Beamish, the Living Museum of the North

Lovely visit to a lovely place, yes it's quite expensive to initially get in, but the value for money is brilliant and you can return as many times as you want during the year as well. Free parking is nice. Food and drink options were good and we had so much to see and do that we didn't manage to fit it all in. Highlights were the Mine, vintage transport and the dentist. Highly recommended.

We had a very pleasant surprise seeing something different. We were told by some good friends that we'll like it. Despite the windy day and some showers it was a great experience. My son was very happy seeing old buses and the trams as well as the steam vehicles. We'll return for sure in the summer when the weather will be better.

Lovely day out, it is expensive especially if you are like myself that will more than likely only go once as I went there whilst passing through, due to me living near London. However it’s great if you live nearby as you can visit as many times as you like during the year of purchase.
With that said it is still so worth going, we had an amazing day, there is so much to see we actually ended up rushing the last section because it was about to close.
Food and drink options were good, places dotted around throughout, however some places like the chip shop had large queues
The staff were brilliant, all dressed up in costume and very approachable and friendly, giving great pieces of information throughout the museum, and stories behind houses too
I recommend buying tickets in advance to prevent queuing, as it was quite a long queue to enter and buy tickets on the door
Definitely go it’s worth going!

Pay once visit for a whole year!! Great day out, there's places to eat but we took a picnic this time round. Although the fish and chip shop at the 50's village smelt amazing!! You can go into the mine for a short tour which is really interesting and travel on trams and old buses.

Such a lovely day out and walking through the old pit villages and seeing my great Nanas home rebuilt. I thoroughly enjoyed it and love that your ticket lasts a year for as many return visits as you like and as many rides on the old buses as trams are all included.

The fish and chips are expensive but.. taste amazing!!

What a fantastic experience, really fun day out, you can spend hours here. It’s so to the point with each era you won’t be disappointed. Many themes are brilliantly put together with items, areas, people, props etc that make each area like going back in time. Would highly recommended for family, couples and history lovers.

This place is amazing. You can't do it all in one day. Try and plan your trip, ideally you need 3 days to try and see everything. At least with the yearly pass, it's possible and affordable. Possibly the best museum in the UK. You do need to get there early, to get the maximum out of your days. Some definite highlights for us the pit village and the trip down the mine. The staff in the houses and shops are amazing and so informative. I really can't rate this highly enough. We had 2 full days and want to go back already. Just brilliant. I should say it's a massive site, they have trams and buses to get you to the different parts of the site, but there is alot of walking.

One of the best outside attraction museums I have ever been to. It was brilliant. Everything was just so real. The staff were in character for the period that you were travelling to. It's a shame that we only had 6 hours. So was only able to do 1890s and 1920s towns and 1940s farms. Absolutely brilliant can't wait to go again. Also the ticket price is really good for a family of 5 £20.00 each which also covers for the whole year. Incredible.

Absolutely loved it. Went here in the 1970s on a school trip and once after that. Always had fond memories. Visiting again after about twenty years it's even better than I could of imagined. I've taken so many photos. Loved the 1950s street and houses, brought back memories of my grandparents houses. Best chips ever from the chip shop in the street. Rode the bus and the tram. Loved the Victorian and Edwardian streets and houses. Followed that with the 1940s farm and building and onto the pit village and mine. So interesting and went into the mine. Excellent enthusiastic and knowledgeable staff throughout in costume of the era. Plenty of toilets and refreshment opportunities along the way. Lovely surroundings and plenty to do and see. Well worth the trip. Perfect if you like history and perfect for kids too. Great gift shop at the end and you can also buy gifts on line. Unlimited pass allows for a return visit. So good.

I've been to Beamish a couple of times now and it's always such a nice experience. It keeps getting updated and like the fact that it has different events from time to time. Of course it's dog friendly so you can take a stroll to the past instead of the park 😉

Excellent! We have just had a ‘quick’ visit - it only took 5.5 hours! What great value for money this place is, especially as your ticket means you can come back again and again for a whole year, if able to.

