Visit

Before you visit, please read the list below to check whether any of our galleries or spaces will be closed:

• The museum will open at 12.00 on Wednesday 2 November and close at 16.00 on Thursday 6 October and 17.00 on Wednesday 30 November.
• The Atmosphere gallery closed permanently on 20 March 2022. If you would like to learn more about climate change, please visit Our Future Planet which explores how carbon capture technologies could help support our efforts to meet this global challenge.

  In 2023 we will open a new gallery related to climate change.

During school holidays the museum is open Monday–Sunday, 10.00-18.00 (last entry 17.15)

We encourage visitors to wear a face covering, particularly at busy times, so that everyone feels welcome and safe during their visit.

If you have booked a ticket for Wonderlab, please ensure that you have also booked a free museum admission ticket. If you are an Annual Pass holder you will need to book a free Wonderlab time slot and a museum admission ticket before arrival. 

Wonderlab is located on level 3 of the museum. 

If you have booked a ticket to visit our IMAX cinema, please ensure that you have also booked a free museum admission timeslot before arrival.  

Our cinema is located towards the back of the museum on level 0 so please make sure you arrive in good time for your screening. 

If you need assistance to reach the auditorium please speak to the team upon arrival.  

If you have booked a ticket for Red Arrows 3D and/or Typhoon Force, please ensure that you have also booked a free museum admission ticket. These simulators are located in Fly Zone, on level 3 of the museum. 

Please note: Our simulators are now operating at full capacity. If you have any questions on the day please do speak to a member of staff. 

If you have booked a ticket for Cancer Revolution: Science, innovation and hope, please ensure that you have also booked a free museum admission ticket. 

The exhibition is located on level 2 of the museum. 

We’ve made some changes to help keep everyone safe: 

• Please protect yourself and others by keeping your distance while exploring the museum and queuing. 

• Wash your hands regularly, use hand sanitiser and avoid touching your face. We have sanitiser stations throughout the museum but encourage all visitors to bring their own too.  

• We’ve enhanced our cleaning regimes throughout the museum. 

• We have taken all reasonable steps to provide adequate ventilation in enclosed spaces.  

We have more details on our FAQS- please look through these to find out more about your visit. 

Our phone lines can get very busy so please submit a return request for free tickets up until 08.30 on the day of your visit. You are welcome to book new tickets for another day online.  

Please note that donations, including those made as part of your booking, are non-refundable. Your support large or small will make a huge difference—thank you.

If you would like to move your paid tickets to a different day please call our Contact Centre on 033 0058 0058. Our phone lines can get very busy so please bear with us.  

If you would be happy to donate the value of your tickets to the museum, please email our Contact Centre at info@ScienceMuseumGroup.ac.uk with your name and order number. 

The nearest tube station is South Kensington. This is on the District, Circle and Piccadilly lines and is a 5-minute walk from the museum.

Gloucester Road tube station is also on the District, Circle and Piccadilly lines and is a 15-minute walk from the museum.

TfL updates

Find out the latest Transport for London tube status updates

TFL's suggested walking routes to the Science Museum

Bus routes 14, 49, 70, 74, 345, 360, 414, 430 and C1 stop outside South Kensington Underground Station.

Bus routes 9, 10, 52, 452 and 70 stop outside the Royal Albert Hall on Kensington Gore.

There is a coach drop-off point in Exhibition Road outside the Museum. The nearest coach parks are located at Warwick Road, Bayswater Road and Park Lane.

For more information visit Transport for London’s Information for Coach Drivers page.

Transport for London Barclays Cycle Hire docking stations are available outside the museum on Exhibition Road and on Thurloe Place near South Kensington tube station.

We do not have car parking facilities and local parking is very limited.

There is no visitor parking in Exhibition Road.

The nearest pay and display car parking is in Prince Consort Road and Queen's Gate.

Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea have more information about parking near the museum.

A small number of disabled parking spaces are available on Exhibition Road.

Blue Badge holders may park here for four hours between 08.30 and 18.30.

Please enter the Science Museum through the Main Entrance on Exhibition Road, SW7 2DD (see Google Maps). Your arrival time slot is printed on your tickets—please try to arrive during this period. 

