The Best Museums In Newcastle Upon Tyne

Not only is Newcastle rife with some superb natural history and science museums, the North East city is also home to a wonderful collections celebrating the region’s history, present and future. Read on to discover some of the best museums in Newcastle.

The Discovery Museum

The Discovery Museum is perfect for the entire family and shows off the city’s proud history and heritage through a number of exhibits and areas. Budding young science fans can get hands on in the interactive science maze and the Turbinia can also be found here, originally the fastest steam powered ship.

Great North Museum

Beamish Museum

Beamish is an open-air museum, telling stories of life in the North East during the 1820s, 1920s and 1940s. Here you can see how families lived and prepared themselves for both World Wars, visit a 1940s farm and explore a 1900s-themed colliery. Similar to the Black Country Living Museum in the West Midlands, this is renowned as one of the country’s leading open-air museums.

Newcastle Castle

Officially known as the gateway to the old city, Newcastle Castle was re-opened in 2015 following Lottery funding to link the two parts of the old castle together. Dating back well over 1800 years, this castle is steeped in history. From Roman & Anglo Saxon use, through to Norman and post-Medieval, there are plenty of stories to be told here.

North East Aircraft Museum

Proudly home to the largest north-of-Yorkshire collection of aviation in England, the North East Aircraft Museum is a must-visit for any ardent aircraft fan. With around 30 aircraft on display as well as engines, history displays and so much more, you’ll want to fly on by to this museum. (Sorry!)

Blackfriars

Okay, so it’s not exactly a museum, but its history means we couldn’t help but include it. Though Blackfriars is technically a restaurant, it’s housed within a 13th century, former medieval friary, complete with banquet hall tables. In 1334, the banquet hall was used by King Richard III to receive royal Scot, Edward Balliol and boasts beautifully crafted bespoke features including stunning stained glass windows. Oh, and the food is pretty good too.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.