Visiting the British Museum by Train

Bloomsbury’s British Museum in London is the world’s first public museum of its kind. Given that it’s free to visit, the Museum makes a cost-effective day out for the whole family.

More than six million people visit every year to explore over seven million artefacts. These artefacts represent human history and culture from all over the world.

Here’s how to plan your trip to the British Museum. We’ll walk you through:

• What to see and do at the British Museum 

• The most popular train routes to London

• The British Museum’s nearest tube stations 

• How to save money on your London train tickets

If you’re visiting London for multiple days, team your British Museum visit with some of the city’s other attractions.

Planning your trip to the British Museum

Founded in 1753, the British Museum covers two million years of history. Explore its ancient and modern treasures, all under one roof in the heart of London. 

Before covering trains into London and the nearest tube stations to the British Museum, let’s explore the Museum’s offerings.

Galleries and exhibitions

A collection of nearly 100 galleries covers more than 800,000 square feet at the British Museum. This collection includes galleries that delve into:

• The Rosetta Stone

• The Parthenon Sculptures

• Egyptian mummies

• The Sutton Hoo ship burial

• The Islamic world

On top of the permanent collection, visitors can explore various exhibitions. These exhibitions highlight historic people, places, and stories. The Museum often runs events based on these exhibitions. 

Special exhibitions, like China’s Hidden Century and Burma to Myanmar, may come with a fee.

Object trails and family-friendly activities

The British Museum also runs a variety of object trails, which take you on fascinating themed tours. Trails include:

• One hour at the Museum

• Three hours at the Museum

• Tutankhamun: ancient and modern perspectives

• Desire, love, identity: LGBTQ histories

• Collecting and empire trail

• Greek Revival architecture: simplicity and splendour

• Twelve objects to see with children

Aside from the children’s trail, there are several free activities for families. These include the Museum Mission, weekend activity backpacks, and summer holiday workshops. There’s also the Little Feet programme.

Opening hours and ticket booking

The British Museum is open every day from 10:00 until 17:00 (18:30 on Fridays).

Although entrance to the British Museum is free, book advance tickets to guarantee entry. There are some walk-up tickets available each day, but booking ahead will avoid disappointment. 

Groups of 10 or more must book at least seven days in advance. 

When you book ahead, you’ll also receive key info and updates via email.

You can buy a £4.99 audio tour if you’d like expert commentaries on 250 highlights from the collection. Be sure to bring your own headphones, otherwise, earbuds are available to purchase from the Museum. The audio tour is available in English, Chinese, Spanish, French, and Italian.

You can also book out-of-hours guided tours to explore a particular corner of history. The following guided tours are available:

• An Introduction to the British Museum

• An Introduction to Ancient Egypt

• Life and Death in Ancient Egypt

• An Introduction to China

• An Introduction to the Ancient Greek World

There aren’t any on-the-door tickets for these tours, so you must book in advance. Tour tickets are £33 for adults, £30 for members and concessions, and £16.50 for children aged 5-15. Tickets are free for under-fives and disabled visitors’ assistants.

How long to stay

There is so much to see at the British Museum, you could spend a full day there. Allow time for a well-earned break in the Museum’s restaurant, pizzeria, cafe, or coffee lounge. There are also two food trucks in an outdoor dining area.

If you’d prefer a shorter trip, you can book a two-hour guided tour to see the Museum highlights.

Access for people with disabilities

The British Museum offers a disabled toilet and seating along routes for visitors who have limited mobility. Assistance dogs are welcome, and the Museum provides audio and large-print information.

How to get to the British Museum by train

Getting to the British Museum by train is easy with Avanti. The nearest train station is London Euston, which Avanti trains travel to every day. Some of the most popular stations to reach London Euston from include:

• Birmingham New Street: Reach Euston in just over one and a half hours

• Manchester Piccadilly: Reach Euston in just over two hours

• Liverpool Lime Street: Reach Euston in just under two and a half hours

• Glasgow Central: Reach Euston in just over four and a half hours

You can walk to the British Museum from London Euston in 14 minutes by following these directions:

Leave the station and turn left onto Euston Road. Then, take the left at the crossroads onto Gower Street. Finally, take the left at Montague Place, which is directly beyond Malet Street Gardens. You’ll see plenty of signposts to help you along your way. 

You won’t miss the Museum, it surrounds the largest covered courtyard in Europe. The Museum’s roof features 1,656 individually shaped glass panels, which sit in a steel frame. And in true Greek Revival style, the front of the Museum boasts 44 45-foot columns.

The British Museum’s address is Great Russell Street, WC1B 3DG. There is also a second entrance at Montague Place, WC1E 7JW.

Tube stations near the British Museum

Once you’ve arrived in London, you don’t have to walk to the Museum. You may prefer to take the London Underground. You don’t even have to leave Euston Station to jump aboard the British Museum’s nearest tube trains.

Rather than walking from Euston, you can take the escalator from the station down to the Underground trains. From here, take one of the British Museum’s nearest tube lines.

The four nearest British Museum stations are: 

• Tottenham Court Road tube station: Catch the tube from the Elizabeth line. Your journey will be three minutes on the tube, followed by a seven-minute walk.

• Holborn tube station: Catch the tube from the Piccadilly or Central line. Your journey will be three minutes on the tube, followed by an eight-minute walk.

• Russell Square tube station: Catch the tube from the Piccadilly line. Your journey will be five minutes on the tube, followed by a seven-minute walk.

• Goodge Street tube station: Catch the tube from the Northern line. Your journey will be two minutes on the tube, followed by a nine-minute walk.

You can take any of these nearest tubes to the British Museum from Euston Underground.

Visiting the British Museum by train with Avanti

Our trains to London make visiting the British Museum easy and cost-effective.

You can save money on your train into London by booking Advance Tickets. These are cheaper than on-the-day fares. Our Priority Ticket Alerts will tell you when the cheapest advance fares are available.

Sometimes, booking two advance tickets is cheaper than booking one flexible return ticket. Our Best Fare Finder will find the cheapest option for you.

Selecting Off-Peak trains is also a good way to get cheaper London train tickets. Plus, you can save even more with a Railcard or family fare. For additional rewards, sign up for Club Avanti.