Great museum, free entry - accepting donations. Educational, entertaining and engaging exhibitions, attractive to all levels and ages, easy to understand information with plenty to be learned. Canny atmosphere and well laid out with lots of space. Play room for kids. Ramps and lifts for mobility access, autism aware staff with scheduled quiet events. Small cafe upstairs in museum. Reasonably priced gift shop.

Free to enter, donation suggested. Spread over a number of floors, there were exhibits including sea, dinosaurs, ancient Egypt and Romans, and many more. Very informative. Cafe not open at this time July 2021, due to Covid restrictions. Gift shop well stocked. Good place to get lost if you have a couple of hours.

I have lived in the north east for 20 years and never ended up at this museum..just never happened and I have seriously missed a trick. This museum is stunning, the elements in display are amazing. The place feels modern and a has a great diversity of sections to explore. The staff are friendly and warm. Excellent place to go and explore. Highly recommend.

Great museum for kids of all ages. It's free entry, and is a wonderful way to spend a few hours. There's lots to look at and rotating exhibits keep it fresh. There's a good deal of Roman, Egyptian and Greek exhibits, along with lots of information on the local natural history. When we visited there were quite a few school groups, so don't expect a particularly quiet visit, but the kid's excitement added to my enjoyment. There's a food shop upstairs, along with a Planetarium, which sells tickets at the downstairs entrance.

The Great North Museum: Hancock is open daily with free entry for a great value day out.

The Great North Museum is the one you can't see all at once. With three sprawling floors packed with objects collected from across the world and spanning centuries, it's brilliant. I was pleasantly shocked to hear that it was opened as far back as 1903 thereabouts. On the afternoon I visited, I was lucky to have one of the customer service personnel take me on a white stop tour of the library/archive and the back story he shared. On the ground floor, seeing the exhibition on my own, I particularly loved the section about the Hadrian wall and how it's used to tell the evolution of the people who lived in this region across the ages. The various objects (tools, utensils, stones, bones, ceramics,z etc) on display bring that long gone era to live. I was particularly drawn to this section perhaps because on a previous visit to Newcastle (2016) I had actually seen and sat around a preserved stretch of the wall -- glorious sight! The Butterfly Wall adds colour and vibrancy to the hallway.

Really good museum! Can easily fill a few hours because of the size and content of the place. Surprised it is donations welcome entry which I think is reasonable! Loved how it is split clearly into different era’s and historical collections. Staff are really nice and kind too. Loved the gift shop at the end! Can imagine this being a great place for kids as they have a few interactive things here and there.

Stuffed animals, rocks and Hadrian's Wall. A mishmash of a collection common in regional museums. What makes this museum essential is the Hadrian's Wall collection. Some superb archaeological finds displayed well. And it's free, although a donation is asked for. Would be great for kids also as has lots of hands on exhibits.

It’s been a long time since I visited this museum, probably 10 years ago when my kids were still kids. It’s still a lovely place to while away a few hours and best of all, it’s donations only for entry. So if you’re struggling for money it doesn’t have to cost the earth. There are plenty of items of local history from the area - Roman artificers from Hadrian’s Wall, crystals from nearby mines and Neolithic arrow heads from Durham. There’s an array of taxidermy animals (which I remember from my youth decades ago, but still good to see. There is plenty of interaction for kids with some dedicated areas. I only bought a bottle of water and crisps from the cafe so cannot really comment on this, but a great idea was a room for packed lunch if you wish to bring your own food. This is a lovely idea for those on a budget or simply like their own food. Plenty of accessible access for wheelchair users with toilets on every floor. My only comments that are slightly negative would be parking (there is none) and the hand sanitiser stations were empty. (Which was slightly disappointing given the number of touch screen activities on offer). Overall, an enjoyable few hours spent.

