Child dressed as astronaut at Winchester Science Centre

Winchester Science Centre & Planetarium

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You'll find some of the most engaging, fun and educational museums in the UK here in South East England.  Whether you're looking to discover more about the stars or cars, dinosaurs or boats, country or town life, there is a museum here for you.  You'll find many free museums, making them a great addition to a budget-busting day out that doesn't break the bank.  So if you haven't been to a museum in years, you may be interested to hear that museums in England have been transported into the 21st century.

Prepare yourself for a surprise as the South East has some of the most fun museums in England, with hundreds across the region.  In place of stuffy rooms and wardens shushing for quiet, you'll find inspirational and interactive spaces with engaging and accessible exhibits from retro cars to animatronics, the chance to journey to the stars and the worlds beyond, get hands-on with history and walk in the footsteps of famous characters in history.  Whether you're into heritage, art, science, maritime, or wildlife, you're bound to find something right up your street.

Museums in England

The featured museums are located in the counties of South East England and demonstrate the sheer variety of interest on offer. A more detailed list can be located through the map at the bottom of this page.

Car enthusiasts won’t want to miss the world-famous National Motor Museum at Beaulieu in Hampshire’s New Forest. See one of the largest car collections held by any of the museums in England, with 250 cars of every age including land speed record-breakers Golden Arrow and Bluebird.  Whisk your way along to Milestones Museum, Basingstoke, where you can see an array of vintage vehicles including Hampshire's three big manufacturers.

Hampshire Cultural Trust are guardians of  2.5 million objects that relate to Hampshire’s rich and internationally important cultural heritage. Managing 23 attractions across Hampshire, including the brand new 878 AD which opened in the autumn of 2022 in Winchester, and the recently refurbished Gosport Museum and Art Gallery where you'll find museums and art galleries that explore Vikings, Victorians, Natural Sciences, Archaeology and much more.

The South East is also home to world-famous Bodleian Libraries, Oxford.  Not a museum in the traditional form, but the libraries are the oldest in Europe, and are the 2nd largest in the UK, only second to the British Library. Together, they hold over 13 million printed items and today offer the chance to visit and explore them, marvel at their exquisite architecture and dive into their fascinating history with a guided tour.

The D-Day Story and the LCT7074 landing craft, Portsmouth, is the only museum in the UK dedicated to the Allied Invasion in June 1944.  Whilst Portsmouth Historic Dockyard is home to not only the world famous Mary Rose but also HMS Victory, Admiral Lord Nelson's flagship. Discover Portsmouth's rich maritime history onboard some of the most famous war ships in British Naval history and find out what life was like for sailors in years gone by.

Museums in London

Museums in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight

Museums in Buckinghamshire

Museums in Oxfordshire

Museums in Surrey

Museums in Kent

Museums in Berkshire

Museums in Sussex

Museums Near Me

Use the 'Map View' button below to find museums near you in South East England including dozens of local museums showcasing their town's proud history. Check individual listings to see which museums are open today.

Number of results:

Number of results: 87

, currently showing 1 to 20.

  1. Margate Museum

    Type

    Type:

    Museum

    Margate

    Margate Museum is opened by a group of volunteers called the Friends of Margate Museum who work with Thanet District Council to open Margate Museum on a regular basis.

  2. Dickens House Museum

    Type

    Type:

    Historic House / Palace

    Broadstairs

    The museum is housed in the cottage that was Charles Dickens’ inspiration for the home of Betsey Trotwood in David Copperfield.

  3. Museum of Oxford

    Type

    Type:

    Museum

    Oxford

    History of the city and university. Discover the cities earliest residents, medieval crafts, civil war stories, famous literary connections and the growth of a modern city.

