GETTING to step into London’s incredible museums is a must for anyone visiting the city – but being able to enter for free could change.

Top attractions like the and the might become paid-for attractions.

A blue whale skeleton hanging in Hintze Hall of the Natural History Museum in London, above a crowd of visitors.Top attractions like the Natural History Museum could enforce paid-for entryCredit: Alamy The Great Court of the British Museum with a circular central building and a glass and steel roof.The proposal has said the money will go towards funding the artsCredit: Getty

The British Museum has been free for everyone since 1759.

Previously, other of the capital’s attractions, like the Natural History Museum, did ask for entry fees although new rules mean major have been free of charge since 2001.

But a new plan to boost the economy, and support the arts, could change that with proposals to charge for entry.

According to reports, UK ministers are considering charging international visitors for access to permanent collections at national .

Attractions that could be affected by this if it were to come into play include the and the Natural History Museum; which are the most visited in the country.

The British Museum brought in 6.4million visitors in 2025, and Natural History Museum had 7.1million.

Baroness Margaret Hodge, who proposed the idea in an independent review of Arts Council , said: “We will work with the museum sector to explore the potential opportunities that charging international visitors at national museums could bring to support access to arts everywhere, and the timeframes for this.

“The government believes charging international visitors at national museums could provide significant .

“It could underpin our commitment to ensure art and culture is accessible, representative and shared across the country, and support the long-term financial resilience of these organisations.”

The good for nationals is that with if this was put in place, Brits would still be able to enter for free.

If paid entry was to go ahead, the plan hinges on the issue of which would differentiate between nationals and tourists.

Currently, there isn’t any information on if or when these new charges would come into effect, or how much the entry fees would be.

And paid-for entry might not apply to all London museums either.

Sir Tristram Hunt, who is the director of the in London, said his organisation was not interested in charging overseas visitors for entry.

A bronze cast of a Diplodocus dinosaur skeleton named Fern in a garden setting at The Natural History Museum, London.The Natural History Museum was the most popular attraction in the UK last yearCredit: Alamy

This year, the Natural History Museum was revealed to be the most .

This marked the best year in terms of visitors heading to the museum, with a 13 per cent increase compared to 2024.

And there’s lots coming up too, a new Human Nature pop-up display will open in September 2026.

Here, visitors will be able to discover stories about human history and the natural world, with a number of specimens and historical objects on display that haven’t been seen before.

There will also be a prototype of one of the dinosaurs, a monk seal called Jenny ‘the talking fish’ and a handaxe that was discovered alongside the remains of a woolly mammoth in 1859.

Next year, there will be a new permanent specifically for young children with lots of hands-on about the natural world.

For more on .

And here are the .

Main entrance of the British Museum in London, England.Top London attractions could start charging entry fees for visitorsCredit: Alamy

Eze Chidiebere Paul

Eze Chidiebere Paul

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