Best & Cool Science and Space Museums in Virginia Water

"Founded in 1857, the Science Museum is one of London’s main tourist attractions. Hosting a collection of over 300,000 items, the museum also features a dedicated library and an IMAX 3D Cinema showing science and nature documentaries. It’s free, and offers loads of interactive exhibits and fascinating history, including the famous 'Puffing Billy', the oldest surviving steam locomotive, dating from 1813-14."

"From the future of space travel to asking that difficult question: "who am I?", the Science Museum makes your brain perform Olympic-standard mental gymnastics. See, touch and experience the major scientific advances of the last 300 years; and don't forget the awesome Imax cinema. Some exhibitions require tickets."

"Now in its 53nd year, this unmissable exhibition looks at everything from elephants in their natural habitat to urban foxes peering over fences, and is a sheer delight from start to finish. Date: until 10th September"

"Kings College London only recently opened this permanent site for the Science Gallery, a dedicated space for showing contemporary artwork that explores scientific questions. Its inaugural exhibition is all about addiction, called Hooked, and previous shows in its travelling days have investigated blood, food and orifices. Think of it as looking at science through the eyes of an artist."

"Science Gallery London is an art-science-and-health inspired gallery in London. The free museum has been open since 2018 in London Bridge after a series of pop-up exhibits across London. The gallery aims to bring together scientists, artists, and communities with three themed seasons every year."

": Row upon row of glass jars, with everything from tiny organisms, to strange two-headed beasts, to examples of gross diseases, this museum can be very creepy at times, especially when it’s quiet. However, it’s so much more than the freakshow that it is sometimes made out to be, offering a unique insight into the history of surgery and advances in modern medicine. The next few months are your last chance to see the museum before it closes in 2017 for refurbishment, so get going!"

"Situated in North London, Highgate Wood is one of the four ancient woods of the London Borough of Haringey (together with Queen’s Wood, Coldfall Wood and Bluebell Wood). Containing an impressive variety of trees and shrub species, the Highgate Wood is the home for many foxes, grey squirrels, as well as multiple species of birds, bats, butterflies and spiders. Besides the fact that it was included among the eight Green Heritage Sites in London, Highgate Wood also attracts visitors with its recreational facilities like children playgrounds, cafés, walking trails and sporting fields."

"Cafe Monico is 140 years old, talk about a London classic and a must go-to if you're in the capital. The restaurant specialises in a mix of French and Italian gastronomy (reads: the most renowned in the world), so you'll certainly be eating well. Why is it the perfect romantic restaurant?"

"London’s most famous Italian restaurant is, as the name suggests, situated alongside the Thames. Its riverside terrace is one of the most desirable places to eat outside in London during the warmer months, and especially now, as London tentatively emerges from lockdown. A reservation is incredibly hard to come by, but if you’re lucky enough to get a table, expect meticulously sourced and prepared Italian food that long ago gained legendary status."

"An iconic pillar of Italian dining in London, The River Café in Hammersmith is as revered today as when Ruth Rogers and the late Rose Gray opened its doors more than 30 years ago. The menu, as it has always done, sings to the tune of the seasons and shows off the finest ingredients. Expect risotto with winter greens, dover sole whole roasted in the hot pink wood oven or buffalo ricotta-stuffed ravioli drenched in marjoram butter."

"Not to be confused with the wallet-beating Italian restaurant, this particular River Cafe is an old school caff located right opposite Putney Bridge tube. It’s a stunner inside, with blue and white tiles, creaking plywood wall panels, and formica tables, largely unchanged since the 1960s. There are plenty of nods to the Italian owners too, with walls covered in Italian football flags and posters."