  4. Bletchley Park

    Type

    Type:

    Historic House / Palace

    Milton Keynes

    Once Britain’s Best Kept Secret, today Bletchley Park is a heritage site and vibrant tourist attraction. Open daily, visitors can explore some of the iconic WW2 Codebreaking Huts and Blocks and marvel at the astonishing achievements of the…

  5. Brighton Toy and Model Museum

    Type

    Type:

    Museum

    Brighton

    Located in four Victorian cellars under Brighton Railway Station, the Brighton Toy and Model Museum will invoke many childhood memories and dreams.

  6. Crampton Tower Museum

    Type

    Type:

    Museum

    Broadstairs

    The Crampton Tower Museum is a fascinating small museum is partly housed in a flint tower adjacent to the Broadstairs Railway Station.

  7. Bexhill Museum

    Type

    Type:

    Museum

    Bexhill-on-Sea

    It’s curious, it’s quirky, it’s packed to the rafters with diverse objects with a surprise in every cabinet and around every corner.

  8. Sandwich Guildhall Museum

    Type

    Type:

    Museum

    Sandwich

    Museum telling the story of Sandwich from early medieval times.  There are many illustrative panels relating to the town’s history with artefacts dating back to the early 13th century.

  9. The D-Day Story

    Type

    Type:

    Museum

    Portsmouth

    The D-Day Story is the only museum in the UK dedicated to the Allied Invasion in June 1944. It tells the unique personal stories behind this epic event. Also, home to the new fully restored only surviving D-Day Landing Craft LCT 7074, which is…

  10. Southampton Medieval Merchants House

    Type

    Type:

    Historic House / Palace

    Southampton

    Sensitive restoration has returned this house to its mid 14th century appearence steeped in atmosphere. It is easy to imagine the life of John Fortin, a wine trader, and his family who lived here c1290.

  11. Hove Museum of Creativity

    Type

    Type:

    Museum

    Hove

    Hove Museum is one of the most family friendly and accessible museums in the south east. It also houses one of the finest craft collections in the country.

  12. SS Shieldhall

    Type

    Type:

    Boat Trip

    Southampton

    Shieldhall was laid down in October 1954 and entered service in October 1955. Built by Lobnitz & Co of Renfrew, she is of special interest as she was built on older classic lines with a traditional wheelhouse, of riveted and welded construction with

  13. Andover Museum and Museum of the Iron Age

    Type

    Type:

    Museums & Galleries

    Andover

    Housed in a Georgian town house built in the 1750s, Andover Museum tells the story of the town and its surrounding area from prehistoric times to the present day.

  14. Royal Museums Greenwich

    Type

    Type:

    Museum

    Greenwich, London

    The world’s largest maritime museum, filled with inspirational stories of exploration and adventure at sea. Critically acclaimed temporary exhibitions (ticketed). General admission free.

  15. The Brickworks Museum

    Type

    Type:

    Industrial Archaeology

    Bursledon

    Come and be amazed at the authentic sights, sounds and smells of the last steam-driven Victorian brickworks in the UK.

  16. Windsor Castle

    Type

    Type:

    Castle / Fort

    Windsor

    Windsor Castle is the oldest and largest inhabited castle in the world, the family home of 39 British kings and queens for almost 1,000 years, and is today one of the official residences of Her Majesty The Queen.

    Open to visitors throughout the…

  17. Westbury Manor Museum

    Type

    Type:

    Museum

    Fareham

    An elegant 18thC building with a Victorian-style public garden at the rear. Displays tell the story of Fareham, using models, graphics and objects with a varied temporary exhibition gallery.

  18. Tangmere Military Aviation Museum

    Type

    Type:

    History and Heritage

    CHICHESTER

    A chance to see and hear the stories of heroes, in the air and on the ground, from World War 1 to the Cold War. Record breaking aircraft and others that have starred in films.

  19. Manor Farm

    Type

    Type:

    Farm

    Southampton

    Traditional Hampshire farmstead - range of buildings, farm animals, machinery and equipment, pre-1950's farmhouse and 13thC church set for 1900 - living history site.

  20. Charles Dickens' Birthplace Museum

    Type

    Type:

    Museum

    Portsmouth

    Visit the first home of Britain's most famous Victorian author.