The Beamish Museum is located in Country Durham and is an extraordinary museum that fascinates a lot of its repeat visitors. Visiting the Beamish with kids is a must for educating them on the North East from the 1800s right through to the post ww2 rationing era.
If you love British history, then you will love the Beamish Museum and its different areas that are perfectly spread out to create an amazing open air museum.
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Beamish Museum Reviews
One of my favourite places that we have been on holiday to is Disney World and my favourite part of Disney World was Epcot. What I loved about Epcot is that you could go from one country to another to another. Go from France to England, see a replica of the Eiffel Tower and then in the Chinese section see the Great Wall of China. It was so fascinating, and that same theme feels like it comes alive at the Beamish Museum.
When you enter the Beamish Museum the same theme applies. Though just a bit more of a distance between each area, thus the need for using the trams and buses that they provide for getting around the open air museum.
Today, I am going to be sharing with you our Beamish Museum Reviews from our last visit and then you can plan your trip.
Newcastle To Beamish
The Beamish is 87 miles from our home, so not exactly a trip that I want to take in a day. But last summer we were in Newcastle visiting an old friend.
We were staying at the Premier Inn on the Quayside in Newcastle, and I noticed just how close we were to the Beamish and that we must visit.
I put it into Google Maps and was amazed that Newcastle to Beamish was JUST 25 minutes away and an easy drive for a great day out. So if you are in Newcastle and are looking for things to do near Newcastle then the Beamish is your perfect place!
Planning Your Visit To The Beamish
How long does it take to go around Beamish? This question is asked a LOT and much of it comes down to planning your visit and making sure you are using your time efficiently. Even though you are on an annual pass when you visit the Beamish Museum most of us don’t live locally, so we can’t just come back and back.
We spent a full day at the Beamish and didn’t quite manage to do everything and we didn’t eat in a restaurant or queue for the fish and chips. But we still fitted in a lot.
I recommend once you have your tickets, you start by visiting the Beamish website and heading to the navigation and where it says “Explore & Discover”.
Then you will get a drop down menu of the main areas that make up the Beamish Museum including:
- 1820s Pockerley
- 1900’s Town
- 1900’s Pit Village
- 1900’s Colliery
- 1940’s Farm
- 1950’s Town
- 1950’s Farm
At this point because its hard to fit it in all in one day, you might be thinking out of those 7, I really want to do these 5, then you prioritise those 5 and then if you have time do the other 2.
As someone that loves WW2 history and the era that followed I was most interested in the 1940’s and 1950’s options, plus going way back to the 1820’s to see what that is like.
Then I recommend you take a screenshot of the places on your phone and then you can have a quick reference so you can say I have done the Beamish 1950’s town and next I need to do the Beamish 1950’s Farm.
You can then click on each section and see what interests you from the info on the website.
Then I go with this as a plan of action for having a great day out at the Beamish.
Or never mind just the Beamish this would also work for a day out at Flamingo Land, Light Water Valley or Disney World.
Below we have highlighted our favourite parts of the Beamish, to help you plan your trip.
Beamish 1820’s Pockerley
It was this section of the Beamish Museum that we ended up doing last. We realised it was getting close to closing time and we really wanted to look around this area.
We ended up running up the hill to get in just in time.
It was really interesting and is set in Georgian times and the church they have is so beautiful.
Beamish 1900’s Town
This section of the Beamish Museum is where we spent most of our time. Its probably also because it was home to a lot of the great food and had a bit of everything to keep every member of your family satisfied.
Herron’s Bakery deserves a good shout out, for how true to life it looked for the early 1900’s and the kids queued and loved the set up in there, plus they don’t mind you taking pics whilst you are queueing.
Then of course there is the Beamish Sweet Shop. Beautiful old fashioned sweet shop with all those sweets that you can have weighed to order. I still remember from childhood getting a ¼ of sweets rather than the plastic bags of them you now get.
Then once you are full on your sausage rolls and have a quarter of boiled sweets in your pocket it’s time to explore.
We enjoyed visiting the bank and the masonic hall, and my personal favourite was the shop. Which felt like a real shop and did a brilliant job of showing what was on sale years ago.
I took plenty of photos from inside the shop because I am a real foodie and love old fashioned food and it was my favourite place to be. I just wish they had some replicas for sale from that era.
Plus, in the 1900s they have the fairground which is amazing and the kids had a lovely time here. Though I think the kids highlight was the Helter Skelter as they had never heard of one before and went down it several times.
Beamish 1900’s Pit Village
The Beamish Pit Village was another favourite of ours. It had some beautiful terraces houses from the pit era and is fascinating to go around the various houses. Though most people flock to the 1900’s pit village for the Beamish Fish & Chips.
The fish and chips is called Davy’s fish and chips and we swerved it.
That is because the queue was enormous. So big that everyone that worked there was saying a minimum of a 3 hour wait. We like fish and chips but not that much, plus there is so much to do at the Beamish for the day, that I couldn’t even give up an hour to queue.
Beamish 1950’s Town
For us it’s the outside look of the 1950’s town that is appealing along with number 2 front street which gives a fantastic account of homes back in the 1950’s.
I will let a few pictures tell the story of a 1950’s home.
Beamish Transport
Also, the Beamish transport is amazing, and you have the Beamish trams and the Beamish bus that will transport you around the whole museum. The museum is spread out, so you will need them.
And of course, the kids were so excited about the transport and loved hopping on and off.
After our lovely day trip to the Beamish, we were impressed, and it was a shame it is not closer to be able to make use out of our annual pass.
Our favourite eras were the 1900’s and the 1950s town. And of course, just wondering around and taking in the surroundings and seeing their amazing attention to detail.
Beamish Museum Visitor Information
- Where is Beamish located? The Beamish Open Air Museum is located in County Durham. It is 25 minutes drive from Newcastle or 35 minutes from Durham.
- What is the Beamish post code? The full address and post code for the Beamish museum is Beamish, County Durham, DH9 0RG and it is well sign posted.
- How long does it take to go around Beamish? It took us a full day the Beamish from it opening until it was closing, and we still felt like we could have done another 90 minutes there. If you want a thorough look around the Beamish we would recommend splitting it over two days.
- Beamish opening times. The Beamish Museum opens 10am and then closes at 5pm. I do wish it opened at 9am and closed at 6pm so that I can enjoy even more of what the Beamish has to offer.
- How much is Beamish? Prices for Beamish for a family of four (2 adults and 2 kids) is £58. This of course gives you a Beamish unlimited card that will give you access to the Beamish for a whole year, which is brilliant if you live locally.
- Can you take dogs to Beamish? Yes, dogs are very welcome at the Beamish, but they must be kept on a lead. There are other rules so do speak to the Beamish support staff if you want further details.
Pin Beamish Museum For Later!
Well, that’s a wrap, do you have any questions then do ask below and if you want to refer back, to this later for planning your Beamish visit then don’t forget to pin it to your travel board or days out board on Pinterest.
