Shakespeare's Birthplace

About the museum

Shakespeare's Birthplace is the house in Stratford-upon-Avon where William Shakespeare was born in 1564 and spent his childhood. His father, John Shakespeare, was a glovemaker who lived and worked in the house, and he married Mary Arden in about 1557. William was their third child and the first boy, and as an adult he returned to the house, where his own children Susanna, Judith and Hamnet were also born. When John died in 1601, William inherited the property.

After Shakespeare's death in 1616 the house passed through his family, and in later years part of it was run as an inn, the Maidenhead, later the Swan and Maidenhead. It was sold out of the family in 1806 and put up for sale again in 1846. To save the building, a public campaign was launched, supported by Charles Dickens, and the Shakespeare Committee bought it at auction in 1847 for £3,000. In 1891 an act renamed the committee the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, which has cared for the house ever since.

Today visitors enter through the Shakespeare Centre and the new exhibition Becoming Shakespeare, which explores how Stratford-upon-Avon and Warwickshire shaped the writer. They then walk through the gardens into the house, with rooms that show family life in the Tudor period, John Shakespeare's glover's workshop and objects from the Trust's collections. Live performances take place in the gardens.

Highlights

• The house where William Shakespeare was born in 1564
• Becoming Shakespeare, an immersive exhibition in five spaces
• Glover's Workshop showing John Shakespeare's trade
• Objects from the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust collections
• Gardens with live performances
• Ticket also includes the gardens of Shakespeare's New Place

Permanent exhibitions

• Becoming Shakespeare – An exhibition in five spaces on how the place shaped William Shakespeare's creativity, using audio-visual storytelling and objects from the Trust's collections; it is included in the ticket.
• Shakespeare's Birthplace house – The restored family home, with rooms that show Tudor family life and the parlour, hall and upper chambers.
• Glover's Workshop – A display on John Shakespeare's trade as a glovemaker.

Founded

1847

Operated by

Shakespeare Birthplace Trust

Admission & discounts

The prices shown are the online adult, child and concession prices for Shakespeare's Birthplace, which includes entry to the gardens of Shakespeare's New Place; on the door they are £27, £13.50 and £22.95. Tickets are valid for repeat visits for 12 months. Residents of the CV37 postcode go free with a Residents Go Free ticket, and refugee community groups can book at £1 per person in advance. A voluntary Gift Aid donation is offered at checkout. Pre-booking is recommended.

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: not available
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description

The Shakespeare Centre and exhibition space have level access, and level access to the house is via a path from the garden, arranged by a member of staff. The rooms are narrow with smaller doorways, so powered wheelchairs and mobility scooters are not suitable; manual wheelchairs can be borrowed at visitor reception for the ground floor and must be operated by someone in your group. There are 17 stairs to the upper floor, and a subtitled video of the first floor is shown on request. Floors are uneven in places and lighting is low. Accessible toilets with baby changing are at the rear of the garden. The nearest Blue Badge spaces are at the top of Henley Street, and the nearest Changing Places toilet is at Bell Court, 55 Ely Street. Assistance dogs are welcome, an audio-described introduction is online and videos have subtitles.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide
• Hands-on stations
• Baby changing facilities

Object handling is offered as part of the visit, and the Glover's Workshop shows John Shakespeare's trade. Baby-changing facilities are in the toilets at the visitor centre and in the garden. Children under 3 are free. A free family trail about the women in Shakespeare's life runs across the Shakespeare family homes in 2026, and family events are held in school holidays.

Getting there & parking

Stratford-upon-Avon is a short drive from junction 15 of the M40 and under two hours from London by road. Sat-nav postcode CV37 6QW.

Amenities & dining

• Café: not available
• Restaurant: not available
• Museum shop

The Shakespeare Gift and Book Shop is the exit from the site, and there is no re-entry to the garden from it. Visitors are asked not to eat or drink on site at the Birthplace. The Garden Café is at Anne Hathaway's Cottage, a different site.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit