When we had our holiday in Chipping Norton last month, Lily picked up a leaflet for The Story Museum in Oxford. She asked everyday to visit as she thought it looked so cool. So at the end of the summer holidays, on our daytrip to Oxford, I got us tickets!
This is such a lovely museum, and a unique experience. We booked “The Galleries” which is for age 5+. For under 5s you’d book the “Small Worlds”
You have a timeslot as they keep the group sizes very small. We had two other families with our group. You get given headphones and a fairy stick to press buttons. Through the headphones you hear stories and are led through The Whispering Wood. It’s beautiful! There are trees and at each tree you hear a story, unique to The Story Museum. I’ve never experienced anything like this before, it’s so magical!
After the stories, you leave the headphones and go into the Treasure Chamber. At the moment there is a Book of Hopes exhibition which is on until December 2021. There are different sheds and tables full of creative things to do, like contact aliens, record messages, doodle on the wall, write stories. It’s so colourful 🌈
Finally we went into The Enchanted Library. It’s just wow. It’s like a timeline of children’s stories from the past to now, with areas devoted to famous authors and rooms for Alice in Wonderland, Winnie the Pooh, Narnia and more.
One room was playing the film of The Snowman, and there was a Horrid Henry room where if you bounced on the bed, it farted. My kids were there for a while 😆
At the end of the experience you are at the top of the building, which is painted blue with clouds, so it’s like you’ve walked out into the sky!
On the ground floor is a book themed cafe, and outside is a red phone book with mini mouse stories inside.
We LOVED it here and spent about an hour and half. It’s so worth a visit, and probably will feel even more magical in the autumn/winter months.
Have you been to The Story Museum before?
📍The Story Museum, Pembroke Street, Oxford OX1 1BP
🗓 Open everyday 9.30am – 6pm
💷 The Galleries for age 5+ – £8 each
Small Words under 5s – £5 each
Under 1s free
☕️ Cafe and loos on site
⏰ Length of visit 1.5 hours