Another amazing place to visit free entry but only paid for the planetarium lots to see and there is a nice cafe and toilets 🚻 there so all good make sure you have plenty of time so you don't have to rush around take your time and see all the amazing relics

Very good museum for what it is. Focus strongly on children, possibly because of school holidays. Range of collections. Egyptian, Roman, lots of stuffed animals. An old fashioned museum in a sense. No real need for stuffed animals when you can watch Animal Park. Very good reasonably priced gift shop. Decent cafe. Well designed. Worth a visit.

It is 0K museum, not that big but at least they still has two floors and each floor has 3-4 galleries. The first floor is displaying animal bones, fossils, stones, and Hadrian walls’s history , Roman pillars etc. The second floor has a lot of a Greek vases , pottery pieces, they also have loads of animals specimens. It is quite cool when you’re in the second-floor corridors and look down those display cases. What I like about this museum is they do have various stuff here, but most display cases are two compacted. For example, like the gallery is displaying cultural clothings, mask, tools, decors etc, sometimes they put two different country’s stuff in one cabinet, so it’s kind of hard to distinguish unless you read it very carefully, but it’s not their fault, I think it’s just a small space, and they prefer to display as much as they can. Anyhow, you can spend about an hour with no problem.

Good displays of historical artefacts. Popular with families with young children (so don't expect a quiet museum experience). Free entry.

Nice museum, free of charge no ticket required. Good collection of fossils and mummies and many more. Nice day-out for kids 🙂

Visited the Hancock whilst Sean the Sheep hunting! Accessible access from the side, and fully accessible throughout. Short walk from the Haymarket. Free to enter. Good range of animals, fossils and artefact. Also has a planetarium. Nice little cafe. Enjoyed our visit and would go back again.

This is an amazing museum for both kids and parents. You can connect to world history. Specially you can get to see fossils,20000 different Beatles family, dinosaur skeleton, under sea corals and gems. Best part is Egypt section.paradise for kids Extra kids changing room,kids play room , drawing room available. Wheelchair accessible. Well managed.

The Great North Museum:Hancock kept popping up on my Google Map so I decided to visit on my way back from Jesmond Dene. I visited on a weekday during Half Term, not knowing anything about the museum. It’s very much geared to families and children-it’s not too big and there’s lots of exhibits to really engage young children. Moving between the floors is easy as, in addition to the stairs, there’s also a gigantic lift-you could probably get a dozen parents, buggies and toddlers in there! This sort of museum is what every town should have! It’s free and exciting-not at all like the museums of old. It was very busy! Alongside the exhibits there’s also a decent gift shop with lots of choice for children and also a really good selection of cards. Whether you are visiting Newcastle or a local it is well worth a visit.

Very nice museum. Informative and lots to see. If it wasn't for covid I expect this would be even more enjoyable. My son keeps asking to go back. Entry is free but you must book in advance because of covid 19. Wheelchair accessible.

Jarrow hall, cafe, toilets and ample seating outside, park through a gate for kids to play in, herb garden needs some work . Bede's World, interesting museum with lots to see, interactive and relics that were found nearby, not too expensive admission charge, Jarrow hall is free to enter, Anglo-Saxon farm is ok but looks tired and needs some work, nice place for a walk round , could be difficult for people with disabilities. Plenty of car parking on either side of the main road, small shop in bede's World

It’s too expensive for what it is. If you get a chance to do a free day go for it though. It is good and worth a look but it’s over priced compared to others in the area.

me nan died here but overall it’s proper nice

A museum that combines antiquities, the animal world, birds and plants, a special place and worth a try for adults and children. In addition, entry is free. There is a café and gift shop, but there is no parking.

Wonderful first visit!!! Kiddo got tired after an hour, but there is so much to see! She loved the interactive animal display, and we both enjoyed the fossils. Already looking forward to our next visit! 😊 Museum is clean and spacious, and lots of hands on things for kids.

Nice to visit for free, all they ask is a £5 donation. Better for older kids, I would say. Has a gift shop. Only blue badge parking is available on site. But plenty of car parks close by as your pretty much in the city centre. Good day out for the family.

