If you’re thinking of visiting the UK, or you happen to live here, and you simply want to learn more about your heritage, then there are plenty of free admission museums available that are ready to offer an incredible education. The museums in the UK are some of the best in the world, designed to showcase culture and human evolution from around the planet.
Whether you’re simply looking for a good way to while away the hours with the kids on a school holiday, or you have a true appreciation for the growth of humankind, the following 10 free museums are worth your attention.
The British Museum
Perhaps one of the best-known and most popular museums in the world, the British museum in Bloomsbury London is a free-to-enter educational institution celebrating the growth of human art, culture, and history. The collection within the British Museum includes more than 8 million items – which makes it one of the most comprehensive museums in the world. Here, you can find discoveries from across the planet. While the museum is now home to a great deal of cultural art, it was founded fundamentally as a “universal” place of learning.
The Tate Modern
It’s hard to find a single person who hasn’t heard of the Tate Modern. A modern art gallery in London, this building is home to Britain’s collection of modern art from around the world. It’s based in the Bankside area of London and holds the broadest collection of modern art all the way from the 1900s to the current day. This is one of the largest art museums in the world, and though there’s no admission charge, you are expected to pay for access to limited edition exhibitions. The Tate Modern was recently voted the best free museum by the bad credit payday loan website Readies.co.uk, in a poll of over 10,000 payday loan users.
The National Gallery
An impeccable art museum in the heart of Trafalgar Square, Central London, the National Gallery was founded in 1824, and houses more than 2,300 paintings dating all the way back to the middle of the 13th century. The collection within this unique museum belongs to the British government, but it’s held on the behalf of the public, which is why entry to the main collection is completely free. This is by far one of the most popular art museums in the world.
The Natural History Museum
An insight into various segments of natural history throughout the years, the Natural History Museum is a celebration of our growth as a species. This museum makes up one of three of a wider collection on Exhibition Road in London South Kensington. The other two options are the Science Museum as well as the Victoria and Albert Museum. This building currently holds about 80 million items linked to zoology, paleontology, mineralogy, botany, and entomology.
The Science Museum
Another of the major attractions on Exhibition Road, the Science museum was founded in 1857 and currently exists as one of the biggest tourist attractions in London. There’s no charge for admission, although temporary exhibitions may have their own admissions fee. The space showcases evolutions in science from across the years with insights into various different aspects of science. From the solar system to biology, you can learn a lot more about how the world works with an educational trip to the Science museum.
The Victoria and Albert Museum
The world’s largest museum featuring decorative design and artworks, the V&A museum holds more than 4.5 million objects and was founded in 1852. This unique space can be found in the Brompton district of London, and it joins together with the Science and Natural History Museums to make up Exhibition roads. Entry into the museum has been free ever since 2001. The surrounding area features many of celebrations of Prince Albert and Queen Victoria, who the building itself was named after.
The National Museum of Scotland
Not all the UK’s best museums are housed in London. The National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh hosts a selection of Scottish culture, history, and antiques. Combined with the royal museum, it has a wide range of incredible collections to explore that cover everything from world culture, to natural history, technology, and science. Like the rest of the museums on this list, admission is free, and it’s well worth going along to take a look into the annals of Scottish history.
The Scottish National Gallery
When it comes to showcasing beautiful art from across the years, Scottish has its own answer to options like the Tate Modern and the National Gallery. The Scottish National Gallery can be found in central Edinburgh, and it was designed by William Playfair back in 1859. As one of the most compelling attractions in Scotland today, the gallery is home to a huge collection of fine art. Within, you can find everything from international pieces painted throughout the renaissance, to modern pieces from Scottish heritage.
The National Portrait Gallery
Alongside art museums dedicated to showing a vast selection of different types and styles of art, there are also plenty of locations that have their own specific focus in the art world. For instance, the National Portrait Gallery in London houses portraits of famous and historically important people within the UK. This was the very first portrait gallery to open in the world and has moved to different locations throughout it’s history. Today, the museum can be found off Trafalgar Square at St Martin’s Place. Click here for more info on The National Portrait Gallery.
Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum
Last, but certainly not least, the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is a national art gallery located in Scotland, within Glasgow. The space re-opened after a three-year period of refurbishment in 2006, and since then the attraction has gradually evolved be one of the most popular attractions for the whole of Scotland, driving a huge number of visitors every year. Located close to the River Kelvin, the original building was actually destroyed by a fire in the 1920s, but today it still maintains a great deal of it’s period charm.
