Museums & heritage in Norwich

Anteros Arts Foundation

Norwich

Free galleries to wander plus proper art courses, from gouache to drawing basics, in the middle of Norwich.

CaféGift shopParty rooms

Barnes Brinkcraft Boating Holidays

Norwich

Hire a boat and take the family out on the Norfolk Broads, with over-14s allowed to take the wheel under supervision.

Beans Seal Trips

Morston

An hour on an open boat out to Blakeney Point to see grey and common seals hauled out on the sandbanks.

Booking requiredDog friendlyParkingPublic transport nearby+1 more

Beeston Regis Priory

Sheringham

Wander round medieval church ruins with 14th century arcading still standing in the chancel, free to visit any daylight hour.

Bishops Boats

Holt

A boat trip out to Blakeney Point to watch seals basking and swimming around you in their own habitat.

Booking requiredCaféFirst aidParking+1 more

Breckland Astronomical Observatory

Attleborough · ages 0-18

Peer through a 20-inch computer-controlled telescope on a public observing night under a proper dark sky.

Toilets

Broads Tours

Norwich

River cruises and day boat hire on the Norfolk Broads, with themed trips like Halloween and Santa cruises through the year.

Group bookingsPublic transport nearbyWheelchair accessible

Bure Valley Railway (Aylsham station)

Aylsham, Norfolk

A 45-minute steam ride out from Aylsham through Norfolk meadows and villages, with a full return trip taking three hours.

Accessible toiletBaby changeBlue badge parkingCafé+8 more

Castle Acre Priory

King's Lynn

Ruined priory ruins to explore, with a medieval 24-seater toilet block that'll be the bit they tell everyone about.

Gift shopParkingPicnics allowedToilets

City of Norwich Aviation Museum

Norwich

Wander among nearly 30 real aircraft outdoors and climb inside a Vulcan Bomber cockpit if you meet the height limit.

Accessible toiletBaby changeCaféFree parking+4 more

Clued Up! Escape Rooms

Norwich · ages 8+

Sixty minutes locked in a themed room together, solving clues to beat the clock before you escape.

Booking requiredCard only

Cryptic Escape

Norwich · ages 14+

Six themed lock-in rooms where you and your team solve puzzles against the clock, minimum age 14.

East Anglia Transport Museum

Lowestoft

Climb aboard vintage trams, trolleybuses and a light railway that actually take you round the museum grounds.

CaféGift shopParking

English Heritage - St Olave's Priory

Great Yarmouth

Ruined priory ruins to wander freely among in Great Yarmouth, with crumbling walls and an undercroft to duck into.

Herbert Woods

Potter Heigham, Great Yarmouth

A week hiring a self-drive cruiser on the Norfolk Broads, with the wheel only handed to over-14s.

Dog friendlyGroup bookingsParkingWi-Fi

Hungate Medieval Art

Norwich

Free medieval art on display in a historic church, with brass-rubbing to have a go at and a garden to sit in afterwards.

Indoor seating

Lime House art gallery

Norwich

Free contemporary art and jewellery to browse in Norwich, open Tuesday to Saturday.

Lydia Eva

Great Yarmouth

Climb aboard a historic steam fishing vessel and its sister ship, or book a murder mystery boat trip on Lake Lothing.

Mandell's Gallery

Norwich

A small Norwich gallery of 19th and 20th century paintings and sculpture, with contemporary shows that change every four weeks.

Mannington Hall

Norwich · ages 7-11

Nature trails, a walled garden and an outdoor holiday club for 7 to 11s, though the Hall itself is wrapped in scaffolding just now.

Accessible toiletBooking requiredCaféDog friendly+6 more

Mississippi River Boat Ltd

Norwich

A gentle river cruise through the Norfolk Broads where the skipper lets kids take the wheel and points out kingfishers and otters along the way.

Birthday partiesBlue badge parkingCaféCash only+7 more

Museum of the Broads

Norwich · ages 5-17

Knot-tying, dress-up and real boat trips on the Broads at a hands-on museum just outside Norwich.

Accessible toiletBaby changeGift shopFood on site+3 more

Norfolk Boat Hire

Norwich

Hire a day boat on the Norfolk Broads and pilot your own picnic trip along the water.

