This is a wonderful quirky space. Like the attic of your eccentric uncle who travelled widely,…read morebrought back whatever he could carry, then carefully catalogued everything (idiosyncratically) and then left it for you to go through--that is, if your uncle was the entirety of the British empire. Can't say enough. You can spend days here and still be saying "did you see THAT?"

We had a great time exploring the Pitt Rivers Museum! There is SO much on display it's almost hard…read moreto take it all in. If you're an anthropology buff, this is your place. So many neat things to see and everything you can imagine, too many to list. From clothing to masks to weapons to toys all from different cultures and different times. We even saw a Totem Pole! Overall a fascinating place to visit, just wish we'd had more time to explore!

Bressingham is an esoteric mixture of things. There are three narrow-gauge steam railways to ride…read moreon. There are several exhibition halls with assorted steam locomotives to see and some Royal Train carriages. In the main hall is the Dad's Army Museum, which is not clearly delineated but in the same hall as some other varied exhibits. The cafe sells excellent cakes and lunches at acceptable prices. There is a signal box exhibit too, a carousel roundabout and a small ramshackle old-time fun-fair. Like many such places the museum is based on a collection rather than trying to tell a particular story. The gardens are rather under-sold. They are magnificent and very extensive. On a fine day you could enjoy them for hours. Well worth a visit.

Located just outside of Diss this place is not just an attraction for train enthusiasts. It does…read morehave several working steam trains which our children thoroughly enjoyed riding on, but it has more besides such as an old-fashioned gallopers ride. Your entry ticket entitles you to a few rides. The music is quite loud and the horses do go up and down and round at quite a rate. My young child jumped on enthusiastically but as we went round she looked faintly scared and hung on for dear life! There's also a Dad's army museum which fans of the show will love. Our children too enjoyed going in and out of the replica shops. The gardens here are beautiful as well and we enjoyed our picnic in lovely surroundings. You might even be tempted on the way out to purchase something from the Blooms of Bressingham Garden Centre which forms part of this place.

This is an amazing 2 story museum with all kinds of artifacts from old wedgewood to Egypt's tomb…read moreand artifacts Teapots and tea cups old coins to everything in between. 2 nd floor loads of paintings to look at. Entry is free which is always a plus.

The Fitzwilliam Museum offers a well rounded and varied collection. It is sure to please most…read moremuseum visitors regardless of interests. If you're a fan of the work of Georges-Pierre Seurat, you're sure to enjoy the 1884 Neo-Impressionism painting, "The Couple" (original title: Un dimanche après-midi sur l'île de la Grande Jatte). Does it somehow look familiar? This was a study for A Sunday on the Island of la Grande Jatte! "This work is one of many that Georges-Pierre Seurat made in preparation for a much larger painting. The woman's stiff posture is accentuated by her tightly buttoned jacket and the exaggerated bustle of her skirt, which echoes the curve of her parasol. Given that the area of Paris depicted here was known for prostitution, it has been suggested that the woman is a sex worker on the arm of a male client." Give yourself several hours if you plan to take in the entire collection. If you are fortunate enough to live nearby and can visit often, take your time and you're sure to fall in love with one of the many wonderfully curated items found within the museum walls.

I visited this house a few years ago which was only a few miles from my high school in…read moreHertfordshire and realized its historical significance. This was the house where Mary I, Elizabeth I and Edward VI were raised. London in Henry VIII's time was riddled with disease such as typhoid, cholera and smallpox, hardly a place fit for little royals where childhood mortality was common. King Henry VIII choose Hatfield house for its proximity to London but far away enough from its scourge. Located in the North Downs, you could see the Thames and from London, you could see Hatfield House. Henry could signal his intention to visit his children and the royal household at Hatfield would make preparations to cater for his arrival with his royal entourage. The journey on horse from London to Hatfield would take a day by the way of Saint Johns Wood. Now you could get to Hatfield from Central London in probably an hour. On a clear day you should be able to see the London Eye from Hatfield if you know what you are looking for. This house was a crucial incubator of the protestant faith. King Henry had the best scholars of the time to instruct his children so that they can continue their reign as protestants. Without Elizabeth I being a strong protestant, England might have kept the Catholic faith as the country's religion. Her eldest sister Queen Mary reinstated Catholicism as the faith of the land when she reigned after the death of Edward VI and the brief reign of Jane Earl Grey. It was reverted to the Church of England when Elizabeth I became Queen. So, if you are ever within spitting distance of this place you should try and see it.

