Museums in London
London is full of great Museums from the world famous Natural History Museum to hidden gems like the Sherlock Holmes Museum there's something to satisfy the most curious of minds
By James Stokes | Updated Oct 7 2024
A trip to London wouldn't be complete without a visit to one of the many great museums dotted around the city. From awe-inspiring dinosaurs to fashion and design our run down of the best museums in London will help you explore them all and uncover hidden gems you might otherwise miss.
Best of all many museums offer free admission so they're a great idea if you're on a tight budget.
Clink Prison Museum
Step down below ground and into ‘The Clink’, where prisoners guilty of all sorts of crimes (and even not at all) have found themselves locked up over the years, going back to a time when things were far more barbaric than today. Inside The Clink Prison Museum, on the very site of the old Mediaeval prison that was run for nearly 600 years, you will see how the prisoners were kept, how they were treated, and how they were tortured.
The Clink Prison Museum is dedicated to exploring the history and the conditions of life inside the famous prison (which, thankfully, doesn’t still jail people today!). It’s as educational and enlightening as it is entertaining as visitors discover the gruesome histories and fascinating secrets of the dark side of the city…
Young V&A
Following a redevelopment that saw its focus change from a museum of childhood to a museum for children, The Young V&A is wholly designed and curated with kids in mind - from hands-on workshops and interactive installations to storytelling sessions and family-friendly tours, the Young V&A Museum might just be the best museum to take your kids to so you can foster a love for culture and the arts in them from an early age.
The Sherlock Holmes Museum
221B Baker Street was the fictional address of the world’s greatest detective, brought to life in the stories of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
Situated in a splendid four-storey Georgian townhouse in exactly the spot where Conan Doyle imagined Holmes living and working, The Sherlock Holmes Museum brings that Victorian, gas-lit world to life with fantastic attention to detail, with visitors guided through the museum by knowledgeable staff in period costume.
It’s an absolute must for fans of the original books or the modern television series, containing the largest collection of Sherlock Holmes memorabilia anywhere in the world.
Museum of Brands
See how people lived by looking at the things that filled their homes and made up their lives, from TV-based board games and the most popular toys of the time to beers that came in a can and the treats that were packed into every kid’s lunchbox. For kids it’s a fascinating look at what life was like before they were born; for adults, it’s often a trip down Memory Lane - every time you visit you're sure to find something new and exciting that triggers a memory or tells a story.
The Royal Airforce Museum
The multi-hangar aircraft museum offers detailed glimpses into British military history, doubling as a well-rounded entertainment centre for all the family. With over 100 aircraft on display, as well as an immersive Spitfire experience where you get to ‘ride’ in one, the RAF Museum in Colindale is a go-to spot for any flight fanatic.
Pitzhanger Museum and Gallery
A marvel of 19th century architecture, now renovated to its former glory, now houses one of London’s most exciting galleries that honours the legacy of Pitzhanger and its architect, Sir John Soane.
The RAF Museum in London
Get up close and personal to the planes and the people who make up the Royal Air Force at the Royal Air Force Museum in London. At this free-to-enter museum, visitors can delve into the history, the objects and the individual stories behind the flying pride of Britain through the museum’s extensive collection of aircraft, exhibitions and interactive displays set across six humongous aircraft hangars.
The RAF Museum in London also offers expertly-guided tours and some truly fantastic experiences, like the RAF Flight Simulator, the opportunity to fly a drone and the Spitfire Experience (where visitors can sit in the actual cockpit of the iconic WWII plane)!. You can also explore figurative depictions of the people, roles and social life in the RAF in the museum’s very own art gallery, and kids can let their imaginations fly in the outdoor playground, complete with mini-aircraft!
It’s a full and fun day out for all the family, with enough for history buffs and whizz kids - and it’s free!
The Tower Bridge Experience
Tower Bridge…well, towers, into the London skyline as you round the bend on the River Thames, and it has been there for 130 years now, a testament to Victorian mechanics, architecture and steam power (although it doesn’t run on steam anymore!). A visit to the Tower Bridge Experience takes you high in the sky as well as back in time, as visitors walk inside the towers, over its high-level walkways (and glass floors) and down into the Victorian Engine Rooms to learn all about how the bridge worked back then and how it operates today - and, at 42 metres above the Thames, the views over London are uniquely spectacular!