Top Liverpool museums

Must-see Liverpool museums that you don’t want to miss

1. Enjoy a day out at the World Museum
2. Learn about the city at the Museum of Liverpool
3. Discover art at the Tate Liverpool
4. Head back in time at the Western Approaches Museum
5. Get your Beatlemania fix at The Beatles Story
6. Visit the Merseyside Maritime Museum

History museum? Yes. Museum with art? Got that. Museum about The Beatles? Of course! Where else would it be? Liverpool has something to suit everyone’s taste regarding museums. Searching for Liverpool holidays? We suggest booking in advance if you want to visit in summer, as it’s a popular time for discovering the city.

1. Enjoy a day out at the World Museum

For a family day of fun, the For a family day of fun, the World Museum is one of the best attractions. The dramatic six-storey atrium provides access to an eclectic series of themed exhibits of broad appeal. From natural history to ethnography, insects to antiquities, dinosaurs to space rockets - the list never ends. Excellent sections for children include the Bug House and the Mummy Room, plus a hands-on discovery centre. The planetarium and theatre have daily shows, with times posted at the information desk. Kids will especially love attending them.

2. Learn about the city at the Museum of Liverpool

Want to learn more about the thrilling city you’re visiting? Of course you do! The Museum of Liverpool is just for you. It’s huge and flashy, located in a show-stopping, Danish-designed building. The brilliant Museum of Liverpool is one of the most interesting Liverpool museums. Spread over three floors, the galleries play on the city’s historic status as the “second city of Empire”. It explores the complex political and life histories that have unfolded in a community whose wealth and social fabric were built on international trade. Children will enjoy “Little Liverpool”, a gallery where they can design and build their own city. And anyone with any interest in popular culture will have an absolute ball at “Wondrous Place”, a memorabilia-rich celebration of sports and music.

3. Discover art at the Tate Liverpool

London is not the only city home to the Tate. The country’s national collection of modern art from the north, Tate Liverpool holds popular retrospectives of artists such as Mondrian, Dalí, Magritte and Calder. The museum is also home to an ever-changing display from its vast collection, and temporary exhibitions of artists of international standing. There’s also a full programme of events, talks and tours.

4. Head back in time at the Western Approaches Museum

Want a look back at World War II? The Western Approaches Museum is one of the best museums in Liverpool for your history fix. Not far from the waterfront, the Western Approaches Museum reveals an underground labyrinth of rooms, formerly headquarters for the Battle of the Atlantic during World War II. The massive Operations Room vividly displays all the technology of a 1940s nerve centre - wooden pushers and model boats, chalkboards and ladders. There’s always something interesting to find here.

5. Get your Beatlemania fix at The Beatles Story

What would Liverpool be without the Beatles? Museums in Liverpool don’t get much better than this! For a personal and social history about the band, head to the Albert Dock for The Beatles StoryThe Beatles Story. The museum traces the band’s rise from the early days to their disparate solo careers. This is one of the most interesting museums if you’re a Fab Four fan. There’s nothing left to do apart from to get your singing voice ready!

6. Visit the Merseyside Maritime Museum

Head down to the pretty Albert Docks to find the Merseyside Maritime Museum. Filling one wing of the Dock, there’s lots to see here. The basement houses Seized!, giving the lowdown on smuggling and revenue collection. Carry on exploring and you’ll find Emigrants to a New World, an illuminating display detailing Liverpool’s pivotal role as a springboard for more than nine million emigrants. Other galleries tell the story of the Battle of the Atlantic and of the three ill-fated liners - the Titanic, Lusitania and Empress of Ireland.

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