Is there anywhere to eat, or should we bring a picnic?

Café Willis serves hot and cold drinks, ice creams, cakes and snacks. If you bring your own reusable cup, you get 30p off a hot drink. The page does not mention a picnic area.

How long should we allow for a visit?

The page does not state a typical visit length. With exhibitions, hands-on activities, and a café, you could spend as little as an hour or several hours depending on what interests your children.

Can I get a buggy round it, or is it manageable with a toddler and an older child?

The page confirms baby changing facilities and ramped access to the front door. However, it notes that all visitor toilets are on the first floor and only accessible via stairs, so buggies cannot reach them. Buggy-friendliness has not been confirmed.

What should I know about accessibility before visiting?

The museum has ramped access to the front door and automatic doors to the ground floor galleries and café. However, there is no accessible toilet on site; visitor toilets are upstairs via stairs only, and the nearest accessible public toilet is a 2-minute walk away at Castons Yard. Assistance dogs are welcome if clearly identifiable.

Willis Museum and Sainsbury Gallery

Museums & Science Centres · Basingstoke, Hampshire

No reviews yet

🏠 Indoor0–11–33–55–88–1212–16🆓 Free entryEducational☔ Rainy-day friendly

What’s there

Café on site
Baby changing

No parking on site. The venue says parking is available in several car parks or in Festival Place Shopping Centre; the museum is within walking distance of Basingstoke station.

Only facilities we’ve confirmed are listed — anything missing here we simply haven’t checked, rather than know to be absent.

The Willis Museum and Sainsbury Gallery sits in the old town hall at the top of Basingstoke's Market Place and tells the story of the town and its surrounding borough, from prehistoric artefacts through to the modern day. Galleries on different floors take visitors through the town's growth, including a 1960s kitchen display and a famous old wedding cake, and the second-floor archaeology gallery holds a large mammoth tusk and finds from the Roman town of Silchester. The Sainsbury Gallery hosts a rotating programme of regional and national exhibitions, and the museum runs workshops, activity trails and events aimed at all the family. There is a statue of Jane Austen outside, a cafe and a museum shop on the ground floor. Admission is free and there is no need to book, which makes it an easy stop for a rainy afternoon or a short history visit with children.

Questions parents ask

Is there anywhere to eat, or should we bring a picnic?: Café Willis serves hot and cold drinks, ice creams, cakes and snacks. If you bring your own reusable cup, you get 30p off a hot drink. The page does not mention a picnic area.
How long should we allow for a visit?: The page does not state a typical visit length. With exhibitions, hands-on activities, and a café, you could spend as little as an hour or several hours depending on what interests your children.
Can I get a buggy round it, or is it manageable with a toddler and an older child?: The page confirms baby changing facilities and ramped access to the front door. However, it notes that all visitor toilets are on the first floor and only accessible via stairs, so buggies cannot reach them. Buggy-friendliness has not been confirmed.
What should I know about accessibility before visiting?: The museum has ramped access to the front door and automatic doors to the ground floor galleries and café. However, there is no accessible toilet on site; visitor toilets are upstairs via stairs only, and the nearest accessible public toilet is a 2-minute walk away at Castons Yard. Assistance dogs are welcome if clearly identifiable.