NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)
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Natural History Museum
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Natural History Museum

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Natural History Museum
4.5
#21 of 2,721 things to do in London
Natural History MuseumsHistory Museums
10:00 AM - 5:50 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:50 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:50 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:50 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:50 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:50 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:50 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 5:50 PM
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About
A center of scientific excellence in the discovery of taxonomy and biodiversity, this world-famous museum promotes the discovery and enjoyment of the natural world through such exciting exhibits as the Life and Earth Galleries, wildlife garden and geological collections.
Duration: More than 3 hours
Meets animal welfare guidelines
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The area
Address
Neighbourhood: Kensington and Hyde Park
How to get there
  • Gloucester Road • 6 min walk
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See what travellers are saying
  • P1P1968
    Hastings, United Kingdom26 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great Titanosaur exhibit at the Natural History Museum
    Booked to see the Titanosaur exhibition at the Natural History, a fantastic exhibition well worth going if you can. Booking is a must if you want to avoid the long queues outside. The only downside is that the staff were not particularly knowledgeable and couldn’t really answer any questions we had.
    Visited April 2023
    Travelled with friends
    Written 25 April 2023
  • Baartos
    35 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Fascinating museum
    This is undoubtedly one of the greatest museums in UK and a real must-see in London. Dinosaurs, volcanoes, minerals, animals, earthquakes, there is all of this and much more. On top of that the building itself is wonderful. Natural History Museum is a real gem, worth seeing.
    Visited May 2022
    Travelled solo
    Written 30 April 2023
  • mirunavrn
    Bucharest, Romania394 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Interesting museum - must visit
    The museum's premises are large, with various exhibitions. The entrance to the Earth evolution exhibition is interesting and unique, like enterning the core of the planet. One thing I enjoyed was the simulation of an earthquake in a mock-up store. I found it quite creative. Unfortunately, we arrived late and didn't have time to visit the other building, with the dinosaurs exhibitions. There is no entrance fee, which was surprising considering the exhibits.
    Visited September 2022
    Written 1 May 2023
  • lubumbashi13
    174 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Fascinating old building
    Loved our visit and loved seeing this beautiful historic building. Would love to see them admit less people at a time. We reserved free tickets in advance and no one checked the time. The museum (during Easter week) was PACKED to the gills. People everywhere and a very long line outside. The museum would have been a much more pleasurable experience with about half the people there.
    Visited April 2023
    Written 3 May 2023
  • Kevin
    Mountain View, California91 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Good Natural History Museum
    This natural history museum has a good collection of dinosaurs, mammals/sea life, and other things related to science. It's decently sized, though I would say in terms of variety of subjects, other natural history museums (like the one in New York) offer more to see. It's hard to complain too much since admission to the museum is free. It can get pretty busy, so make sure if you plan to spend a lot of time here to come as early as you can to avoid the crowds.
    Visited April 2023
    Travelled solo
    Written 10 May 2023
  • James A
    730 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Wildlife Photographer of the Year
    We went for the Wildlife Photographer of the Year with an 11 year old. We thought it was very good but she was bored there was nothing that we could see the interacts with kids. We also spent time in the Dinosaur room, which was great. The photography we have been before a few years back and thought this time lacked a wow factor. I would say its good to go every few years The Dinosaur exhibition I personally would have liked to see more real fossils and not models.
    Visited May 2023
    Written 15 May 2023
  • Robert B
    London, United Kingdom22 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Not all museums are created equal
    Not all museums are created equal, this one stands out. The atmosphere created by the architecture and fittings are a bit special and the exhibits are beautifully presented. It was too hot, but this might be to preserve the artifacts, it was also overcrowded, but that's not surprising given what's on offer. Well worth visiting.
    Visited May 2023
    Travelled with friends
    Written 28 May 2023
  • clh333
    Norwich, United Kingdom171 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great but kids probably with cope with it all.
    We enjoyed our visit. The dinosaur section was the biggest hit with the kids although they also enjoyed the other animal sections. The earthquake floor is great. It is a bit generally limited on interactivity though and we didn’t do all the floors due to that as the kids got bored
    Visited May 2023
    Travelled with family
    Written 29 May 2023
  • SK
    6 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Lots to see, nice way to spend a morning
    Went by myself, it was half term so very busy, not sure if it's always so busy. Great morning though, went round each area, Hope was magnificent this was my favourite part the hall was beautiful, but loved the animated dinosaurs too. Tried out the earthquake simulation too which was fine but wished it lasted longer. Was going to have food there but was very busy and the gift shop was very expensive, but other than that great way to spend a morning.
    Visited February 2023
    Travelled solo
    Written 4 June 2023
  • Dingbat1982
    Midsomer Norton, United Kingdom676 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great museum
    Beautiful museum, lots to see and we were lucky to visit during half term and there were a couple of dinosaur related activities and shows for the children, the show in particular was great and very funny. The museum building itself is stunning. Staff were helpful. Didn't have to queue as we prebooked tickets, but queue for those that didn't have tickets was crazy.
    Visited May 2023
    Written 4 June 2023
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