Expertly educational, definitely going again due to there was so much more to see, interactive displays and audio description on some artifacts. Staff were well knowledged about artifacts and history stories, very helpful & the café is very nice and space for families to be seated and have such a great time at such a wonder filled experience for all to behold.

Great visit to the Great North Museum, always clean and tidy with pleasant staff. Really good exhibits with a good mix for both adult and children. There's toilet facilities and there is a cafe on site which is very handy. Only a two minute walk from Haymarket metro station.

If you have children this is a lovely museum. Great for hands-on and lots of dinosaurs. If you do not have children - Watch out! Screaming babies, shrieking toddlers and 6 year olds running through the exhibits. 😳 May not be your scene if you're looking to spend a quiet day at the museum. The display of Hadrian's Wall is excellent. Also the display of ancient Greeks and Truscans is very good. Of course, it's all Free and that is a lovely thing.

I've never been to the Hancock museum. I wasn't disappointed. It's a 5-minute walk from Eldon Square. It's free to enter with 2 floor levels. Loads to see. A play area for the kids. Highly recommend it if you have kids and want something to do. Open on weekends. Sadly no parking outside.

Hancock Museum is a must visit in Newcastle. It has a lot of.things to see like mummies and fossils. It has a good planetarium ad well. Quite educative and can be good for children as well as adults. I saw a real Egyptian mummy here. It is free and worth to visit.

A really interesting small museum, filled with great exhibits. It has items you can touch and lots of things to do to entertain children, including an interactive story quest.

As per our visit the entry is free. You can watch many things inside. A wide collection of stuffed animals are arranged inside the gallery. Some 3D art forms are also displayed. Egyptian mummy, fossil of dinosaurs, precious diamonds, Jewellerys, some old coins, art everything in a single roof. And the atmosphere is very calm. Highly recommended to visit with family and friends...

We had a fabulous time at the Hancock Museum. We were fortunate enough to be here during their MythQuest activities. The setup was really good and the time and effort in making these interactive tours of the museum were excellent. 3 different trials meant to guide you to different areas of the exhibits. The staff we encountered were knowledgeable and friendly. The entire Hope Family enjoyed our visits here (2 consecutive days to do all 3 MythQuest trails!). Very enjoyable museum dedicated to encouraging exploration. We particularly enjoyed the T Rex and all the beetles and butterflies on show. Wouldn't hesitate to visit again.

Great museum visited today with my 3yr old boy. He loves all of the animals and the dinosaur and fossils area. Only suggestion for improvement would be to have some step stools at the interactive screens for the smaller kids so they can use them.

It’s brilliant museum for family time or you are interested to learn about ice age, Romance, nature or different cultures. Entrance is free also they have clean area inside and outside for rest and lunch box, clean toilets and friendly staffs. I %100 recommend visit this museum if you have a plan to stay in Newcastle.

Impressive collection of historical and ethnographic artifacts, especially for those interested in the Romans in the North. There's a good paleontology section too. All very child friendly plus a small, but good Café. Easy walking distance from Newcastle city centre.

We visited during the Covid-19 restrictions. Our session was ticketed and it was an absolute pleasure, it almost felt like we had the museum to ourselves. It's a shame not all of the exhibitions we're open as usual, especially for little ones, but completely understandable considering the circumstances. Staff were wonderful. We particularly enjoyed the 'Other Worlds' exhibition showcasing artwork from Atomhawk. Please ensure this museum survives and make a donation!

Great visit. Enough to see, exhibitions are nice, lovely staff, but pity planetarium closed. All one way so had to use gift shop first which is unconventional.

A slightly pared down experience given the circumstances, but still enjoyable. Particularly enjoyed our discussion with curstpr about the Japanese spider crab in the natural history section.

An interesting place to kill an hour or two, these plenty to look at, mostly things as adults we have seen before, the dinosaurs were a good addition, also it's free to get in but they do recommend you give a donation though.

