Rainy day ideas

Indoor activities

Find indoor activities for half term holidays, bank holiday weekends, seaside escapes and city breaks. Take your pick from indoor attractions and such as free museums and other indoor attractions such as aquariums and galleries, or if you’re feeling braver, there are climbing centres, underground caverns and cycle velodromes. You can tour television studios and explore living history heritage attractions, or even whet your whistle on a brewery tour. Whatever you fancy doing, England is packed with indoor activities and things to do on a rainy day.

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Get on board at the National Railway Museum

The world's largest railway museum is home to a staggering collection of restored locomotives, including the fastest steam engine of all time.

Location: York, North Yorkshire

 

Rainy Day Activities: Step back in time at York Castle Museum

Travel back in time on a rainy day at this trend-setting museum, which transports visitors back through 300 years of history.

Location: York, North Yorkshire

 

Rainy Day Activities: Explore history at Winchester’s Military Museums

Broaden your knowledge of the British Army and the various battles fought throughout history at Winchester’s six Military Museums.

Location: Winchester, Hampshire

 

Rainy Day Activities: Get hands on at the National Football Museum

Explore the world's largest football collection, learn about the history and culture of England's national sport and take part in other footy-related indoor activities at Manchester's National Football Museum.

Location: Manchester, Greater Manchester

 

Visit Europe's largest library

The Library of Birmingham houses a million printed volumes, the largest number held by any public library in the UK.

Location: Birmingham, West Midlands

 

Nine floors of silver-screens

A visit to the National Media Museum is a must if you love photography, film, television, animation, gaming or the internet.

Location: Bradford, West Yorkshire

 

Rainy Day Activities: Discover military history at The Royal Armouries

Britain’s national museum of arms and armour is home to a fascinating and unique collection, including the only existing suit of armour built for an elephant.

Location: Leeds, West Yorkshire

 

Rainy Day Activities: See famous works in the Royal Albert Memorial Museum

With numerous famous artworks and historical artefacts on display, the award-winning Royal Albert Memorial Museum is a must-see indoor attraction in the heart of Exeter.

Location: Exeter, Devon

 

Rainy Day Activities: Sunderland Museum

Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens is a great place for the whole family to spend the day – and it’s free.

Location: Sunderland, Tyne and Wear

 
A family watching chocolate being made at Cadbury World, Birmingham.

Go chocolate crazy at Cadbury World

A must-visit destination for chocoholics of all ages, Cadbury World in Bourneville near Birmingham is full of fun indoor activities and things to do when it rains.

Location: Birmingham, West Midlands

 

Rainy Day Activities: Explore Earth and space at Liverpool’s World Museum

Need ideas on things to do when it rains? Visit one of North West England’s oldest museums and get a hands-on look at our planet from the oceans to the stars.

Location: Liverpool, Merseyside

 

Rainy Day Activities: Get spooked at Tudor World

Delve into Tudor life with a series of rainy day activities at this interactive indoor museum, found in one of England's most haunted buildings.

Location: Stratford-Upon-Avon, Warwickshire

 

Rainy Day Activities: Explore Oxford's Museum of Natural History

Delve into Oxford University’s scientific archives, housed inside one of the city's most beautiful neo-Gothic buildings.

Location: Oxford, Oxfordshire

 

Rainy Day Activities: Beware the animal mummies at Bristol Museum & Art Gallery

From Egyptian relics and biplanes, to works of art and stuffed deer, there’s something to excite everyone at Bristol Museum & Art Gallery.

Location: Bristol

 

Rainy Day Activities: Step into history in the Churchill War Rooms

Delve underground into Churchill’s War Cabinet Rooms and uncover the secret location which housed the Prime Minister during WWII.

Location: Westminster, London

 

Rainy Day Activities: Discover Bath’s 13 marvellous museums

Discover the incredible and diverse collection of museums, galleries and exhibitions, all within a short stroll of one another, on a rainy day in Bath.

Location: Bath, Somerset

 

Rainy Day Activities: Discover Sheffield’s story at Kelham Island Museum

The ‘Steel City’s’ unique industrial story is brought to life through interactive galleries at this captivating indoor museum.

Location: Kelham Island, South Yorkshire

 

Hunt for ancient treasures in The Yorkshire Museum

This grandiose Georgian museum is filled with curiosities from an eye-popping Viking treasure hoard to dinosaur fossils and a working observatory.

Location: York, North Yorkshire

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