Absolutely stunning. Interesting for children and adults, immersion in history. Plenty of things to do, good for picnics too. On some stations you can check cupboards and drawers - that was captivating)

Wow first time visiting for us. Got yearly ticket it's cheaper. If I could give this museum 10 stars I would. Stayed over nearby and did two days, you need to. Great two days.

Love this place! If you take your time you can't manage to do everything in the day... we rushed around from time to time just to try and do everything, a brilliant experience for the kids with great memories

Best day out! Family of five, aged 6 - 76 and we loved every minute of the day. Such an interesting place with knowledgeable staff to share historical facts with us.

What an awesome place, the kids, dog and me had a wonderful day plodding along (there is transport all around the site but we chose walking). The old mine is an amazing little place, you can imagine the hardship old miners where put through and the hardware needed to keep them alive.
I love the old cottages and the special fireplaces in the cottages and the old town is cool as you like!!
The food, both hot and cold is era appropriate and really good!! Like the pork pie must have had most of pepper pig In it !!
Loads of stuff for the kids to do and the guides and staff are so patient and great at engaging them with facts and tales from the past.

I'd definitely go again, in fact I can't wait

Visited Beamish on Wednesday 8th with my uncle and Aunt, and dog. Wow is the most expressive sentence that springs to mind. The museum is MASSIVE. So much so it took us nearly two hours to get round one section! I loved how authentic it felt, you really were walking into history. I learnt so much that I ordinarily wouldn't have, and spoke to so many people that were just full of facts and knowledge. There was a lady in the masonic hall who answered anything I asked and admitted she loves talking history so I was with her quite a while! I adored how interactive things were, I enjoyed going down into the old coal mine and chatting to the staff there... They absolutely loved our dog! I'd absolutely love to come back here, there's so much to see and do. I didn't even realise it was 2024 until my mobile phone rang, I could smell the smells, see the sights, and hear and feel just how it was to be in the 1900s, 1940s, etc.

I thought it was wonderful how accessible the site was. One of the vintage cars had been converted for wheelchair users to enjoy going all over the museum. I also appreciated the placement of toilets all over site, so you were never ever caught short.

Please please visit here if you get the chance. You won't be disappointed!

One of the best open air museums in Europe. Now covering from the 1800's to 1950's. Historically accurate bakery, fish and chips, sweetshop and pub. The site is vast and superbly detailed - you need at least two days to see it all. Be aware peak times it can get very busy. If you are visiting the North East this should be number one on your must see list.

We visited Beamish last Thursday, thankfully the day before Easter kicked off. No queue at all to get in (10:20AM) or to purchase tickets as we didn't pre-book. Ample availability for buses and trams on this day due to it being quieter. An amazing way to access each area as some are quite a walk away from each other.

Our favourite areas were the 1900s and 1950s towns. Unfortunately the 1950s farm is currently not open during the week so we weren't able to visit this (if we'd checked the website, we'd have known this in advance). Incredible fish and chips in the 1950s chippy (no queue at all on this day). This isn't finished yet, but they've made great progress so far, can't wait to hopefully see this later this summer. My partner got her hair done in the 50s salon. Great value at £5 to have it styled and it turned out amazing!

In the 1900s town we opted to partake in a traditional photoshoot. We tried to do this in the afternoon, however they were fully booked. The staff told us that it is best to try to book this first thing in the day, as they book up quickly. However, due to a last minute cancellation, they managed to accommodate us. Both guys made us feel totally at ease, which is particularly impressive for myself as I never know what to do when a camera is pointed at me.

We arrived at opening and left just before closing and still didn't manage to fit in visiting everything. Thankfully the ticket is valid for unlimited visits over a year, so we will definitely return! Amazing staff, amazing experience, amazing day!

Amazing place. If it wasn't for the guy with an iPhone strapped to his head as he walked round it was like being in the 1800 and 1900s. The staff were amazing and the kids really loved it. The attention to details was meticulous.