price.

A selection of the most popular and some of the more esoteric are included here.

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The British Museum

British Museum

Location: Great Russell Street, London, WC1B 3DG
Opening Hours: Daily 10:00am-5:30pm, open late on Thursday and Friday
Website: Tate Britain
Getting There: The closest undergrounds stations are Tottenham Court Road and Holborn

This is one of the largest London museums, very popular and home to the Elgin Marbles, the Tomb of Payava, the Sutton Hoo treasure and extensive Egyptian galleries.

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Imperial War Museum

Location: Lambeth Road, London, SE1 6HZ
Opening Hours: Daily 10am-6pm, closed 24-26 December
Website: Tate Britain
Getting There: The closest underground station is Lambeth North

Covering wars from the First World War to the present day with a wide range of exhibits. There are generally several special short term exhibitions in place.

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London Transport Museum

Location: 39 Wellington Street, Covent Garden, London, WC2E 7BB
Opening Hours: Monday to Thursday, Saturday & Sunday 10:00am-6:00pm; Friday 11:00am-6:00pm
Website: Tate Britain
Getting There: The closest underground station is Covent Garden

Close to London’s Covent Garden, the museum tracks the history of travel in London, with many original buses, underground trains, vehicles and photographs. Ideal for travel buffs.

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National Gallery

The National Gallery

Location: Trafalgar Square, London WC2N 5DN
Opening Hours: Daily 10:00am–6:00pm, Fridays 10:00am–9:00pm
Website: Tate Britain
Getting There: The closest underground station is Charing Cross

The National Gallery houses over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century. Notable works include paintings by Leornado da Vinci, Michelangelo, Canaletto, Rembrandt, Vincent van Gogh and JMW Turner, and the collection belongs to the British public. Entry to the main (permanent) collection is free.

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Natural History Museum

Natural History Museum (London)

Location: Cromwell Road, London, SW7 5BD
Opening Hours: Daily 10:00am-5:50pm, closed 24-26 December
Website: Tate Britain
Getting There: The closest underground station is South Kensington

From dinosaurs to tadpoles, blue whales to rocks, there is plenty to see in one of the most spectacular buildings in the Capital. Over 70 millions specimens are housed at the museum.

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Science Museum

Location: Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London, SW7 2DD
Opening Hours: Daily 10:00am - 6:00pm, (last admission 5:30pm), closed 24-26 December
Website: Tate Britain
Telephone: 00-44 (0)870 870 4868
Getting There: The closest underground station is South Kensington (one exit of the tube is at Exhibition road, next to the entrance of the museum.)

There are over 10,000 exhibits at the Science Museum, from steam powered engines to the Apollo 10 Command module which orbited the Moon. In july 2010 the transformed Welcome wing was opened, giving the museum more space, and new permanent exhibitions. This is a good museum for children, with child friendly areas for exploration of science. It also includes an IMAX theatre and the Forcefield (for which you need to pay). It is also visited a lot by schools as a field trip during schoolweeks.

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Tate Britain

Slides at the Tate Modern

Location: Millbank, London SW1P 4RG,
Opening Hours: Open every day, 10:00am–6:00pm (last admission 5:15pm), Tate Britain is open late until 10:00pm on the first Friday of each month
Website: Tate Britain
Getting There: The closest underground station is Pemlico

The Tate Britain has a fine collection of British work from medieval times to the present day, particularly notable for its Turner collection, as the annual Turner Prize exhibition is hosted by Tate Britain.

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Tate Modern

Location: Bankside, London, SE1 9TG
Opening Hours: Sunday – Thursday, 10:00 am – 6:00 pm, Friday and Saturday 10:00am - 10:00pm
Website: Tate Modern
Getting There: The closest underground station is Southwark

The Tate Modern has the largest collection of Modern Art in Europe, and it is spectacularly located in the old Bankside power station across the Millennium bridge on the Southbank. The collection at Tate Modern is organised thematically. When it was first open, the collection was divided into four broad groups: History/Memory/Society; Nude/Action/Body; Landscape/Matter/Environment; and Still Life/Object/Real Life. It has since been reorganised and the current layout (2010) are: Material Gestures (which focus are abstraction and expressionism), Poetry and Dream (which explores attitudes to sexuality), Energy and Process (which centres on Arte Povera), and States of Flux (which brings together Cubism, Futurism, Vorticism and Pop Art). The turbine hall hosts a series of temporary large-scale modern art installations.

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Victoria and Albert Museum

Location: Cromwell Road, London, SW7 2RL
Opening Hours: Daily 10:00am-5:45pm, except Wednesday 10:00am-10:00pm
Website:
Getting There: The closest underground station is South Kensington

With seven miles of exhibition space and over four million objects, the V&A is one of London’s premier attractions. Featuring decorative art and design from the past 5,000 years.