Exploring the National Railway Museum in York, England
The National Railway Museum is located in the city of York in Yorkshire, England and it’s SUPER easy to take a day trip here!
I’m a big museum fan. Maybe it’s because I grew up in Washington DC and started enjoying museums at a young age or maybe I’m just in that weird category of single early 30’s women that like museums (is that a thing… please let that be a thing). Everywhere I go I like to visit a museum, take in a little bit of the local culture, see a country’s past… anyone else with me?!
England’s travel and trade industry relied heavily on the train industry (actually, it still does!), so a visit to the National Railway Museum was a must for me. There’s actually a lot to do here and you can easily spend a few hours exploring everything this museum has to offer.
Exploring the National Railway Museum in York
OFFICIAL SITE for the National Railway Museum
How to Get to the National Railway Museum
BY TRAIN: The railway museum is conveniently located right next to the railway station. All the major trains go to York (TransPennine, CrossCountry, Northern, London North Eastern…) so it’s easily accessible. It’s VERY easy to take a day trip from London to York!
BY CAR: If you are driving, consider parking outside of the city center and using the Park and Ride at Rawcliffe Bar (Bus 2). It’s free to park, buses are frequent and cheap, and you don’t have to deal with overpriced pay and display by the museum (£10.00 or about $13.00 for museum parking).
Bus 10 also has frequent stops right next to the museum. Note that there are infrequent buses that pass by the museum, but if you decide that route, it might be easier to get one inside the city centre and walk.
WITHIN YORK: If you are coming from the city center, it’s northwest of the Minster, just past the River Ouse and on the outside of the walls. There’s also a mini road train that picks you up at the front of York Minster. This “train” runs every 30 minutes, it’s complimentary, and it’s a great start to your railway museum day!
General Information for the National Railway Museum
- Opening times: 10am-6pm during the summer, and 10am-5pm during the winter.
- Wheelchair accessible? Yes (accessible parking is also free, right outside the museum)
- Cost: Free entry, however, a £5.00 (just under $7.00) is strongly encouraged
- Photography is permitted, if any area is restricted then it will be posted.
- There’s free wifi!! Outside of the buildings, it’s questionable, but when you’re inside, it’s a great connection.
- Only guide dogs are permitted.
Station Hall
Once you enter the railway museum, you have the option to go right or go straight. I like to start out going straight ahead because there’s not as much to see in the station hall and the south yard. Station Hall is where all the carriages are.
Probably the coolest carriage at the National Railway Museum belonged to Queen Victoria. You can peak in through the windows and see how she lavishly traveled the country by rail.
There’s also a 1970’s commuter train that you can step aboard, a Victorian style train station restaurant, and all of the Instagram walls.
South Yard
You can take a walk outside to the South Yard.
This is where you can catch the steam train or hitch a ride on the miniature railroad.
You have to pay extra for these activities and if you have kids then the miniature railroad is worth doing, however, I don’t think the steam train is worth it. You get piled onto a one carriage steam train which goes to the end of the property and back a few times.
The upside? You get to go on a steam train for £4.00.
The downside? You don’t get the experience of riding a steam train like you would on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway around the countryside.
Great Hall
Next, walk back through the Station Hall and into the main lobby area of the railway museum.
Turn left, walk outside past another restaurant, and into the next building. You are now in the Great Hall. This is where all the exciting engines are located.
This is also where the real Hogwarts Express lived before it went down to The Making of Harry Potter in Watford.
Some of the highlights include an ambulance train that was used in the first world war to evacuate and take care of injured troops, the Shinkansen Japanese bullet train, and the Mallard, the world’s fastest steam train.
Other things to note in this area is the super stylish Duchess of Hamilton engine, there’s also steam engine that you can walk underneath, and a steam engine that looks like its been chopped in half so you can see all the inner workings of the engine.
Engine Shed
Next head up the stairs past the Mallard experience and you’ll find the workshop.
You can look down on the mechanical engineers working on restoring engines.
Right now they are working on Sir Nigel Gresley and aside from the blue color and the nameplate, it’s almost unrecognizable.
There’s also plenty of information about the history of the railway and the workers of the railway all along the top floor of this area.
Highlights include the viewing balcony which overlooks York Station and you can see the incoming trains while watching a screen the screen that the controllers use to set tracks for trains to come in and show which tracks are available or taken and the history of the Flying Scotsman route and service.
The Collections Store
Continue walking along the hall of the National Railway Museum and you’ll come to the collections store.
This is essentially a railway memorabilia graveyard.
There is everything from old furniture to signals to nameplates to station signs. (There’s even an appearance from the Platform 9 3/4 sign).
There’s so much to look at and it’s personally my favorite area of the National Railway Museum. Everything has a catalog tag on it, so you can read where it came from, the year, and a tiny blurb about the item.
Should You Visit the National Railway Museum?
The National Railway Museum is very interactive, larger than you think, and more time consuming than you think. I thought I was going to spend an hour here and ended up staying for a few.
You can easily make a half day of it and get some lunch and it’s a museum that is actually kid friendly and will keep the entire family busy.
Are you heading into York? Thinking about stopping by the National Railway Museum? Let me know in the comments below!!
Other Yorkshire Guides:
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