Discovering Dinosaurs At Natural History Museum, London 

The long queues I always seem to spy whenever I go past London’s Natural History Museum in Kensington have put me off going for a long time. Seeing people standing in the freezing cold waiting to go in has never appealed and the last time I was going to go with Mrs T, I was tempted away by the V&A.

But, with my daughter now a fully-fledged dinosaur fan, we headed there for a family trip on Mother’s day – pre-warning my husband (not known for his patience) about the likely queue situation.

There was indeed a line of people waiting outside the famous Victorian building, snaking around the front of the striking terracotta facade. After enquiring with someone who looked official, we were informed it would be a half an hour wait – which didn’t seem too bad. In fact, it was more like 20 minutes – and with the promise of dinosaurs for our daughter – she seemed happy watching the other children in the queue. It helped that the sun was shining.

Once inside the Natural History Museum, we immediately went to check out the iconic diplodocus in the main hall. I have to admit that after seeing Sue the T-Rex at the Field Museum in Chicago and a real diplodocus skeleton at Dubai Mall, the 70ft replica, named ‘Dippy’, although impressive, didn’t have quite the same impact on me as it had when I last it. But Mrs T was suitably impressed and I am glad I viewed it one more time before it is replaced with the bones of a Blue Whale next year – after 30 years taking pride of place in the Hintze Hall.

After some quick photos it was straight to the dinosaur section. Everyone else seemed to have the same idea so it was busy and rather slow going through the first lot of exhibits explaining a bit about the history of dinosaurs. Then, we came to a large roaring T-Rex.

Although a highlight for me, Mrs T was a bit frightened by this rather angry looking T-Rex which moved and roared so we swiftly moved on.

There’s only so much a three year old can take in (and parents WITH a three year old) but many of the exhibits were of real interest to her, like seeing up close how big their teeth were and life-sized models of the creatures scattered around the gallery. Some of the highlights include the oldest ever T-Rex fossil, the skull of a triceratops and the largest meat-eater discovered in Europe, the Baryonyx.

As we exited the exhibition there happened to be a gift shop dedicated to dinosaur memorabilia (what are the chances!), so we treated Mrs T to a small, introductory book about dinosaurs which wasn’t too heavy to carry around.

Next, we wandered through the Blue Zone filled with cabinets full of taxidermy which Mrs T found fascinating as she pointed out the various wild animals. Then we came to the main hall filled with life-sized models and skeletons, including the humongous Blue Whale.

By this time we had already covered a fair bit of ground and I was feeling a little exhausted. We headed upstairs and I had a sit down by the Cadogan Gallery for a bit before heading inside to see a range of treasures including Guy the Gorilla and the first adult skull of a Neanderthal ever discovered – which I was particularly impressed by.

We continued onto some of the Green Zone. I have to admit, some of the exhibits here are looking a little dated and could do with some investment such as the ‘Creepy Crawlies’ area which is aimed at children with interactive exhibits but held little interest with my daughter. But, like most London’s museums, it is free to enter. Where money has been spent at the museum, it shows…. like at the wonderful Red Zone.

The area, dedicated to the history of planet earth, is accessed via a long escalator going into a large model of the earth lit with an effective red hue.

As I was pushing the buggy, I had to go back and find the lift. While I was waiting I spied a lovely looking cafe which, if we hadn’t booked lunch somewhere else, we would have definitely utilised.

We had to zip through the exhibits in one part of Red Zone quite quickly as our daughter was getting a bit tired but with plenty of interactive exhibits, this is a great space to learn about earthquakes and volcanoes. We ended up in the earthquake simulator – an Asian supermarket which shook.

My husband went in before me, carrying Mrs T on his shoulders. When they came out she had fallen asleep! Unbelievable! Well, I say that, but she has done it before, during a hike we did in Sri Lanka. With her now safely snoozing in her buggy, her headed off for lunch.

Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to go to the Darwin Centre which houses the Attenborough studio. Next time we will head there first (well, after the dinosaur room). And from now on, I won’t let the queues at the Natural History Museum put me off going – it’s worth the wait.

Need To Know

– Admission is free. There is a charge for some temporary exhibitions such as Wildlife Photographer Of The Year
– The museum is open daily 10.00-17.50. Closed 24-26 December
–  No animals allowed except guide dogs
– There is a visitor app which can be downloaded before you go
– There are three cafes/restaurants

Family Activities

There are plenty available including…
– Investigate centre for ages 7 +
– Activity Booklets (from £1) for ages 5 – 12
– Family Shows and Interactive Workshops – Age 7 + (varied weekend days and school holidays)
Check the website for times and days

If you enjoyed this article, you can download it – as well as other London guides – as an app at GPSmyCity.

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