North Norfolk Railway - Holt Station

Holt · ages 3-15

A Day Rover ticket buys unlimited hop-on, hop-off steam and diesel train rides between Sheringham, Weybourne and Holt.

Accessible toiletBlue badge parkingDog friendlyFood on site+6 more

Norwich Cathedral

Norwich

Free guided tours round a working cathedral, with an upper level tour and hands-on Home Education Days for the curious.

Accessible toiletAllergy awareBlue badge parkingBooking required+7 more

Norwich Ghost Walks

Norwich · ages 10+

A two-hour evening walk through Norwich's spookier corners, past the Cathedral, Castle and Elm Hill, best left to ages 10 and up.

Booking requiredDog friendlyParkingParty rooms+1 more

Norwich Science Festival

Norwich

Talks, live shows and hands-on workshops mixing storytelling with real science and engineering, mostly free to attend.

Accessible toiletBike parkingBlue badge parkingChanging Places+4 more

OUTPOST Gallery

Norwich

Free contemporary art exhibitions in a step-free gallery space, open Thursday to Sunday.

Step-free accessToilets

Poppy Line, North Norfolk Railway - (Weybourne, Station)

Holt · ages 3-15

A steam train ride along the North Norfolk coast, with spotter trails and model railways to hunt down at either end.

Accessible toiletBaby changeBlue badge parkingCafé+6 more

RAF Air Defence Radar Museum

Norwich

Eighteen rooms of Cold War and WWII radar history, from an original Operations Room to a small grassed play area outside.

Accessible toiletBlue badge parkingCaféFree parking+5 more

Ross' Wildlife Boat Trips

Great Yarmouth

An hour on the Norfolk Broads spotting wildlife, with a pirate cabin for the younger crew and dogs welcome for a pound.

Toilets

Seething Control Tower Museum

Norwich

A wartime airfield control tower with displays on life at Seething during the Second World War, open on select Sundays.

CaféFree parkingGift shop

Sheringham Town Museum

Sheringham · ages 0+

Local history displays and a climb up a lighthouse-style tower for views over the town and coast.

Toilets

The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist

Norwich

Free wander round a proper Gothic Revival cathedral, with a garden café for afterwards and no ticket to buy.

CaféGift shopParkingWheelchair accessible

The Cloisters

Norwich

Wander the ancient cloister to spot carved Green Men, walk a jubilee labyrinth and pay only what you fancy on the way in.

Accessible toiletAllergy awareBlue badge parkingCafé+6 more

The Norfolk Tank Museum

Norwich

Kids climb into a real Chieftain tank turret and ride a BV206 all-terrain vehicle over an off-road course.

Accessible toiletBlue badge parkingCaféDog friendly+5 more

The Plantation Garden

Norwich · ages 0-16

A quietly odd Victorian garden of terraces, flint walls and hidden corners, tucked behind a Norwich hotel.

Accessible toiletGroup bookingsPicnics allowedSchool visits+1 more

The Shoebox Experiences

Norwich

Guided tours below Norwich's streets, digging into prison cells, forgotten vaults and a hidden marble hall.

The South Asia Collection

Norwich

A free museum and shop of South and South East Asian art, textiles and furniture, tucked into a Norwich townhouse.

Dog friendlyGift shopStep-free accessWheelchair accessible

Walsingham Abbey

Walsingham · ages 6-16

Woodland, ruins and four bridges over the river Stiffkey to lob sticks off, with snowdrops carpeting the ground in early spring.

Dog friendlyToilets

Whitwell & Reepham Railway Station

Norwich

A fifteen-minute heritage train ride out and back, plus engine sheds to poke around and a play area for when the track's quiet.

Accessible toiletBaby changeBirthday partiesBlue badge parking+10 more

Wroxham Launch Hire

Norwich

Hire your own boat by the hour or the day and steer it up the Broads yourselves, dogs welcome aboard.

Dog friendlyFree parkingPublic transport nearby

Wymondham Heritage Museum

Wymondham · ages 5+

A local history museum with a recreated dungeon in the basement, built around Wymondham's Victorian, wartime and prison-reform past.

Café