Take no notice of the mini-map - it is wrong. The museum is located on Grand Parade. The address is…read morecorrect. We visited on a drizzly June Sunday in 2010 and were pleasantly surprised. Admission was cheap and it passed an hour or so. The exhibits remind you of a bedroom quickly tidied with the arrival of visitors. There is no logic to the displays, they simply are. Famous names sit next to anonymous teddy bears. Virtually every type of toy is represented. Modern toys and games sit alongside favourites of days gone by. We were able to show our 11 and 8 year olds toys which we had as children. The museum is well worth a visit.

My young nephew is a huge fan of this place. Located in North Shields, near to the Silverlink…read moreRetail Park, the museum holds a small range of engines tended to be staff and a good band of dedicated volunteers. And, best of all, admission is FREE! You can even take a ride on a real steam engine. A lovely way for young (and old) kids to spend some time learning about trains.

We visited the Beamish Museum 7 years ago and came back for the second time. It is a great living…read morehistory museum. We visited this time specifically the 1900's and 1950's villages. Most houses and shops are accessible with people in period outfits providing explanations. Of course, we also bought stuff in the vintage shops. Getting around happened on the great vintage bus and tram service. Altogether, a great day out. Note: tickets are not cheap, but valid for a year. Do book online to avoid the queue.

Wow! I visited from Edinburgh and had the best time! Beamish museum is such a magical place, like…read morebeing on a movie set with people all in traditional clothing walking around, working in the 1900's chemist where you can buy soaps, lip salve, and other things, the confectionery shop and bakery for pies and cakes and sweets, sit in the sun inn pub for a pint, ride on the many trams for free as the conductor yells 'hold tight' as you travel very slowly around the town, jumping on and off at various tram stops eg: 1900's town, Rowley station, 1900's pitt village, 1940's farm, 1950's town and farm where you can go into an air raid shelter and visit the homes and some of the residents. There is also the 1820's colliery, Pockerley waggonway, old hall and the transport depot all to explore. It is such an experience and I found myself grinning from ear to ear the full 6 hours I was there. Everyone keeps in character that at one point when i was visiting the community hall the lady was sweeping the floors talking about cleaning up after entertaining children and I couldn't tell if she was playing a character or if it was real as there were schools of children visiting that day but thats how it is, its a full immersive experience and I honestly loved it!

Great day out packed full of interesting things to see. I've been coming here since I was a kid,…read moreand always enjoy a visit, learning something new about the local history each time. With free entry, and in town, it's definitely worth including it in your day travels.

Another nice and interesting museum in Newcastle, definitely a city of cultural delights. The…read moreDiscovery Museum mostly focuses on telling the story of the city and of the Northeast in general. It goes through the good times and the bad times in the city, including the coal mining boom, the poverty, the World Wars, the politics, everything is covered. There are real life examples- interviews with real Newcastle people over the years, and plenty of interesting memorabilia as well. It's a very cool place. There are also sections devoted to science and technology, and the discoveries made by people from the area. There is a good café with excellent prices, and a nice little shop too. A big advantage of this museum for families is that the exhibits are quite interactive, and should keep children interested as well. Best of all, it's all free. However, if you can, please do donate to keep important institutions like this one accessible to all.

Very good free museum at the University of Newcastle. The Great North Museum focuses on natural…read morehistory for the most part, with interesting sections on world cultures as well. The exhibits are interesting and informative, but also interactive enough to keep everyone's attention. When we visited, there was a special exhibition on the amazing Gertrude Bell. It tells her life story, including her fascinating archaeological work in the middle east, and her efforts to establish a National Museum in Baghdad. A truly interesting woman. There is a good shop and a café on site, so you can definitely spend a few hours here and not get bored. Highly recommended in Newcastle.

Fantastic free museum for adults & children. Well worth a visit if there m the city. Some…read moreinteresting items on display. Shame about screaming kids during school holidays!

Just of the metro this is a great fort with a musuem and a contrsuted batch house, this is pretty…read moremuch where the wall ends and you can walk around the fort though there isnt much there compaired with other places along hadrians wall what there is is the excellent musuem with display of artifacts and loads of intereactive games to play They have recontrusted diffenent parts of the barracks so that you can see rooms as they would have been. Outside they have contrusted a full bath house with hot and cold rooms replica toilets and plunge baths The tower house has great views of the surronding area where the ships used to be built the musuesm also has a gallery on the coal and ship building industry of the area. There is a nice little cafe and a good shop full of nice jewelly books and games for children

Anyone interested in Roman History should visit this site.Literally the end of the Roman Wall,sited…read moreat Wallsend on the banks the river Tyne.This site was uncovered when the old Simpsons Hotel was demolished.Swan Hunters shipbuilders clock stands at the entrance (another sign of times gone by)There are the foundations of the Roman buildings and a fully reconstructed bath house as well as a portion of the wall itself and a section of the wall reconstructed that you can actually walk upon to get the true feeling.They have an observation tower and a museum.Throughout the year there are special events when the Romans come alive and centurians walk the surrounding areas.There is the usual tea room and gift shop.Easily reached from Wallsend Metro approx 500yds up the road.Well worth a visit for young and all.

This is a great little museum that's packed with fun stuff. You can easily get round most if it in…read morean afternoon and it's small enough that you can really talk to the staff and get all your questions answered.

A small and friendly museum. Usually you have a quiz to take you round and 'see' Alnwick before…read morethings changed. Every few months new exhibits come to town. It is set over three floors and is bit off the beaten track. It is fairly cheap to get in and family tickets are available.

This is a great place you can come park and watch the sea, go to the burger van for great burgers,…read morego to the bird watch you passed on the drive in or walk across to the lighthouse if the tides are out The ight house was decommisioned in 1984 and a trust was formed where volunteers look after the light house The view is great from the top though the 137 steps can take your breath away a little There used to be a chapel there hundreds of years ago and the bodies of criminals was hung from the end of the causeway These days it has a nice display room, a good gift shop and realy clean toilets

Absolutely a Jewel in the North. Beautifully maintained and the staff very friendly very well…read morestocked shop of gifts from the north. I suggest you try walking up the lighthouse and claiming your certificate of achievement. Child friendly and the history depicted in its small museum was a great read. Can only be visited when the tide is out so check the tide timetable before setting off :). A definate must see even if it is just to take a photo to capture its beauty.

South Shields Museum & Art Gallery is a free museum funded by the council, in South Shields city…read morecentre. It has recently been refurbished, though I have not been inside for over a year now so am not sure what the refurbishment entailed! Bearing in mind that is it free it is obviously worth a look around. I particularly like the Catherine Cookson-esque street scenes, and also... the old fashioned sweetie shop. It sells loads of classic old sweets - it's always packed with kids, for obvious reasons! Definitely try the cinder toffee and the cola cubes!!! For the more cultured types there are often art displays upstairs. There is WC access too so it is easily accessible to all of the public. You can find out more about the current displays and exhibitions by going to their website: http://www.twmuseums.org.uk/southshields/

Based at the bottom of King St the Shields museum is funded by the council and is free for anyone…read moreto go inside. The displays vary all year round and have quite a bit of local history inside of them. Although the museum itself is quite small some of the diaplya are very informative and appeal to people of all ages. I think that the council could do more to promote this place as very few people know about it and even more so know that it is free to enter and have a look around. The museum is ideal for people who are on there way to the beach to take in a little history of the town and will get you to know the place a little better.