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4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles38,051 reviews
Excellent
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334
Georgie S
1 contribution
1.0 of 5 bubbles
waste of £30
Apr 2024 • Family
i am from new zealand and made this one of many on my to do this. i have to say this museum was the worst of them all. the museum itself has some absolutely amazing exhibitions but the amount of people they let in at a time completely destroys the whole experience. it’s loud, hot and everywhere u go u have to push thru people to get anywhere. i also had a man around 40 grab me super aggressively and had a massive go at me for tryna get passed his wife and as a teenager this frightened the hell out of me. if there was less people this wouldn’t be an issue and probably wouldn’t of happened. my dad 60 and i 18 definitely both agreed that the experience from ruined purely because use of this and i wouldn’t recommend going unless ur prepared to struggle to view everything. the staff weren’t very helpful and seemed to be quite rude. all and all waste of £30
Written 21 April 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Comhairle
Ireland31 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Dinosaur exhibit was great!
Apr 2024 • Family
We just wanted to visit the dinosaurs, as our kid was too museumed out after the Science museum for anything more. We booked free tickets in advance for 2pm on a weekday and walked straight in, no queue. The building itself is so impressive and it was amazing to see the foyer. The dinosaur exhibit was also really well done, and again, not too busy when we went - we were able to just walk through and straight up to whatever part we wanted to see. Only spent about 30 minutes here in total, so can't comment on the rest of the museum, but worth it just to see what we saw.
Written 18 April 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
George R
3 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Very interesting, more Science than History.
Mar 2024 • Family
On a Friday afternoon my family and I took a very educational visit to the National History Museum. Like the Science Museum (which is only a few minutes away) it is a short walk from South Kensington Station. The exhibits I enjoyed most were the dinosaurs, history of evolution and the back story behind the Egnigma code. Unfortunately many of the exhibits were cramped with people and the food was way overpriced, I also found the History Museum was more of a Science Museum! Overall after having been to both the Science and History Museums, I would say History was the best. The visit was well worth it 👍👍👍👍.
Written 17 April 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Cathas
Earls Colne, UK35 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Not for really young children
Apr 2024 • Family
We had a good time at the museum but my one big bit of advice is don’t take children that are too young or just take them to the dinosaur bit and don’t expect them to go to the rest of it. This time ours are aged 12 and 9 and even then they lose interest after a few hours.

I would also suggest taking your own food in and heading to the picnic area as the food we got in one of the restaurants was awful! The kids rolls were hard with hardly any butter the quiche was cold and tasteless and the wedges were cold too and it set us back £40.
Written 14 April 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Paul U
Kent64 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
It's Free
Apr 2024 • Couples
Totally turned into a tourist attraction but not in a good way. Hoards of screaming kids but that's what you get when it's half term. Just got the feel of too much resin and plastic on show and a lot of being herded into different areas that didn't have a lot on show. Still it's free and doesn't hurt too much when the noise gets too loud and you need to head for the exit.
Written 12 April 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The truth of the matter
28 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Visit if you can
Apr 2024 • Family
Great experience highly recommend this to everyone who wants to learn more about history
Very informative and interesting
Written 8 April 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Fliss
5 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Brilliant museum, helpful staff
Apr 2024 • Family
Be prepared that it is quite possibly the busiest place in London! Admittedly, it was school holidays but I've never been in a busier place. However, it's a fantastic resource and it's free! The exhibits are fantastic and the building itself is majestic. Also, we were really impressed that the 'welcome man' noticed our son's sunflower lanyard and offered us a guide to the quieter spaces where we could take some time out. Incredibly helpful and done in a beautifully subtle way.
Written 7 April 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Carole S
Milton Keynes, UK823 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Wildlife Photographer of the Year...
Feb 2024 • Solo
Wildlife Photographer of the Year is a must-see at this location... the information around the photos is fascinating. The photos are amazing. Such a great setting to see a fantastic exhibition.

Highly recommend.

Carole : )
Written 7 April 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Richard S
Angmering, UK515 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
A global institution
Apr 2024 • Couples
I havent visited this museum since I was achild. The building strikes you first with its stunning architecture both inside and out, and it is often taken for granted as the exhibits about the natural world are spectacular in themselves.

We pre booked our tixkets (for free) and glad we did as there was no que for us.

There is plenty of space for the large crowds and the cafes and ships are excellent.
Written 7 April 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
M J
Belfast25 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Always a good day at this museum
Apr 2024 • Family
Always a great day when visiting this museum. This was the first time my young daughter had been inside and she really enjoyed her day. It was also nice to show her the place where Andy's Prehistoric Adventures from CBeebies was filmed.

Things to improve upon:
- please have air conditioning inside the museum as, with the crowds of people let into the narrow exhibition areas, the temperature rockets very quickly. It is stifling and my wife and I started to not enjoy areas and instead rushed through them
- ensure that you have an alternative means of recording sales of items in the gift shop close to the dinosaur exhibit; on our visit the registers went down which meant that we were not able to purchase certain items which were not on sale in the main gift shop. I also found one of the female staff in the dinosaur gift shop very rude, aggressive and blunt in essentially telling visitors to get out the shop.
- perhaps have educated staff members/guides stationed at exhibits to be on hand to answer visitor questions about the exhibits.
Written 6 April 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

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