Fantastic displays and lots of information, accessible to children and adults. Good safety measures in place for Covid-19.

Been coming here for a long time, something for everyone, friendly staff, and a good place to visit. The cafe is a good place to finish with with a nice coffee

Great museum with a range of exhibits covering human and natural history. Free entry but recommend donating. Parking available to the the rear, however I recommend just walking up from town, as it's close to both Haymarket metro and bus station.

This family museum has lots to do with plenty to entertain young and old. There are a lot of visual exhibits spread across two floors (and a library on the third). Free entry with boxes available for donations. Only bad point is that a lot of the touch screen computer type displays ran extremely slowly and did not react to user input anywhere near well enough making them all but unusable. This doesn't really detract from a great place to visit though, whether you have a spare twenty minutes or three hours. Haymarket metro is a few minutes walk or there is on street parking close by (which you have to pay for).

The AtomHawk exhibition is fantastic. The permanent collection is also great. The museum staff do a great job of keeping everyone covid safe

Free museum with a good range of permenant exhibits and regularly changing temporary exhibitions . Nice little coffee shop usually also although it's currently closed due to covid

Very surprising gem children loved

Lovely museum experience with my boys. Only downside was limited places to stop and sit if you have a disability.

Very informative. Staff are lovely and helpful

Great place to visit with kids, plenty to look at, explore and learn.

Had a lovely day

So much to see and do

Great place to take the Grandkids really good museum.

Ive loved the Hancock for years, im extremely impressed with the new covid layout and one way system. Museum is always clean and saw staff wiping high touch points as we walked round.

Fantastic current exhibition.

This place never gets old. We love the dinosaur skeleton the best. The fact it’s free entry means that no child in the city should remain uneducated about the worlds history and events. Lots of fun learning activities for small children all the way to teens.

it's great

Great, excellent exhibits, well presented and interesting. Will go again.

A nice place to bring the kids to, especially on a rainy day. It is a bit small though.

Interesting Museum. Every Section gives you wow feeling, a lot of information you have in every section of each floor of the museum.

My favourite museum always worth a visit, Where has the butterfly collection gone!

Such a lovely place to walk around. My son comes especially to see the T. Rex

Really interesting museum. I loved the Egyptian section and the one with the remains of the Hadrian's Wall. We really enjoyed our visit here and it should be a "Must" to anyone that comes to Newcastle. Highly recommended

Took the Kids here at the weekend. You have to book a ticket in advance they loved the Other worlds exhibition Due to the covid-19 this museum is very well organised, one way system, hand sanitising stations throughout. Free entry, made a donation on way out.

Excellent permanent exhibitions. Since Covid-19 this museum is very well organised, one way system, hand sanitising stations throughout, they've done a great job!

Awesome place to take kids and for everyone indeed. Excellent information about natural history, A bit of information about Roman history as well.

Great museum, and its free! My 3 kids (13, 9, 3) enjoyed it. Giftshop is expensive though but so are most of them.

Great free trip out. The kids love it and so do I. We go 2-3 times a year. Gift shop, kids imagination play area. Taxidermy, upstairs café and ground floor café. A good way to make education fun and teach all learning styles. Mobility access and rest rooms. Parking to the rear is best.

(Translated by Google) Good place to learn (Original) Bom lugar para aprender

Great museum with a mix of exhibitions from the animal kingdom and different ancient cultures. Has friendly staff and a nice gift shop with reasonable prices, too.

Lovely place and love the cost.....freeeee

Very interesting place of History to visit

Great place for all ages, plenty to see and learn

Loved this, the planetarium was great.

Interesting place

Great place to spend winter rainy afternoon

Soooo much to take in a credit to the city. We loved the exibition on Hadrian's Wall.

Ok museum, but other local museums are better. For its size on my visit was totally over run with school trips most were orderly ,but one the groups were left to run riot around the museum very unprofessional and inconsiderate of their teachers with them.

