The Ultimate Guide to Visiting the Sherlock Holmes Museum

SHERLOCK HOLMES MUSEUM ULTIMATE GUIDE

Open: Everyday: 9:30AM to 6:00PM

Time Needed: 2 hours

Price: £10 – £15

With four novels, 46 short stories, and 75 different actors playing the character in more than 200 films, it’s no wonder why so many fans make the pilgrimage to London’s Sherlock Holmes Museum at 221B Baker Street. (It is the “world’s most famous address,” after all.)

Created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in 1887, Sherlock Holmes is a character that has been featured in more films than any other character in literature, and has caught the attention of readers (and later audiences) from all over the world.

Doyle’s story of the famous detective takes place between 1881 and 1904, when Sherlock Holmes lived at 221B Baker Street with his friend and colleague Dr. Watson.

The museum itself is a historic Georgian townhouse constructed in 1815, and was once used as a boarding house between 1860 and 1936. The museum’s interior has been designed to look exactly how it was described in Doyle’s stories (and although the building is technically located between numbers 237 and 241, the museum displays a 221B address sign, just for argument’s sake).

The Sherlock Holmes museum is run by the Sherlock Holmes International Society, and has been visited by more than 2 million Sherlock Holmes fans since it first opened in 1990.

Sherlock Holmes Museum Highlights

As soon as you enter the museum through the gift shop, Mrs. Hudson (Sherlock Holmes’ housekeeper) will greet you, before guiding you through the different Victorian rooms in the building which span over four stories. The rooms include Sherlock Holmes’ living room, study and bedroom, as well as rooms for Watson and Mrs. Hudson, and even the bathroom in a small loft.

Visitors can climb up the seventeen steps (the same ones mentioned in A Scandal in Bohemia), as well as up to Holmes’ crowded parlour filled with artefacts and furniture from the Victorian era which include traditional wallpaper, gaslight lamps and much more.. The rooms are packed full of all sorts of fascinating memorabilia which were referenced in the books, such as a magnifying glass, an old copy of The Times, a pipe, a chemistry kit, ink bottles, a violin, a deerstalker, and much, much more.

Visitors can also see Dr. Mortimer’s stick and Watson’s diary with handwritten notes, both of which were mentioned in The Hound of the Baskervilles, and there’s even the club that was used to murder Colonel Barclay in The Crooked Man. There’s also lifelike waxwork figures of Sherlock Holmes, Professor Moriarty and many more.

Special Tips

For the ultimate Sherlock Holmes experience, make sure you check out 2 Devonshire Place (a ten-minute walk from the museum) where Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s medical practice was once located. You can also see a waxworks of Robert Downey Jr and Benedict Cumberbatch dressed up in their Sherlock Holmes attire at Madame Tussauds, which is a four-minute walk from the museum. Otherwise, consider joining the Free Sherlock Holmes Tour with a professional guide!

Make sure you snap a photo of the Sherlock Holmes silhouette at the Baker Street metro station, as well as the 9 foot-high bronze statue of Arthur Conan Doyle outside the station by the Marylebone Road exit.

For a great photo-taking opportunity, try and get a photo with Doctor Watson who will be standing outside the museum’s entrance to greet you before you enter.

Getting There

Address: 221b Baker St, Marylebone, London NW1 6XE, United Kingdom.

By Tube: If you are travelling by tube, the nearest stations to the museum are Baker Street (which is a two-minute walk away), Marylebone (which is a four-minute walk away) and Regent’s Park (an eight-minute walk away).

By Train: If you are travelling by train, the nearest stations are Marylebone (four minutes walk), Paddington (18 minutes walk) and Euston (21 minutes walk).

By Bus: If you are travelling by bus, routes 2, 13, 18, 18, 27, 30, 30, 74, 82, 82, 113, 139, 189, 274, 453 and C2 all stop at The Regent’s Park, which is less than a two minute walk from the museum.

getting there By Car: If you are travelling by car, the closest car parks to the museum are in Dorset Square, the Regent Park and Park Road.

Visiting Sherlock Holmes Museum

Recommended visiting time to the Sherlock Holmes Museum is around one to two hours.

All visitors must enter the museum through the gift shop, which is located on the ground floor. You will then purchase your tickets, and join the queue at the entrance of the museum. It is highly recommended that you arrive as early as possible (especially during the summer months), as the queues can get quite long during the busier periods.

There are activity sheets available at the gift shop so you can answer various questions about Sherlock Holmes during your visit.

Try to avoid bringing any large items with you, as there is no place to store your luggage.

Ticket Costs

The museum is open Monday to Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., but closes on Christmas Day (December 25th).

Admission for visitors costs:

  • Adults – £16
  • Concessions – £14.00
  • Children (under 16) – £11
  • Children (under 6) – Free

If you want to park your car at The Regent’s Park, there are pay-and-display parking bays available every day from 9:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Parking costs £2.40 per hour (Monday to Saturday) or £1.40 per hour on Sundays and public holidays. Between Monday to Saturday you can only park your car for a maximum of four hours in the designated parking spots.

If you want to visit the Sherlock Holmes Museum, you might want to consider joining some of the free tours in London departing daily.

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