Visit the British Museum

The Museum is temporarily closed. 

• Great Court: 09.00–18.00 (20.30 on Fridays) 
• Galleries: 10.00–17.30 (most open to 20.30 on Fridays)
• Ticket Desk: 09.00–16.45 (19.45 on Fridays)

Find out about late opening on Fridays.

Please note that we begin clearing galleries 10 minutes before they close.

Closed 1 January and 24–26 December

Bookshop

• Monday–Thursday: 10.00–17.30
• Friday: 10.00–20.00
• Saturday: 10.30–17.30
• Sunday: 10.00–17.30

Family shop

• Monday–Friday: 9.30–18.00
• Saturday: 09.30–17.30
• Sunday: 10.00–17.30

Collections shop and Grenville Room

• Monday–Thursday: 09.30–17.30
• Friday: 09.30–20.00
• Saturday: 09.30–17.30
• Sunday: 10.00–17.30

• Court Café: 09.00–17.30 (20.00 on Fridays)
• Great Court Restaurant: 10.00–17.30 (20.00 on Fridays)
• Pizzeria: 11.00–16.00
• Montague Café: 11.00–16.00 (seasonal variation may apply)
• Coffee Lounge: 11.00–16.00 (seasonal variation may apply) 

Find out more about the Museum's cafés and restaurants. 

Galleries in the Museum may be closed for maintenance, refurbishment or private events. Where possible, we'll list the time and date of the closures below. All upcoming and current closures will also be detailed on the affected gallery page.

Upper floors

• Japan (Rooms 92-94)
  Closed 13–14 April 2020 and 12–14 October 2020
• Europe 1400 – 1800 (Room 46)
  Closed 19 April – 30 October 2020
• China & South Asia (Room 33)
  Closed 1–3 June 2020 and 7–11 December 2020
• Korea (Room 67)
  Closed 27–28 July 2020
• The Islamic world The Albukhary Foundation Gallery (Room 43 and 43a only)
  Closed 27 April – 1 May 2020

Occasionally we may need to close galleries at short notice for safety reasons. We regret that in these cases we're not always able to alert the public in advance.

Special exhibitions are occasionally closed to the public to allow for exclusive school viewings. These usually take place once or twice a month, on weekday mornings. Please check the individual exhibition pages for dates.

Admonitions Scroll (Room 91a)
Closed until further notice

Greece: Cycladic islands (Room 11)
Closed until further notice

Greek vases (Room 20a)
Closed until further notice

Greek and Roman architecture (Room 77)
Closed until further notice

Classical inscriptions (Room 78)
Closed until further notice

The Museum is undertaking conservation work on its iconic colonnade at the front of the Museum (Great Russell Street entrance). Thanks to the government’s investment in critical infrastructure, we will be replacing the copper roof over the colonnade, which was last repaired after WWII bomb damage.  We will also be restoring the underside of the roof along the colonnade. 

To facilitate the work, scaffolding will be erected at the front of the Museum. We anticipate that this necessary work will be completed in 2021. Access to the Museum and the galleries will continue to be via the Main entrance on Great Russell Street and the North entrance on Montague Place. 

• Free wifi is available for all visitors to the Museum.
• Please connect to 'British Museum WiFi' only.
• You'll be required to supply your full name and email address before using the service.
• Free wifi is funded by the Mayor of London and Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport. Connectivity is supported by the Daisy Group.
• Charging phones and plugging in any other electronics isn't allowed.

• Please note that items of large luggage (including some bags and rucksacks, and all wheeled suitcases) are not permitted.
• Opening hours: 9.45–17.30 (20.30 on Fridays)
• The main cloakroom can be found by turning left immediately after passing through the Main Entrance to the Museum. 
• Use of the cloakroom is charged per-item:
  • Coats – £2
  • Bags up to 4kg – £2.50
  • Bags 4kg to 8kg – £5
  • Umbrellas – £1
  • Fold-up pushchairs – free
• Last deposits are one hour before closing time.
• Please aim to collect items 30 minutes before closing time to avoid delays.
• You must retrieve items from the cloakroom before you leave the Museum site.
• Members have use of a free cloakroom next to the Montague Place entrance. 
• In the event of a fire evacuation, the cloakroom will be closed immediately and you must follow our fire evacuation instructions. Our staff will help to retrieve your items from the cloakroom as soon as possible after the Museum reopens.
• Please note that when the cloakroom reaches its capacity, it won't accept items until it has space again.
• The Museum reserves the right to vary or alter these conditions without prior notice.

Our lost property service is located at the Information Desk in the Great Court. If you've lost an item while visiting the Museum, please enquire at the Information Desk or email lostproperty@britishmuseum.org.

For information about facilities for parents, babies and young children, please see the Family visits page.

For information about facilities for those with specific accessibility needs, please see the Accessibility at the Museum page.

• Hand-held flash photography and video recording is allowed in most galleries for private purposes only.
• Signs will indicate where photography is restricted.
• Tripods, monopods and selfie sticks may not be used inside the Museum building.
• In special circumstances, a permit to use these items can be issued – if you have any queries, contact the Museum:
  • Email filming@britishmuseum.org
  • Phone: 020 7323 8380
• For questions regarding commercial photography or filming, please see our Commercial page.