Great place to learn about the History of Bede and the area of Jarrow during Anglo Saxon times. There's a village recreated by hand using authentic tools of the time. Also a farm area with pigs, sheep, cattle, goats egg. There's a very nice man dressed in Anglo Saxon costume who was great fun to talk to and very knowledgeable.

The staff are very friendly and helpful. I really enjoyed seeing all the animals

Plenty of ancient breed animals to feed and local history to read. Weirdly the Anglo Saxon buildings are in better nick than most of the ones in jarra.

Great for local history and a day out with the family , definitely reccomended more for summer - autumn time

The Hive Coffee Shop is probably the finest coffee shop in South Tyneside. Situated in the 18th century Jarrow Hall it serves great coffee, drinks and food. The staff are excellent and the surroundings very restful. We didn't have time to visit the historical site but we'll definitely be back to The Hive.

Lovely to be able to visit again. All very well organised. Thank you.

A favourite place! Great for history, education, family days, fun, picnics, coffee, and lots more! A very friendly and welcoming place with nice walks, farm animals, wildlife, interactive learning and a small soft play area. The fayres, festivals and events are excellent! Always interesting with something different and very fun! Lots of crafts, too. Ideally located by a park and historic church, St pauls. the hive coffee company is great, it serves tasty and healthy food, it is clean and environmentally friendly, cutting out disposable plastics and using card and wood for take out packaging.

A great I sight into the ancient history of Tyne and Wear, the life of the monk Bede, and Anglo-Saxon living. I was particularly impressed by a volunteer called Jim at the Anglo-Saxon farm, who gave such educating and interesting facts and theories of Anglo-Saxon life. Well worth a visit for anyone with an interest in local and national history.

Great place , lots of covid safety in place , had a great day feeding the animals , and chatting safely to the staff

Nice selection of animals to feed. The anglo saxon village is very cool.

Loved our day here. The museum is interesting and the staff really engaging with kids! Showed them how to write their name in Saxon and let them help feed the pigs. The reenactment at the rear were all brilliant and really informative. Would definitely recommend as great value for money.

Such amazing place!!!!

Nice way to kill a few hours with the added bonus of a free workshop to entertain my crafty tween

Great for social distancing. Lots of farm animals, we brought apples for them but you can pre-order feed too. Nice little play area at the start of the farm.

Lots of animals, very friendly and happy. People are nice too.

Great day out

Great day out

Lovely little historic farm for the kids. Very informative signage, the re-enactor, Jim, was very knowledgeable and was excellent with my children with special needs. Reasonable priced, nice little shop, take own refreshments, nice place for a picnic, free parking. Will visit again

Really pleasant an knowledgeable staff

What an amazing place this is! The staff are fantastic and the entire place is dog friendly. Reasons to visit Jarrow Hall: 🐶 the entire site is dog friendly, from the museum and gift shop to the cafe ⛏ some idiots recently attacked some of the buildings so they need the funds to repair the building. As if coronavirus wasn’t bad enough! 🐔 seeing animals and interacting with them safely behind pens is good for kids and dogs 📰 they don’t get as much press as Beamish Museum or Warkworth, despite being a place fun for all 🚊 15 minute walk from Bede metro station

An excellent time out, even in these difficult times.

Really good trip for the kids who enjoyed feeding the animals.

Great place to visit

Nice monument and free.

Distancing with friends who been doing the same, lovely picnic in garden, nobody else there as hall was closed. Had a fab couple of hours and took all our rubbish home

Awesome medieval history

Very interesting.

Had family day out there it was great was a lovely walk around the grounds with different animals to pet and feed Anglo Saxon village was very interesting most important was plenty of activities for my little one from play rooms to colouring in and spot the dragon the food in the cafe was lovely then there's a great park to finish off the day the staff were amazing

Brilliant Bede museum and Anglo Saxon farm

Excellent Museum and saxon village

So good for the family to dive into history but also intertain them

Informative and knowledgeable staff, brilliant experience!

