I'd Rather Watch Wax Melt! (Madame Tussauds)

Member Name: Emily88

Product:	Madame Tussauds
Date:	02/09/09 (143 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Waxworks are good

Disadvantages: Cramped, expensive, too small for the amount of people

My family and I visited Madame Tussauds on a holiday to London, but unfortunately it wasn't quite as good as we had hoped it would be.

* What Is It? *

Madame Tussauds is a popular tourist attraction in Central London. It is a wax museum (established by Marie Tussauds and operated by Merlin Entertainments) featuring a variety of wax figures including sport stars, actors, world leaders and musicians. Madame Tussauds also includes the planetarium.

* Where Is It? *

Madame Tussauds is very near the Baker Street tube - only a two minute walk away. We had no problems finding it... it was unmissable due to the huge queue leaking out of the door!

* How Much Is It? *

If you buy on the day, the prices are:
Adult - £25
Child - £21
Family - £81

If you buy the online 'priority access' tickets, the prices are:
Adult - £22.50
Child - £18.50
Family - £78

There are also 'flexi' and 'all inclusive' tickets, along with packages to combine other London attractions with Madame Tussauds (such as the London Eye and the London Dungeons). Details of these prices and packages can be found on the website - www.madametussauds.com.

As you can see, the museum is not cheap, especially if you have a large family. I would look out for offers and discount codes. Tickets can also be bought with Tesco Clubcard vouchers.

* My Experience *

After queuing for what seemed like a lifetime we finally reached the entrance. We had bought most of our tickets online, but two of our daughters had Blue Peter badges and therefore got in for free.

Once we got inside, I could tell it was going to be a bit of a nightmare. We had come in the October half term, and the place was absolutely packed. You could literally barely move and had to shuffle along. From what I could through people's heads, the waxworks looked very good - I spotted Kylie, Ant & Dec, Marilyn Monroe and Simon Cowell among others. I'd hoped to get some photographs of my family standing next to the figures, but this just wasn't possible without pushing others out the way and then having a million and one strangers in your photo too. Anyway, we just pushed on, hoping to come back to the main waxwork area later, when the crowds had died down.

We then came to the Chamber of Horrors - a darkened room filled with spooky special effects and some pretty horrific waxworks of murders and serial killers. My kids didn't find it frightening, but my daughter told me that when she went on a school trip to London in 2004 (in Year 5, so all the kids were aged 9-10) a lot of her classmates found it terrifying; some were crying and had to be taken out. Although apparently the Chamber of Horrors was scarier then, I would not advise very young children to go in, but you know your child best and can make your own decisions on whether to take them in or not (the Chamber is entirely optional and can easily be skipped).

The next attraction we visited within the museum was a ride called the Spirit of London. You are seated in carts designed to be like London taxis (a welcome opportunity to sit down!) and are taken on a little ride showing you the history of London. Periods of time/events we saw included Tudor times, the Great Fire of London and the Industrial Revolution. The ride isn't like a rollercoaster or frightening or anything, so I would imagine it would be suitable for all ages. Near the end of the ride a photo is taken, which you can view once you get off and purchase it if you want.

The last part of Madame Tussauds was the planetarium - you can spot it outside by its big green dome. Once seated in here, we were shown a short movie on a cinema screen about aliens meeting celebrities or something or other. It was pretty dire and boring, so skip it if you're not interested.

Finally we came to the gift shop, which sold the usually sort of souvenirs. Wanting to revert back to our earlier plan, we tried to retrace our steps into the main waxwork room, but this wasn't allowed. The kids left feeling disappointed, and my husband and I left feeling cheated.

Overall, I wouldn't recommend a trip to Madame Tussauds. For the ridiculous price they charge, it's simply not worth it. There are many cheaper and free attractions in London to try instead. However, my daughter really enjoyed her visit with her primary school in 2004, and they went on a weekday not in school holidays, so I imagine we would have had a much better time if it wasn't as busy.

Summary: Save your money!