Manchester Museum
Manchester Museum things to do, attractions, restaurants, events info and trip planning
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Most recent review - September 2024: Really enjoyed the new Wild exhibition which has replaced the mummies. Good activity stations to engage the children (and adults) too. 🌳 *Updated review - (1st re-visit since the pandemic). Lots of fantastic changes! The new mummy exhibition was amazing, been waiting for what feels like forever for this to have been completed, but it was worth the wait! Tickets are required to enter. They are free, and they can be easily booked at the entrance. Updated café, gift shop and fantastic new Chinese & South Asian exhibitions in place of the old dated, imperialist exhibits which used to be home to the 1st floor! Lots of little touches here and there to promote inclusivity and to make the place much more comfortable and interactive for visitors. New gender-neutral toilets, with free sanitary products and additional seating areas throughout the museum. Only tiny niggle - they have made the entrance and exit through the gift shop which makes it chaotic for anyone actually wishing to browse / enter / exit the museum! *Old review from 2 years ago: The queuing system wasn't clear, so ended up standing in a long queue waiting for a while, - turns out it was for people who hadn't pre-booked tickets, so a little annoying to find that we could have gone straight in. This was a minor niggle, but might be worth mentioning so other people don't make the same mistake as we did! The Covid safety measures in place are well thought out. It was lovely that the museum greeters acknowledged and thanked us for wearing our masks, even though it is no longer legally required. Lots of sanitising stations throughout. They clearly carefully monitored the amount of visitors in the building, and which means you are able to browse the exhibits while easily maintaining social distancing. (This is the opposite to how it currently is at the Liverpool Museum, where it is very crowded). An interesting and enjoyable place to spend an afternoon. My two and 4 year old loved it - they were especially impressed by the frogs. Most of the museum is still closed off, along with the mummies - which is undergoing renovation.
NaomiNaomi
20
I recently visited the museum in Manchester with my family, and it was an experience worth sharing. The museum is impressively large, offering ample space to explore a wide variety of exhibits. It’s truly a fantastic destination for a family day out, catering to visitors of all ages. One of the standout aspects of the museum is how family-friendly it is. There are numerous activities specifically designed for children, making it an ideal place for families with young ones. The interactive exhibits were particularly enjoyable for my kids; they were engaged and entertained, while also learning something new. These interactive elements really add a fun dimension to the experience, allowing children to get hands-on and immerse themselves in the exhibits. The museum is also very well-equipped in terms of facilities. There are plenty of toilets available throughout, which is always a plus when you’re out with the family. Clean and well-maintained, they made our visit more comfortable and stress-free. Another convenient feature is the on-site café. After a few hours of exploring, it was great to be able to sit down and enjoy a meal without having to leave the museum. The café offers a good selection of food and drinks, catering to both adults and children, which was a pleasant surprise. Overall, the museum in Manchester is a wonderful place to visit with family. It offers a perfect blend of education and entertainment, making it both an enjoyable and enriching experience. I highly recommend it for anyone looking for a fun and educational day out with the kids.
Andre YAndre Y
00
Wonderful museum, with a lot of good points, but a couple of things to be aware of. The diversity of the exhibits is brilliant, and our 2 year old and 4 year old were engrossed, as well as being informative for myself and my husband (dinosaurs and living world for them, and golden mummies of Egypt for us). We found the staff incredibly friendly and approachable, whether they were in the shop, volunteers around the museum or in the cafe/picnic area. The prices for hot drinks are more than acceptable compared to many places that we have visited, and with free entry, I would say that this is an excellent way to spend the day. The exhibits flowed well, and are easily followed by children and adults alike, especially in the dinosaur area which takes you from before the dinosaurs to fairly recently, and Stan was obviously a big hit. We didn't get a chance to see everything due to time limitations on our part, but was definitely worth the trip, and we will be attending again. Having not driven into Manchester ourselves before, finding somewhere suitable to park proved difficult, and the spaces were fairly tight. Big 4x4's may struggle to get in. Secondly, we found the museum to be extremely reliant on being on foot, and wasn't the most pram friendly. Lifts are available, but these are incredibly busy, and there was still a few parts where we needed to navigate a couple of steps. Pram parking is available at the entrance, which I thought was an amazing concept, but not something that would exactly work for us with a 5 month old.