Really interesting working Anglo Saxon farm

Amazing day out for young children. Cafe is lovely, softplay is great, the farm is really good. Would recommend for a family day out

Great historical place to take bairns

Worth a visit. Obviously it is currently being redeveloped but is a great setting and is deserving of support.Also post visit the tea room/restaurant is great with well made food and super service

Brillant value for money, really interesting and great for kids

Great museum and living history village.

A great day spent on a school trip!

Fantastic reconstruction of Anglo-Saxon life.

Great little place to visit, museum is very informative. Has a lovely little cafe on site, definitely worth a visit.

Brill place for children

Absolutely fantastic.....

This is a great museum with a very wide range of exhibitions. I went today to see Dippy and was surprised at how much more there was to see and do. The cafe does a very good coffee and a decent range of food for such a small place. The toilets are clean and spacious for fairly large wheelchairs. I thoroughly enjoyed my visit will probably return in the future.

I love this museum. As I was brought to the museum as a child. I have never forgot the first time

Great free place to take the kids. Interactive, interesting, lots of animals and dinosaurs, ancient Greece, Egypt etc. Good day out.

What a great way to explore a museum especially when it's free!!! A good visit even without the kiddos!

Lovely place. Wide variety of ancient, culture and exhibitions. Love it! Will be back!

Great hidden gem right in the city centre. Wonderful museum with loads of space inside and something for everyone. The planetarium has reopened now and is fantastic too.

A brilliant, educational and FREE experience for the family. Donations are welcomed. I haven't visited this museum for years, but I recently returned to the North East and fancied a trip down memory lane before Christmas. I was not disappointed! From the friendly staff at the reception, to the range of historical artifacts, animals and even a replica T Rex , the Hancock Museum was just as good as I remember. Our trip was topped off with a visit to the little coffee shop which was very competently run by helpful staff - with decent coffee and hot chocolate too! My favourite has still got to be the Egyptian exhibit (which has fascinated me since the very first time I visited) All in all, a very pleasant way to spend a few hours in the heart of the City.

History, nature, culture and much more to learn about at this museum. Nice place to visit for all ages, with family,friends and even by your self. The entrance is free but u can donate some money,it really worth to do it. We will visit again when we have the chance.

Worth visiting. It's really a good place for kids to enjoy the day at the museum.Few fun activities are also there for kids. It's good for children of all ages. Informative for kids. They may know about stone age and other ages.

Excellent museum, lots to see and do I’d say two hours and you can see everything. It is also free which is great The cafe was nice and had plenty of cake

What a superb museum. The galleries are fantastic. My little ones really enjoyed themselves. Well worth a visit. Plus the staff were brilliant. Accessible toilets needed to be maintained as the door was broken and not very clean. If you love animals or dinosaurs this is the place for you 🙂

A great way to keep the children entertained for a few hours in the city. The mouse house play area is reopened now, although all of the fancy dress, floor mats and soft furnishings have been understandably removed so it's now an empty room with a hard floor. No longer quite the same for babies which is a shame as it's the only space they could get out of the pram and expel some energy other than crawling around the dirty and crowded floor of the main museum. Due to this it may not be a good visit just yet with smaller toddlers and babies. The T-Rex skeleton is always a hit with the older kids, as is the interactive Egyptian afterlife experience. I visited in half term and my 7yo and 2yo had a great time running around and learning about the animals. It would have been better if there had been any activities but I expect this is down to health regulations and in time may return to normal. I was caught short when the cafe closed at 3:30pm and I couldn't get the children food or drinks. Keep this in mind if attending later in the day.

Love this place. Its so rare that a 13 year old and 5 year old can be equally entertained and enthralled by the same things at the same time but the great north museum does just that. Grown ups enjoy the info, teens enjoy the interactive parts of things they've learned at school and the kids get an explosion of fun, lights, sounds and interactive learning. It's free (although a suggested donation of 5 pound is asked to cover the running but it's not mandatory) there's toilets and lifts and fully accessible. There's also a gift shop and cafe.

