Breakaway Destination Guides (International)

Admission to many of the museums and galleries listed below is included in the White Card, which gives unlimited entry to 13 attractions (good for three or seven days depending which ticket you purchase). Family tickets are available. All tickets are available from the British Travel Centre on Lower Regent Street, principal Underground stations and other participating venues.

  Courtauld Instatute Galleries

Displays works from six private collections, including impressionist works and Flemish and Italian Old Masters. Monday-Saturday 10am to 6pm, Sunday 2 to 6pm. Somerset House, Strand, City/Covent Garden.

  Hayward Gallery

The big exhibition venue. Historic and contemporary works from the U.S., Europe and Britain. Thursday-Monday 10am to 6pm, Tuesday-Wednesday 10am to 8pm. Closed between exhibitions. Belvedere Road, South bank Centre.

  The National Gallery

Houses the U.K.'s major collection of paintings by many famous artists in an endless series of galleries, too much to take in at a single visit. See Hogarth's Marriage a la Mode in gallery 'E' for a droll caricature of life in 18th-century London. Monday to Saturday 10am to 6pm, Sunday 2pm to 6pm. Free.

  National Portrait Gallery

Offers five floors of famous faces arranged in chronological order, from Will Shakespeare to Mick Jagger. Monday-Friday 10am to 5pm, Saturday 10am to 6pm, Sunday noon to 6pm. Free, excepting special exhibitions. 2 St. Martins Place.

  The Royal Academy of Art

Mounts a notable annual Summer Exhibition and others through the year. Paintings on display can be purchased. Daily 10am to 6pm. Long lines are typical for big exhibitions. Burlington House, Piccadilly, Mayfair.

  The Tate Gallery

Holds a major collection of international modern art as well as historic and impressionist works. Paintings are shown in rotation because of the vast size of the collection. The newly refurbished Clore Gallery now has a room devoted to the marine paintings of J. M. W. Turner. A new site for the modern art collection has yet to be selected, but will probably be the Milbank Power Station, on the South Bank. Monday-Saturday 10am to 5:30pm, Sunday 2 to 5:50pm. Free. Milbank SW1.

  British Museum and Library

In a classical columned and domed building of 1857, accommodates the world's greatest collection of antiquities. You'd have to walk more than 2mi/3km to take in all 94 galleries. See the controversial Elgin Marbles, which Greece would like returned. For the first time, the museum has now devoted a room to part of its vast Mexican collection. Monday-Saturday 10am to 5pm, Sunday 2.30 to 6pm. Guided tours at 10.30am, 11am, 1.30pm and 2pm. (The library is open to pass holders only, researchers need to apply in advance, with references) Library is scheduled for relocation to new complex at St. Pancras in 1996 or 1997. Free. Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury.

  The London Transport Museum

In a refurbished Victorian flower garden, recounts the development of the Underground, trams and red buses. Innovations include touch-screen technology, videos, actors. Daily 10am to 6pm. 39 Wellington St. WC2.

  The Museum of London

Is the most comprehensive city museum in the world. It's like being inside a biography. Rooms and displays recreate stages in history. Tuesday-Saturday 10am to 6pm, Sunday noon to 6pm. London Wall, City of London.

Museum of London interior Lord Mayors Coach

(Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.0)

The Museum of Mankind shows a smaller series of ethnographic exhibitions, regularly changed. The material - from Africa, Asia and the Americas - is invariably fascinating. Daily 10am to 5pm, Sunday 2:30 to 6pm. Free. 6 Burlington Gardens, Mayfair.

  The Natural History Museum and Geology Museum

House's a huge collection of animal models, skeletons and specimens, plus an earthquake experience and other displays concerning the workings of the planet. Monday-Saturday 10am to 6pm, Sunday 11am to 6pm. Cromwell Road, South Kensington.

  Visit Breakaway's Natural History Museum

  The Victoria and Albert Museum

The national museum of art and design - in 7 mi/11 km of galleries! Monday noon to 5.50pm, Tuesday-Sunday 10am to 5.50pm. Free, Cromwell Road, South Kensington.

  Bethnal Green Museum of Children

Houses the national collection of toys, dolls, dollhouses, games, puppets and children-s costumes. Monday-Thursday and Saturday 10am to 5pm, Sunday 2.30pm to 5pm. Closed Fridays. Free. Cambridge Heath Road, E2.

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