Natural History Museum London

The Natural History Museum's terracotta building, opened in 1881, is decorated inside and out with carved animals and plants. In the soaring Hintze Hall a blue whale skeleton hangs from the ceiling, and the moving T. rex in the dinosaur gallery is a favourite with children.

Other galleries cover volcanoes and earthquakes, gems and minerals, and human evolution. Next door are the Science Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum, so a day in South Kensington easily becomes a museum day. In the Earth galleries, an escalator carries you up through the middle of a giant globe.

Weekday mornings in term time are quietest; at weekends and in school holidays, book a timed slot. Allow at least half a day with children. Exhibition Road outside has plenty of cafés for a break.