While you are at the museum please take care of your own health and safety and our collections. In order to ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for everyone, please do not:

• Touch objects on open display
• Smoke in the museum (including electronic cigarettes)
• Disregard alarms, signs, barriers or directions given by staff
• Leave personal property unattended
• Eat and drink other than in designated areas
• Bring in to the museum any restricted item (see below)
• Fundraise, demonstrate or distribute campaigning material, without prior agreement
• Ride bicycles, scooters or any other wheeled item.

Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult. Other age restrictions may apply for particular experiences in the museum.

For education groups, separate advice and guidance on supervision of children is available in our Learning section.

You can log in to your account to view your tickets. Please be ready to show your e-tickets on arrival. If possible, please avoid printing your tickets. We will ask for you to scan your own tickets using our self-service scanners so make sure that your brightness is turned up on your mobile phone screen. Our staff will be on hand to help. 

We will sometimes conduct bag searches on arrival at the Science Museum. The searches look for restricted items and any other material that might be considered a risk to our collection, or to the health and safety and enjoyment of our visitors.

Any items found will be removed at the bag-searching point will be recorded and returned to the visitor on departure. If our staff find anything they consider to be illegal, they will confiscate it and contact the Police. 

If you have a large or oversized bag we kindly ask that you leave this at home as our cloakroom is only accepting smaller items for a fee. 

• Alcohol. Alcohol may only be consumed, if purchased on site, in a designated area
• Clothing with offensive signage or logos
• Animals, with exception of working guide and assistance animals
• Potentially dangerous items such as fireworks or knives. Knives which are carried for religious or cultural observance (such as the Kirpan) are normally exempt from this policy
• Balloons, as these can interfere with our alarm systems if they float away

Please look after your personal property while at the museum. Any property left unattended may be removed from the museum. If you lose any item during your visit, please speak to a member of staff.

Our self-service lockers are located on level -1 of the museum. Please note that these lockers are card payment only. Prices are as follows:

• Small—£3.00: Fits coats and hand-sized items  (35cm H, 25cm W , 43cm D)
• Medium—£5.00: Fits rucksacks and small bags (43cm H ,  33cm W , 43cm D)
• Large—£7.00: Fits carry-on luggage and medium-sized bags* (53cm H, 40cm W, 43cm D)*

*While our large lockers can fit carry-on sized luggage we advise that suitcases and larger items are left at home.

If you’ve pre-purchased a lunch, you can collect your order from the designated collection point in the Energy Café on level 0 during your chosen time slot. 

Find out more about how to pre-book your lunch on our Food and Drink page.

We have several cafés and picnic areas in the museum. When you arrive please speak to a member of staff if you'd like to know which cafés are open.  

As part of our sustainability efforts, we only offer fabric tote bags and no longer offer plastic carrier bags. If you would like to support the museum by making a purchase, we recommend you bring your own bag to carry your gift home in. 

If you have pre-purchased a face covering or a souvenir book, you can collect these on the day at the information desk on level 0 at the front of the museum. 

Our visitors are welcome to breastfeed anywhere on site.

Please note that we're currently busy building a few new galleries in the museum so there may be some additional noise during your visit.  

All our staff are identifiable from their Science Museum passes. There is a Duty Manager on site whenever we are open to the public, to ensure that you have a safe and enjoyable visit.

If our staff think you may be causing unreasonable offence to other visitors, or are endangering yourself, others, our property or our collections, they will ask you to stop. Our staff have the authority to escort you from the museum if necessary.

We will not tolerate abuse or violence towards any visitor, contractor or member of staff.

Visitors are permitted to use hand-held cameras within the museum for private and non-commercial purposes, but must not:

• Use cameras in any areas where video or photography is restricted (this will always be clearly signed)
• Make any recording or take any photograph of any person without the authorisation of that person.

Non-private or commercial use of cameras/recording devices, and the use of tripods or lighting, is only allowed by prior arrangement.

We will always let visitors know if filming or photography is taking place in the museum during their visit.

CCTV is in use throughout the Science Museum; images are recorded for the purpose of public safety and crime prevention, in line with Data Protection legislation.

Don’t forget that the Science Museum is located in South Kensington, London’s home of science, arts and inspiration. Why not make a day of it and visit some of our neighbours? Find out more at https://www.discoversouthken.com/