Hatfield House is a lovely day out from London. It is about a 25 minute train ride north of London…read more Hatfield House is the family home of the Marquess of Salisbury, and was built by Robert Cecil (Chief Minister to James I, and son of William Cecil) from 1607-1611. The house is gorgeous, and has loads of beautiful furniture and art. Also on site is Old Hatfield Palace, where Elizabeth I spent much of her childhood. Elizabeth was out on the grounds at Hatfield when she learned that she was now queen, following the death of her sister Mary. Hatfield has somewhat limited opening hours, and is closed (except for the grounds and for special events) during the winter. Check the website (great info) for details. I recommend going at the weekend: during the week you must take a guided tour of the home. The guide was knowledgable and entertaining, but we had to keep moving ahead of the group behind us, so did not have time to savor all of the wonderful things about Hatfield. I will definitely go back.

I took my children here when they were doing a project on the Romans at school. They both had their…read morepicture taken next to the sign for the Baths, then we went into the Baths themselves, which are underground. There were lots of activities for the children, including pitures to colour in and a quiz. They were able to pick up lots of leaflets with useful information for their project. there were also itmes for them to buy, such as replica Roman coins and jewellery. Best of all it was free, a great way to spend an hour or so on a rainy Sunday, and very educational.

Visited the museum while in Oxford for the day. Lots of history and neat exhibits to visit. We…read moresaw insects, fossils and tons of other things, almost too many to list. The day of our visit, there were a few schools visiting but everyone we encountered from the staff to the young preschool students were friendly and considerate. Definitely worth a visit if you're in Oxford.

A museum of natural history would generally be on my list of "museums I don't wish to visit" but…read morethe Oxford Museum of Natural History proved that I barely know myself. First, it's free of charge which automatically makes it attractive. But though free may get me in the door it won't guarantee I'll enjoy it. This museum isn't just free but it is also gorgeous and interesting, a real home run. And, in the event that Natural History isn't your jam even here, this place contains the portal to the almost indescribable Pitt Rivers Museum (also free). One of these is bound to be your happy place.

Small lovely museum, funded mainly by donations with lovely staff. Educational and mind opening…read moreexperience. I hope the museum gets the opportunity to expand and have more exhibits. When we came they had an exhibit about menopause. I think more people need to learn about the vagina in general and as a whole and understand what it is like to have one and all the burdens that come along with it and without it in the end.

A soon as I saw the name on the sign outside I HAD to go in. They have a wide variety of products…read moredisplayed from information pamphlets, books and jewellery that looks like ummm well I'm not sure what word Yelp will consider PC or risqué so just read the name of the business and you'll know exactly what I'm messing. You can wear them on your ears with a knitted sweet or on a chain around your neck made of an plastic type material, they had bold showing every size, shape and colour. You can also get t-shirts. The staff stayed behind the desk but they were friendly and greeted everyone that entered. I realised like myself most people seemed to be coming in out of curiosity and don't make any purchases but b they staff took that in stride and continued greeting everyone with the same courteous smile. Kudos to this company for celebrating woman so boldly

The Brits plundered many fascinating archeological artifacts from around the world, and the…read moreBritish Museum displays some of the most famous, such as the Rosetta Stone. Admission: free Time budget: minimum 4 hours Free WiFi is available Plenty of clean bathrooms Caution: The museum has no air conditioning. I visited during a rare heat wave, and the museum was a sweat box. Also, if you don't like crowds, you won't like this museum. It gets packed early. Pre-opening tour: The museum offers for UK $35 various pre-opening tours. I took the Greece pre-opening tour. Pros: Small group of 20 before the unwashed masses crowd into the museum. Tour guides are knowledgable. Guides may offer extra time at no charge (e.g. 15-20 minutes extra). Cons: My tour guide did not enunciate or project his voice, so much of the tour was unintelligible.

