Press Releases

With seven museums, and free entry for all thanks to the support of the Welsh Assembly Government, you won't find a better day out for the whole family. With family activities at each of our museums across the whole of Wales, there really is no excuse for not switching off the telly and taking the kids out for a fun day out.

Take a Sunday afternoon stroll at St Fagans National History Museum and find out how the people of Wales lived through the ages by visiting the re-erected houses and cottages dotted around over 100 acres of woodland. It's the perfect place to come to blow the cobwebs away after a hard week at work or school.

There's plenty of dinosaurs on telly but nothing's quite the same as seeing the real thing, and that's one of the fantastic things to see and do at National Museum Cardiff. Come and see the remains of all types of wonderful prehistoric animals — mammoths, mooses and all types of dinosaurs.

National Museum Cardiff is also home to Wales's national art collection. You won't believe how fantastic the collection is until you've stood only feet away from paintings by Renoir, Van Gogh and Monet. Why make do with seeing these paintings on tv when you can come and see Monet's original Waterlilies — for free!

Romans always make good tv, but how did they really live when they came over to Wales? Switch off the box and take a trip to Caerleon's National Roman Legion Museum, where you'll find out everything you wanted to know about the Romans. You'll also have a chance to dress up like a real Roman soldier and see what life was like in the barracks 2,000 years ago.

The Big Pit National Coal Museum experience is unlike any other. Where else can you travel 300 feet under the ground into a real coal mine — with a real miner? Imagine what it was like to spend hours and hours underground every day. See where the pit ponies spent their working lives and explore the many tunnels that formed the underground part of Big Pit. There's also plenty to see and do above ground, including an award-winning exhibition at the Pit Head Baths and a virtual underground tour. No wonder this great museum was selected as the 2005 UK Museum of the Year.

The National Wool Museum, tucked away in the rolling hills of Carmarthenshire, is one of Wales's best kept secrets. The roaring noises of the real working machines have to be seen — or rather heard — to be believed. Step back in time and find out why this little village was once known as the Huddersfield of Wales. There's even a brand new village trail. If that doesn't clear your head, nothing will!

The craggy mountains of Snowdonia are the stunning backdrop for the National Slate Museum in Llanberis, where you'll discover the story of quarrying and the slate industry in Wales. Find out what's actually made from slate — you'll be surprised. Find out where Welsh slate has been exported through the years, and see how the quarrymen used to live, in a re-erected terrace of houses in the Museum grounds.

Swansea's National Waterfront Museum brings together the whole story of industry in Wales under one roof. This is the newest of our national museums, opened in October 2005. Telling the story of industry and innovation through the eyes of the peoples of Wales since the Industrial Revolution, the National Waterfront Museum is a fantastic experience for all the family. So switch off the telly, get over to Swansea and have a great day out for free. You'll be amazed at what you'll find out — over 85,000 people have done just that in the past six months.

Television is all very well, but programmes rarely answer all your questions — we sometimes want to find out more. Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales knows this and is here to help. Our guides and museum assistants are here to help you and to answer all your questions, from basic site-based questions to wide ranging information on the collections currently on show. There's also great shops, cafes and restaurants in our museums, so make the most of your visit and have a great day out.

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Free entry to all the national museums is supported by the Welsh Assembly Government.

For more information, please contact Sian James, Corporate Communications Officer, National Museum Cardiff.
(029) 2057 3185 / 07812 801356
E-mail Sian James