What is the nearest Tube station to the British Museum?

Tottenham Court Road, on the Central, Northern and Elizabeth lines, is about a five to ten minute walk. Holborn and Russell Square are also close.

Is the British Museum free?

Yes, general admission is free. Special exhibitions are ticketed, so check britishmuseum.org for current prices and opening hours.

Do I need to book the British Museum?

Booking a free timed slot online is recommended and can make entry smoother, but walk-in visitors are usually admitted too.

How long should I spend at the British Museum?

Two to three hours is enough to see the main highlights such as the Rosetta Stone, the Egyptian mummies and the Parthenon sculptures.

Which British Museum entrance has the shortest queue?

The rear entrance on Montague Place, closest to Russell Square station, is often quieter than the main entrance on Great Russell Street.

British Museum: Tube Directions, Entry and Top Highlights

The British Museum in Bloomsbury is free to enter and holds around eight million objects covering two million years of human history, from the Rosetta Stone to Egyptian mummies. Only a fraction is on display at any time, but that is still more than anyone can see in one visit. This guide covers getting there by Tube, entry and booking, the best times to go, and how to plan a route around the highlights.

About the British Museum

The museum was founded in 1753, largely from the collection of the physician Sir Hans Sloane, and opened to the public in 1759. It was the first national public museum of its kind. The present Greek Revival building, with its columned front on Great Russell Street, was designed by Robert Smirke and built in the first half of the nineteenth century.

In 2000 the inner courtyard was covered with a glass and steel roof designed by Foster and Partners, creating the Great Court, one of the largest covered public squares in Europe. The round Reading Room sits at its centre.

How to get to the British Museum by Tube

Tottenham Court Road is the main station, served by the Central and Northern lines and the Elizabeth line. From there it is a walk of around five to ten minutes north-east through Bloomsbury to the main entrance on Great Russell Street. The Elizabeth line makes this an easy trip from Heathrow, Paddington and Canary Wharf.

Other nearby stations:

Holborn (Central and Piccadilly lines), a similar walk from the south-east.
Russell Square (Piccadilly line), closest to the rear entrance on Montague Place.
Goodge Street (Northern line), from the west.

Explore more places around these stations on our London Tube guide.

British Museum tickets and entry

General admission to the permanent collection is free. The museum encourages visitors to book a free timed entry slot on the official website (britishmuseum.org), which can make entry smoother at busy times, though walk-in visitors are usually admitted too. Special exhibitions are ticketed and often sell out, so book those in advance.

All visitors go through a bag check at the entrance, and there are restrictions on large luggage. Opening hours, late openings and any gallery closures are listed on the official site, so check there before your visit.

There are two entrances:

Great Russell Street, the main front entrance.
Montague Place, at the back, which often has a shorter queue.

Best time to visit the British Museum

Weekday mornings soon after opening and the last couple of hours before closing are the quietest. School holidays, weekends and rainy days bring larger crowds, and the Egyptian galleries and the Rosetta Stone are busy almost all day. The museum sometimes holds a weekly late opening, which is a good time to visit if it is running.

Two to three hours is enough for a focused visit to the best-known objects. Because entry is free, many people prefer shorter repeat visits, one region of the world at a time.

What to see: British Museum highlights

Ground floor

The Rosetta Stone, the inscribed slab that helped scholars decipher Egyptian hieroglyphs.
The Egyptian sculpture gallery, including the colossal bust of Ramesses II.
The Parthenon sculptures from the Acropolis in Athens, whose ownership is a long-running subject of debate with Greece.
The Assyrian reliefs from Nineveh and Nimrud, including the lion hunt panels, and the human-headed winged bulls.

Upper floors

Egyptian mummies and coffins, one of the most visited parts of the museum.
The Sutton Hoo ship burial treasures from Anglo-Saxon England, including the famous helmet.
The Lewis Chessmen, medieval chess pieces carved from walrus ivory.
The galleries of Roman Britain, including the Mildenhall Treasure.

Other favourites

Room 1, the Enlightenment Gallery, recreates the feel of an eighteenth-century collector's library. The Japanese, Chinese and Korean galleries are usually much calmer than the Egyptian rooms and well worth a look.

Pick up a map on arrival or download one from the website, since some rooms close temporarily for maintenance.

Nearby on the same Tube stop

Tottenham Court Road sits between Bloomsbury, Soho and the West End, so there is a lot within walking distance:

Bloomsbury's garden squares, including Russell Square and Bedford Square.
Soho, for restaurants, bars and cafés, just south of the station.
Covent Garden and the West End theatres, about fifteen minutes on foot.
The bookshops of Charing Cross Road.

For places to eat and other sights around the museum, open the British Museum page on Around the Metro.