Ideal entertainment for the kids on a rainy day (Natural History Museum at Tring)

Member Name: dee778

Product:	Natural History Museum at Tring
Date:	11/06/09 (107 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Educational and fun

Disadvantages: None

This museum was a favourite for all the family on rainy days when my children were little. Tucked away on a little street in Tring, is an amazingly atmospheric collection of galleries containing every type of stuffed animal that you can imagine. The sense of adventure is heightened by the maze-like galleries, the Victorian wooden stairs and the old fashioned display cabinets.

You will wander through Victorian galleries, coming face to face with giant polar bears, huge lions, weird fish, birds in flight, sea creatures, giant tortoises, and much more. Running around the wooden mezzanine gallery was always a real thrill for my children. You can not only look down onto the top of huge exhibits hanging from the ceiling, but you can open secret drawers and look at the more tiny and bizarre exhibits such as the Mexican flea collection. With the magnifying glass provided, you can see that the tiny fleas are actually dressed in Mexican costume! Really !

If you ask for a Gallery Trail when you go in, the staff will give the children an activity sheet and a pencil which makes the trip even more fun. Basically the kids run around spotting animals and ticking them off the list. Fantastic fun - and very safe to let them run around finding the animals.

The museum used to be called the Walter Rothschild Museum. Lord Rothschild was passionate about natural history and wanted to open a museum from a very young age. His enthusiasm and love of the museum is what still makes is special today. Apart from the entertainment value, the museum is taken very seriously by the world of science - researchers from all over the world come to view the collections.

In addition to the galleries, there is a nice little café, a Discovery Room for a bit of Science Museum type education for kids, and a shop.

The best thing about it all? Free entry ! What more can I say?

Natural History Museum at Tring
The Walter Rothschild building
Akeman Street
Tring
Hertfordshire
HP23 6AP
Tel +44 (0)20 7942 6171

Summary: A little gem, hidden away in Hertfordshire