I have to say this is the best museum iv ever visited dinosaur definitely won the attraction I'm baffled that mummy is actual real human overall everything was amazed if I have another opportunity to visit again I would this is suitable for Al ages loads of activity throughout for kids to explore and touch etc highly recommend 👌 they have got plantasia which is walk through Huge graphic of planet but get ticket at reception b4 u go explore x

It is a good place to spend long hours with kids 😁 lots to do, archeological, Egyptian, dinosaurs, wildlife. Clean easy available toilet's. Asking Donation 5£- worth any pennies

Lovely museum to visit,alot of exhibits on show from stuffed animals,Roman history,Dinosaurs,great for children,alot of exhibits you can into act with,a great family day out

We love the Great North Museum. Free entry and a great day out. Worth paying the £3 odd to visit the Planetarium too!! Lovely little cafe on site and also a restaurant. Lockers are available for bags and pushchairs which we always use.

Great museum in the down stairs area but the anthropology section upstairs has some pretty ghoulish stuff in it. Like actual dead tribesmens bodies on display level ghoulish. Honestly really ruined it for me. The natural world, Roman and geology sections were amazing and I loved them but I just came away feeling very uncomfortable and with a sour taste in my mouth. If you don't want to look at stolen corpses on display, I'd recommend giving it a miss

Haven't been here since I took my 2 nephew's going back nearly 20 years ago. Had a lovely trip down memory lane lol. I think I will be back soon with my Great nephew

There's so much to see - the exhibits are accessible and so variable. It is well worth a visit and some more to take in everything they have. It is great for adults and children!

We had a very enjoyable visit to the Great North Museum. The man was welcoming at the shop, he gave us a very good explanation of the museum layout and cafe closing times; which was 14.00hrs for food and 14.30 for drinks. The museum is well curated and maintained. We were particularly impressed with the rainbow crystal and gemstone display, the living plant and the woodland display. We had afternoon tea at the Hancock café and booked tickets for the 'we are aliens' showing at the planetarium which was brilliant.

Great place for a family outing, the museum is quite spacious. You can take your kids if they are into human and animal evolution and history. I loved the set up they have. Best part is you don’t need to pay any entry charge. It’s absolutely free.

My son really enjoyed the adventure trail that is currently running. It gives the children a chance to explore different areas of the museum whilst trying to complete a "mythical" quest. It is a fun way to engage kids in history. We often visit the museum and it is always fun to see what the latest guest exhibition is, this provides some novelty whilst we can also continue to enjoy some of our favourite exhibits in the regular display area. As a history lover, there is loads for me to enjoy, and I look forward to visiting on my own (without the child) so I can take a little more time to soak up the history.

The museum is free entry, and at the moment also has an adventure type story that you can do. Museum is fairly large, and really well presented. The content might not be to everyone's taste - and I guess there were some areas that the kids found far more interesting / fun than others. The adventure trail thing was a nice change, the museum had gathered various objects and gave them a category of attack / defence or wisdom. We had great fun trying to decide which of each we were going to take (we chose the guardian as defence, the tiger and wolf as attack and a hat as wisdom!) When you get started you have the choice of three trails - forest, sea or mountains. You follow the map to find elements of the story around the museum. We was going to do another one, but we just didn't get a chance (time) in the end! We also used the cafe, which was reasonable (and the wife said it was one of the best hot chocolates she had had for a while!) We also visited the planetarium (which costs a little extra) which was good fun to do, although probably our youngest didn't get much out of it. We had a fab day out and was probably there for about 3.5 hrs in total.

Great family day out , free donation box is available.... kids quests to do around the museum to keep them busy if you choose to do so...lots of interaction stations along the way. Planetarium but you pay extra for that..cafe , gift shop ...lots to keep little minds engaged.