Late Saturday afternoon in the summer:…read more The Good: *Admission is free! *No cattle crowd lines for security check, I basically walked up. *The new (compared to the original) Grand Courtyard is stunning and a fantastic photo op. *Enlightenment Room 1 is literally the coolest place in the summer. *The Rosetta Stone, Room 4 is a don't miss. *ditto the Tang dynasty figures and China history which was eye-opening in Room 33. Jade story was interesting too in Room 33a. The Bad: *Probably because it's free, the place is super crowded with students, elderly, tourists and large tour groups of all stripes. *The security line was empty because everyone was already inside. *Most of the rooms are hot in summer. I was sweating and clammy. I was surprised people weren't fainting due to the stuffy air. *You have about 10 seconds to see the Rosetta Stone due to the crowd who also don't want to miss it. *Enlightenment Room 1 was filled with people sitting and resting and cooling off in the library-like space. *Special exhibition-Declaring Independence, USA 250 was super small but I guess appropriate given the British lost the war. Room 3. I forgot I had already been to the British Museum 12 years ago. I think I've seen enough but maybe return in the midweek and when it isn't so hot. Sometimes the museum closes early due to the heat.

We were in London during a heat wave and decided a museum day was in order, to entertain our…read morechildren away from the scorching sun. We settled on the Natural History Museum, and by the time we realized it would provide but faint relief, it was too late to go somewhere else. The Natural History Museum is one of London's spectacular free museums, a beautiful building on Exhibition Road in South Kensington. We were not, apparently, the only family who decided to visit on this hot Thursday afternoon in July, and we ended up waiting in a long, slow line, completely exposed to the sun. They might have put up some umbrellas, but I guess the weather was atypical. Once we were in, we learned that the museum is an old, historic building without much in the way of air conditioning. It was crowded and steamy in there, though still preferable to being outside. There were also a few newer exhibition halls that had proper AC. Thankfully, my three-year-old has a lifelong fascination with fans, and there were dozens of these on display, giant machines designed to ventilate large spaces. He was, in fact, more into these than he was into the dinosaurs, which scared the bejeezus out of him. The museum was definitely top tier, with tons of interesting exhibits to entertain both children and adults. We entered right into Hintze Hall, where a full blue whale skeleton hung suspended over our heads. We also admired a 4.5 billion-year-old meteorite, dating back to the beginning of our solar system. The dinosaur hall was excellent, even if the animatronic T-rex made my little boy cry. We fell prey to one of the photo op stops, and I definitely paid for the downloads like a sucker--what, was I not gonna own the silly green screen pictures of my family among dinosaurs, and more importantly, looking at a camera at the same time? The mammal hall was cool, though I have to say, I missed the grand diorama displays of the mammal halls I've seen back home. We went into a newer exhibit on how to fix our broken planet, mostly for the air conditioning. My kids were less into the conservation stuff than the dinosaurs and fans, but I thought it was quite well done. I actually stopped buying beef treats for my dog as a result of one of the placards, which talked about the impact on the planet of using beef for pet food. We went to two gift shops, the one by the dinosaur hall and the main one near the entrance, and both were quite nice, with lots to look at for our kids. We allowed them to buy stuffies, and our three-year-old bought a tiny dodo and a tiny ankylosaurus (on theme, good job), while our six-year-old bought a flamingo to add to his flamingo collection. If there was a flamingo display at the museum, we missed it, though I suppose I wouldn't be surprised. I can tell by looking at the map now that we missed plenty. We spent a little time in the cafe, for fans and beverages, and I realized as we were leaving that I'd left my sunglasses there over an hour earlier. I was pleasantly surprised to find it at the register waiting for me. We take the kids to natural history museums at home, and I have no doubt we'd make good use of this one if we were raising them nearby. It's a wonderful place, expansive and educational, a truly amazing free resource to anyone spending time in London.

Lots of bones! Plenty of old stuff! Great turn-of-the-century over-the-top ornate architecture!…read morePlan on an hour unless you're hardcore. Ride the escalator into the middle of the earth to find out what music is playing inside. See extraordinary taxidermy handiwork. Even see a fake dodo bird thought to be an adjacent species that didn't exist. And if you like dinosaurs this is your Mecca. Just don't dare sit anywhere like on some stairs in the corner or some overzealous guard will kick you right out. But otherwise you'll have a great time. Also enjoy the outside grounds for a stroll, and hit up the West entrance for zero lines while the hoards line up on the other side.

This place is fantastic for people of all ages and it's free which is even better. Did you know…read morethat the nursery rhymes humpty dumpty and twinkle twinkle little star are both from Colchester? Well you can find out why and much more at this museum - well worth a visit

A free museum and somewhere worth visiting. Not only are there lots of interesting artifacts but…read morethere are things the children and adults can play around with whilst learning about the local history.