Summer family fun at our Depot
The London Transport Museum Depot in Acton Town, West London, which is rarely open to the public, will be throwing open its doors for a special 10-day summer family fun season for the first time between Wednesday 19 to Sunday 23 and Wednesday 26 to Sunday 30 August 2020 from 11:00 to 18:00 each day.
The Depot houses most of London Transport Museum’s extensive collection – over 320,000 artefacts from the Capital’s transport history. The new summer season has been designed especially for families, giving them the chance to explore this rarely seen transport treasure trove during the summer holidays after months in lockdown.
A special family-friendly trail will take people on a journey through the Depot to discover the stories of historic vehicles which served passengers over the last 200 years, including a yellow Victorian horse drawn ‘garden seat’ bus dating from 1881 to a shiny red 1938 Stock Tube train filled with stylish Art Deco touches.
Children will receive a special, sealed pack which will include a fun craft kit to make during the visit and a take-home activity to support their learning in fun and curious ways. Each day during the new summer family fun season, the London Transport Museum Depot shop will be open offering exclusive transport themed toys, games, posters and gifts. Tea, coffee and light refreshments will also be available to purchase and enjoy.
Tickets and time slots can be booked between 11:00 and 18:00 each day with last entry at 16:00. Adult tickets cost £15 and are £7.50 for children aged 4 to 17. Children under 3 go free. Timed tickets must be booked in advance online.
Local residents in Ealing, Hillingdon and Hounslow will enjoy a ⅓ off (£10 for adults and £5 for children aged 4-17) when booking their timed tickets and families are encouraged to walk where possible. Visitors who already own an annual pass for London Transport Museum in Covent Garden will also enjoy a ⅓ off when booking timed tickets too.
The London Transport Miniature Railway will be open for service, with passengers able to travel on replica models of vintage London Underground trains used on the Metropolitan line between the 1920s and 1960s. Tickets to ride on the Miniature Railway will be available to purchase separately on the day using contactless payments.
The London Transport Museum Depot will open to the public with the Visit Britain ‘We’re good to go’ standard and has new social distancing and safety measures in place. These include, one-way routes, enhanced cleaning regimes using anti-viral disinfectant, pre-visit guidance to help people prepare for their visit as well as PPE and updated training for staff.
Sam Mullins OBE, Director, London Transport Museum said: ‘Our Depot is one of the Capital’s hidden gems and we’re excited to be throwing open its doors for families to enjoy a behind the scenes look at rarely seen Aladdin’s cave of transport treasures. Opening our Depot for a summer season is unprecedented for us, but when we started thinking about reopening, we wanted to try something new by offering families a safe, local, fun day out during the summer holidays. With social distancing and new safety measures in place, we can’t wait to welcome people back to experience the Depot.’