Old Gaol Museum
Old Gaol Museum
4
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
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See what travelers are saying
- JenAnnieNottingham, United Kingdom2,003 contributionsGreat little Market TownA really pretty old Market Town to visit l had never been before. So much to see & do around thus little town. We went into the beautiful building that used to house the town Gaol. The little museum was fascinating ,a lovely place to visit.Visited September 2023Traveled as a coupleWritten October 13, 2023
- loobydogSouthampton, United Kingdom22 contributionsVery interesting little Museum packed with more than you think!Chose to come here as a prelude to a trip to the Silverstone Museum and had a great time. So much packed into what looks like a small place from the outside. Staff were very welcoming and knowledgeable. Throughly enjoyed walking around and learning the history. Took lots of photos and purchased a few bits from the giftshop. Wanted to come back in the evening to get a photo of the outside lit up but didn’t get chance. Means we’ll just have to come again :)Visited February 2024Traveled as a coupleWritten February 15, 2024
- martin bPortsmouth, United Kingdom143 contributionsBletchley Park weekendNextdoor to a very cosy little tea room 100yards along (under the chemist), additional review separate. What a lovely little attraction, very helpful voluntary staff, who gave a brief outline of the site. Then it’s just wander at your leisure around the display’s (over two floors). Took about 1½ hours. One question I never found an answer to & the staff didn’t know either. Why have all the cells two secure doors, one opening out, the other opening into the cell? Definitely worth the visit if in area.Visited April 2024Traveled as a coupleWritten April 15, 2024
- mrandmrsg626Manchester, United Kingdom152 contributionsA tardis of a building full of interesting exhibitsFascinating place full of the history of the area & the buildings role as a jail. The museum is quite a tardis & is packed with exhibits. The cost was £5 for adults & £4 for over60's & less for children. There are quite a lot of steps in the building.Visited May 2024Traveled as a coupleWritten May 11, 2024
- DREGSGrafham, United Kingdom385 contributionsWorth a visitAn interesting stop off on your way somewhere! The town is lovley and the staff here are friendly. Almost no one joined us as we wandered around but it is worth going if it's en route. The double doors are worth noting as one reviewer did - stops escappes in both directions from the looks of things! The covered area with the shirts to dress up in is a nice additon for children at the end - there are a few brass rubbing areas for them otherwise. Parking was easy in the Waitrose carpark nearby. The history of this much used building is interesting and they do have clean toilets with short queues if any! Don't use the ones in the car park!Visited September 2024Traveled as a coupleWritten September 18, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.0
141 reviews
Excellent
53
Very good
68
Average
20
Poor
0
Terrible
0
Alyson O
Stratford Upon Avon148 contributions
Nov 2022 • Couples
This is a cracking little museum in the heart of the town with easy parking close by. You need to allow just over an hour. They have made great use of the cells for exhibits and the boards detailing the history of the town and some of the rogues who inhabited the gaol are very well written. A very interesting and enlightening visit!
Written November 4, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
DREGS
Grafham, UK385 contributions
Sep 2024 • Couples
An interesting stop off on your way somewhere! The town is lovley and the staff here are friendly. Almost no one joined us as we wandered around but it is worth going if it's en route. The double doors are worth noting as one reviewer did - stops escappes in both directions from the looks of things! The covered area with the shirts to dress up in is a nice additon for children at the end - there are a few brass rubbing areas for them otherwise.
Parking was easy in the Waitrose carpark nearby. The history of this much used building is interesting and they do have clean toilets with short queues if any! Don't use the ones in the car park!
Parking was easy in the Waitrose carpark nearby. The history of this much used building is interesting and they do have clean toilets with short queues if any! Don't use the ones in the car park!
Written September 18, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
mrandmrsg626
Manchester, UK152 contributions
May 2024 • Couples
Fascinating place full of the history of the area & the buildings role as a jail. The museum is quite a tardis & is packed with exhibits. The cost was £5 for adults & £4 for over60's & less for children. There are quite a lot of steps in the building.
Written May 11, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
martin b
Portsmouth, UK143 contributions
Apr 2024 • Couples
Nextdoor to a very cosy little tea room 100yards along (under the chemist), additional review separate.
What a lovely little attraction, very helpful voluntary staff, who gave a brief outline of the site. Then it’s just wander at your leisure around the display’s (over two floors).
Took about 1½ hours. One question I never found an answer to & the staff didn’t know either.
Why have all the cells two secure doors, one opening out, the other opening into the cell?
Definitely worth the visit if in area.
What a lovely little attraction, very helpful voluntary staff, who gave a brief outline of the site. Then it’s just wander at your leisure around the display’s (over two floors).
Took about 1½ hours. One question I never found an answer to & the staff didn’t know either.
Why have all the cells two secure doors, one opening out, the other opening into the cell?
Definitely worth the visit if in area.
Written April 15, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
G..
Stoke-on-Trent, UK205 contributions
Jun 2022 • Couples
Beautiful building from the outside..
Wasn't expecting to much as it looks small.
But was very surprised..
The museum goes from dinosaurs to present day in Buckingham..
Also about the jail there..
Very interesting..
And reasonably price..
Worth a look around..
Wasn't expecting to much as it looks small.
But was very surprised..
The museum goes from dinosaurs to present day in Buckingham..
Also about the jail there..
Very interesting..
And reasonably price..
Worth a look around..
