Visit

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

• The IMAX cinema is currently closed for major refurbishment 
• The Secret Life of the Home , Pattern Pod, The Garden, Space Descent VR, Red Arrows, Typhoon Force and Fly 360 are all closed until further notice.

• Summer holidays: 19 August – 1 September 2020
• October half term: 24 October – 1 November 2020
• Xmas holidays: 19 December 2020 – 3 January 2021

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.

A pedestrian subway connects South Kensington station to our main entrance.

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

Find out the latest Transport for London tube status updates.

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 dedicated bicycle stands, but folding bicycles can be left in our cloakroom on the lower ground floor for a small fee.

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 outside the Museum on Exhibition Road.

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

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. Children 13 to 16 must provide parents or guardians contact details in line with the Governments Track and Trace initiative. 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.

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.

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

Buggy parks are available in a number of locations throughout the Museum. These are not staffed, and are used at the visitor’s own risk.

Luggage, coats and buggies can be left in our cloakroom on level -1 for a small 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 Assistance Dogs
• 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

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. 

Our visitors are welcome to breastfeed anywhere on site.

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 premises if necessary.

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

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.