Must visit Museums and art galleries

[Gunznroses]

I would like to take dc (11 and 9)to visit some educational places, so far we've been to the natural science and History museums, we've been to the Tate modern ds1 thoroughly enjoyed the works of Damien Hirst.Im trying to make a list of more places to visit but there seems to be so many museums (some miles away and dont seem worth the journey).

I dont mind a couple of hrs drive but want to seem something worthwhile at the end and not just some old broken crockery from medieval times iyswim. There are some very small museums but that contain very interesting things like the Lowewood museum in hoddesdon. Ive also just spotted "Roald dahl museum in aylesbury, anyone been there ?

Can anyone recommend a list of interesting museums or art galleries that they have been to that would really add value educationally and isint just a few dustry old cups sprinkled around followed by a visit to the tea and cake shop

Science museum at millennium point in Brum is FAB, better than science museum London for a littlies as less big and scary. Hove museum great for toys and activities. Museum of Childhood near Chesterfield I'd very good too.

Best Museum in the World has to be the Melbourne Museum. It has an actual forest in it. Way way cool.

But that's a bit far away

The Satchi gallery is one of our favourite especially if you're already a fan of Tate modern. The Lowrey museum in Manchester is really worth visiting as the paintings are simply stunning in real life and very accessible for children.

Soanes museum in Lincolns Inn Field, London. Small house museum which is stuffed full of interesting things that you can get right up close to. They do candlelit evenings too, which I'm planning to go to. Very eccentric but fun.

Thumbs up to Soanes Museum! Free Monday mornings IIRC.

If you are doing Wallace Collection as mentioned above, combine with something like brunch in the lovely cafe as a treat (fairly pricey so check website beforehand) and then go shopping in Oxford Street while you are up in town.

Assume if you're in Hertfordshire you've done Verulamium to death.
Bletchley: www.bletchleypark.org.uk/
Chilterns Open Air Museum: www.coam.org.uk/
Old Operating Theatre & Herb Garret: www.thegarret.org.uk/
Sutton House - National Trust Tudor house in Hackney: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/sutton-house/
Geffrye Museum: www.geffrye-museum.org.uk/

Another gory one, Old Operating Theatre Museum and Herb Garret near London Bridge www.thegarret.org.uk/ (so pleased not to have given birth in Victorian times, instruments are grim)

Tower Bridge Exhibition. I love the bridge and really enjoyed seeing it from a different perspective with a bit of history included
www.towerbridge.org.uk

Try Intech Science Centre

www.intech-uk.com/page/default.asp?title=Home&pid=1

If you ever make it up to the north east...
Life Science Centre
Seven Stories childrens books museum
Discovery Museum, Newcastle
Great North Museum
Segedunum Roman Fort
Durham Cathedral

There are more, but they should last you a few days

Oh! Totally forgot The Baltic - if he liked the Tate Modern, the Baltic would be brill.

If you do decide to check out the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, why not also visit the nearby National Coal Mining Museum? It's a very interesting free museum that includes a trip down into a real mine and the staff are very friendly and helpful. And between Rotherham and Sheffield there's also Magna Science Centre based in a steel works that has a great water park for the warmer months.

Oh, Spockster. I went to Thinktank (the Science Museum) and thought it was one of the circles of hell. Everything chucked in together & so farking dark. DS loved the exhibits, I must say but it's such a mess of a place - it reminded me of my dad's shed...

Agree with others here about Foundling Museum, which is v interesting but had me trying not to sob as I went round it.

Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery itself though, is fantastic - one of the best collections of Pre-Raphaelite art in the country (for free, cf the Tate's current - very good - exhibition), fantastic hands-on activity rooms for the kids and really friendly gallery staff, who talked to DS about all the paintings and what he could see. He was 3 at the time, so they had their work cut out but he absolutely loved it. Can't recommend that gallery enough.

This is a really good thread. It belongs in Classics.

Also great for kids is the National History Museum in St Fagan's, near Cardiff. It's a big park where they've reconstructed traditional style cottages and houses from all over Wales, from very old to quite modern. You can go in them all and see how people used to live, and there are always craft and cooking demonstrations going on. Take a picnic and eat it in the grounds. Its free too.

BrittaPerry - I love the Newcastle museums. Sadly, the City Council - which up to now has been a fantastic supporter of their museums - has just announced a 50% cut in their funding. Museums, as discretionary services (that is - councils don't have to provide them) are going to suffer in the ongoing public sector cuts. So go quickly before the effects start to show, and try and make a fuss on their behalf if you can.

I know, I've been joining in with some of the campaign for the libraries :-( Up to 100% cut to the arts budget too. It's a bloody disgrace. Don't want to derail the thread, but yeah, it's awful.

Yes, sorry to put in such a negative note. I work in the sector and it's great to see so many people passionate about their favourite museums.