Written June 16, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
loobydog
Southampton, UK22 contributions
Feb 2024 • Couples
Chose to come here as a prelude to a trip to the Silverstone Museum and had a great time. So much packed into what looks like a small place from the outside. Staff were very welcoming and knowledgeable. Throughly enjoyed walking around and learning the history. Took lots of photos and purchased a few bits from the giftshop. Wanted to come back in the evening to get a photo of the outside lit up but didn’t get chance. Means we’ll just have to come again :)
Written February 15, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
JenAnnie
Nottingham, UK2,003 contributions
Sep 2023 • Couples
A really pretty old Market Town to visit l had never been before. So much to see & do around thus little town. We went into the beautiful building that used to house the town Gaol. The little museum was fascinating ,a lovely place to visit.
Written October 13, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
TravellingPandaA2B
Leighton Buzzard, UK1,437 contributions
Aug 2015 • Family
This is a really lovely museum, packed full of interesting things, run by people who obviously have a deep love and care for the heritage and history of their local community. Well worth a visit, in my opinion. If you are new to Buckingham, this place can give you a very thorough introduction and help you to interpret everything you will see as you explore the town.
Some of the exhibits that I found most interesting were, a Crucifix left by Catherine of Aragon, Diplodocus vertebrae and Mammoth tusks, a scale model of the Buckingham Station of yesteryear, Saxon coinage and more........ fascinating.
It was also astonishing to find out that Buckingham was the county town of Buckinghamshire for about 800 years, whilst Aylesbury has only been the county town for less than 300 years. The status was transferred after a disastrous fire in Buckingham and has never returned.
The building itself is amazing. It doesn't matter how many times you tell your kids it was the town jail, they will be convinced that they are visiting a Castle.
We happened to be there when there was a Dinosaur themed event taking place. We had a clipboard with some questions, there were dinosaur pictures hidden in the displays, which we had to find and use information from these cards to fill out the questionnaire. It was great fun for all ages. The museum tour ends in what was the former jail's exercise yard. It's now roofed over to provide a large space for events and temporary exhibitions. When we got here we found dinosaur pictures that needed colouring in, a paper character to clip to fit together, and dinosaur toys that needed playing with! It was 50p extra to do the dinosaur event, would have been happy to pay much more, so I left a donation in the collecting case on the way out.
For television viewers that enjoyed "Lark Rise to Candleford" there is a whole room dedicated to the author and the times that she depicted.
One important consideration - Due to the nature of this historic building, it is not suitable for people with severe mobility restrictions.
There are no catering facilities on site. However the location is completely central and there are many cafes, pubs and restaurants all around.
This was a lovely family day out and I would like to highly recommend it to everyone. Also; I sincerely wish that my home town had something of this quality and importance.
Some of the exhibits that I found most interesting were, a Crucifix left by Catherine of Aragon, Diplodocus vertebrae and Mammoth tusks, a scale model of the Buckingham Station of yesteryear, Saxon coinage and more........ fascinating.
It was also astonishing to find out that Buckingham was the county town of Buckinghamshire for about 800 years, whilst Aylesbury has only been the county town for less than 300 years. The status was transferred after a disastrous fire in Buckingham and has never returned.
The building itself is amazing. It doesn't matter how many times you tell your kids it was the town jail, they will be convinced that they are visiting a Castle.
We happened to be there when there was a Dinosaur themed event taking place. We had a clipboard with some questions, there were dinosaur pictures hidden in the displays, which we had to find and use information from these cards to fill out the questionnaire. It was great fun for all ages. The museum tour ends in what was the former jail's exercise yard. It's now roofed over to provide a large space for events and temporary exhibitions. When we got here we found dinosaur pictures that needed colouring in, a paper character to clip to fit together, and dinosaur toys that needed playing with! It was 50p extra to do the dinosaur event, would have been happy to pay much more, so I left a donation in the collecting case on the way out.
For television viewers that enjoyed "Lark Rise to Candleford" there is a whole room dedicated to the author and the times that she depicted.
One important consideration - Due to the nature of this historic building, it is not suitable for people with severe mobility restrictions.
There are no catering facilities on site. However the location is completely central and there are many cafes, pubs and restaurants all around.
This was a lovely family day out and I would like to highly recommend it to everyone. Also; I sincerely wish that my home town had something of this quality and importance.
Written August 27, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jannerbloke
Plymouth, UK13,648 contributions
Jul 2013 • Couples
You might stretch a visit to an hour if you read every text. The building looks well preserved from outside. A lot has been crammed into the inside. It is not just the old lock up and governor's house but every small piece of local memorabilia from the Romans, the Civil War through the World Wars and the laid up mayoral robes are all here. I wasn't looking for a modern interactive or heavily IT approach but the place exudes a 1980s approach to community history and what is here is likely to be of much more interest to locals than visitors. About £3.50 entrance money seemed a bit steep afterwards although I suspect the figure is the lowest they can risk given that the museum seems to be entirely privately funded. Signage could be improved. Inside the front door I was sent into the tourist info and giftie shoppe instead of the ticket issuers room. But all was good natured and it was a not a wasted visit.
Written July 6, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
SwissNomad1
Woodbridge, UK96 contributions
Nov 2012
Good for an hour or so with some interesting background on the Buckinghamshire local area, customs and agriculture.
Written May 23, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Are you doing the ghost stories this year?
Written December 8, 2018
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