Natural History Museum at Tring

About the museum

The Natural History Museum at Tring began as the private museum of Lionel Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild (1868–1937), who devoted his life to studying the natural world. The building was put up in 1889 in the grounds of the family’s Tring Park estate to house his growing collection of mounted specimens. It first opened to the public in 1892, and until 2007 it was known as the Walter Rothschild Zoological Museum.

Walter collected animals from all over the world, and during his lifetime he kept many cassowaries and giant tortoises. His interests also included zebras: he bred zebra hybrids and was famous for driving a carriage pulled by zebras. The Rothschild family gave the museum and its contents to the nation in 1937, and it has since been part of the Natural History Museum, London.

The museum now shows one of the finest collections of mounted mammals, birds, reptiles and insects in the country, in a Victorian building with six galleries. Among the extinct animals are a quagga and a thylacine, and visitors can also see an emperor penguin from the Antarctic expedition of 1839–43, a polar bear, dressed fleas bought in Mexico in 1905, a giant sloth cast and a large display of domestic dogs, which was moved here after the Second World War.

Highlights

• Emperor penguin collected on an 1839–43 Antarctic expedition and a polar bear
• Dressed fleas and a giant ground sloth cast
• Zebras, the extinct quagga and a hybrid foal
• Display of domestic dog breeds, including famous racing greyhounds
• Walter Rothschild’s Victorian museum building

Permanent exhibitions

• Gallery One: polar bear and emperor penguin – Large carnivores and birds, including the polar bear bought by Walter Rothschild and an emperor penguin collected on an Antarctic expedition in 1839–43.
• Gallery Three: fleas and giant sloth – A gallery of rare specimens, from tiny dressed fleas bought in Mexico in 1905 to the cast of a giant ground sloth.
• Gallery Four: zebras and the quagga – A display of zebras and their relatives, including the extinct quagga.

Founded

1889

Operated by

Trustees of the Natural History Museum

Visitors per year

approx. 151,787 (2019)

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Entry is free, but a free ticket should be booked online; walk-up places are limited. School visits are free, with a suggested donation of £2 per child.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The main entrance on Akeman Street has eight steps, but the Park Street entrance is step-free and gives wheelchair and buggy access. One lift serves the café level, ground floor and the first and second floors. Wheelchairs can be borrowed free, and folding stools are available from some galleries. Hastoe Lane car park has three Blue Badge spaces. Free ear defenders, Explorer Bags, Makaton-based trails, subtitled films and tactile sensory bags for blind and partially sighted visitors are offered. Support dogs are welcome.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide
• Stroller-friendly
• Baby changing facilities

Family events, crafts and outdoor activities run through the year, with Explorer Bags, baby bags and trails for young children. Baby changing is in the accessible toilet and the outside toilets. The café has high chairs.

Getting there & parking

The museum is on Akeman Street in Tring; the Akeman Street entrance and the Park Street entrance are about 45 m apart. Tring Park, a 10-minute walk away, allows dogs off the lead.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Museum shop

A café on the lower ground floor (Tuesday to Sunday, from 10am until mid-afternoon) is also open to people who are not visiting the museum. The shop is on the ground floor. Packed lunches can be eaten at outdoor picnic areas or in the indoor lunch space in the Akeman Street car park.

Events & venue rental

The museum can be hired as a filming and photography location.

Plan your visit