Krissy wissKrissy wiss
10
We travelled to Manchester by train, great service and relaxing. My Grandson (8) enjoyed the Museum experience far more than I thought he would as did I. Free entry but a few people were a little confused with gaining access to the Egyptian display as they had to download a separate ticket from a bar code. At first glance it looks like a payment of £5 per head is required, when in fact it is purely a voluntary contribution, as you find out when you get to the next section. Don't be put off by a few minutes of logging in. There's no charge if you click "no donation" It's every bit worth a donation but not compulsory with pennies being short. The Egyptian section was brilliant and he was so interested that he didn't want to go anywhere else. He's learning about the Egyptians in school so to see more facts in the flesh, do you speak, it really was the icing on the cake. When I did drag him away, he was captivated by the reptile display and of course the natural world and dinosaurs. Easy to lose a few hours or more in the museum and you can always grab a snack from the on site cafe. Cake was lovely, and inexpensive. I can recommend the museum as one of the best I've visited though a little too crowded at the weekend, I will go again but on a week day. Still gets 10/10 from me.
Andrew OsborneAndrew Osborne
00
An excellent and entirely free facility (though they do ask for reasonable donations!) less than a mile from the city centre, and easily reached by public transport. Well planned and easily accessible throughout the building for people with limited mobility. There is also a cafe attached to the museum and a coffee bar within the museum for refreshments. But the main features are the multiple galleries, exhibiting many of the university's artefacts, ranging from a vast number from Ancient Egypt, a huge collection of animal and plant life from around the world, galleries of Chinese culture, a South Asian gallery, archaeological exhibits from across the UK and the wider world, living creatures in the vivarium and some well-loved large exhibits such as an Indian elephant skeleton, and a giant whale skeleton. There's enough here to arouse curiosity, answer questions, and occupy a full day. Thoroughly to be recommended. The museum has adapted it's displays to take account of inclusivity, cultural and other diversities, and to consider sustainability and environmental issues. One of the photos I attach gives the overarching rationale for this.
Peter WilliamsPeter Williams
00
Having recently moved to Manchester I was thrilled to find the Manchester Museum mere steps from my flat. Even more exciting was there was no fee for entry (fairly normal in the UK) and I just strolled in with no wait at all. The galleries were all set up so logically so you could visit them according to your tastes or areas of interest and the exhibits included many interactive features and interesting bits of information. As a child growing up in NY, I was fascinated when King Tut’s exhibit toured and my mother and I attended. I’ve never lost my curiosity about ancient Egypt and thus enjoyed this exhibit immensely. It’s fair to say there’s something for everyone here. An entire large exhibit on animals and species of every kind. Taxidermy gone wild. Dinosaurs, if that’s your thing, and of course plenty of ancient history. I spent 2 hours just getting lost in it all and I only scratched the surface I’m sure. There’s a lovely gift shop with reasonably priced items and you can grab a refreshment in the main hall. I can’t wait to go back and explore some more. Enjoy my photos.
M GM G
00
Nearby Attractions Of Manchester Museum
Hulme Retail Park
The Whitworth
Whitworth Park
The University of Manchester
Maldron Hotel Manchester City Centre
Hyatt Regency Manchester
Projekts MCR Skatepark
Elizabeth Gaskell's House
Wilmslow Park - iQ Student Accommodation Manchester
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Hulme Retail Park
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The Whitworth
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The University of Manchester
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Etci Mehmet - Turkish Steak & Burger House
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Lass O'Gowrie Manchester
Grand Central Alt Bar & Live Music Venue
Kro Bar
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Zouk Tea Bar & Grill
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The Salisbury
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Learn more insights from Wanderboat AIBasic Info
Address
Oxford Rd, Manchester M13 9PL, United Kingdom
Map
Phone
+44 161 275 2648
Call
Website
museum.manchester.ac.uk
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Reviews
Overview
4.7
(3.9K reviews)
Ratings & Description
cultural
family friendly
accessibility
Description
Manchester Museum is a museum displaying works of archaeology, anthropology and natural history and is owned by the University of Manchester, in England. Sited on Oxford Road at the heart of the university's group of neo-Gothic buildings, it provides access to about 4.5 million items from every continent.
attractions: Hulme Retail Park, The Whitworth, Whitworth Park, The University of Manchester, Maldron Hotel Manchester City Centre, Hyatt Regency Manchester, Projekts MCR Skatepark, Elizabeth Gaskell's House, Wilmslow Park - iQ Student Accommodation Manchester, Swinton Grove Park, restaurants: Etci Mehmet - Turkish Steak & Burger House, Zouk Tea Bar & Grill, The Salisbury, The Deaf Institute, Nando's Manchester - Oxford Road, Turing Tap, Tai Wu, Lass O'Gowrie Manchester, Grand Central Alt Bar & Live Music Venue, Kro Bar
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