British Museum Private Tour: Discover World Cultures from Egyptian to Roman
4.1
29 Ratings
Greater London
Embark on a private tour of the British Museum and explore the rich world cultures it houses, from Egyptian to Roman. Discover ancient artifacts, including the Rosetta Stone and Egyptian mummies.
Duration: 3 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • The British Museum - The Museum is the largest ethnographic Museum in the world - culture is its theme. It represents not only British culture but it is a collection of World cultures such as the Egyptian, Assyrian, Mesopotamian, Greek, Roman, Pacific Ocean, the Americas and Eastern Cultures etc. This British Museum tour is ideal for a personalised perspective on the collections. Everything is huge here, like the recently refurbished hall called the Great Court. The Museum owns over 9 million objects, of which 2 million are on display. You may not see them all!!! Some of the most important - starting from the very beginning - is the

one million and six hundred thousand year old Hand Ax from Africa; to some of the rarest and best kept

Egyptian statues;

the Rosetta Stone;

the Egyptian Mummies;

the Assyrian Palace’s Freezes with details of their battles quoted in the Bible, and among them

the Lion Hunt; also inluded is

the Mesopotamian 2000 B.C. Standard of Ur - from the small but powerful Mesopotamian town where Abraham was born and lived in those years; to

the Parthenon Sculptures, as well as Roman sculptures like

the Portland Vase; Caesar’s and Augustus’s Iate I century BC busts and

the Anglo Saxon Hoards recently discovered found buried in Britain after the Roman Conquest etc. from 400 AD.

What's Included
  • Private tour
  • Professional art historian guide
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
  • Food and drinks
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
Additional Information

The Museum showcases not just artifacts of British origin, but also hosts a diverse collection from worldwide cultures including Egyptian, Assyrian, Mesopotamian, Greek, Roman, Pacific Ocean, the Americas and Eastern Cultures, among others. The museum’s enormity is manifested in areas such as the recently revamped Great Court. Possessing more than 9 million objects, with 2 million exhibited, it’s impossible to see them all! Among the most paramount artifacts are the Hand Ax from Africa, aged at 1.6 million years; an array of rare Egyptian statues, the Rosetta Stone, Egyptian Mummies, and detailed Assyrian Palace’s Freezes depicting battles mentioned in the Bible. Also featured is the Mesopotamian 2000 BC Standard of Ur - originating from the influential town where Abraham was born, the Parthenon Sculptures as well as Roman sculptures such as the Portland Vase, busts of Caesar and Augustus from the late 1st century BC, and recently excavated Anglo Saxon Hoards.

  • A maximum of 8 people per booking
Location
The British Museum
Great Russell Street
Departure Point: Tour departs from the British Museum Address: Great Russell Street, London, UK Directions: Tour departs from the British Museum: meet in the Great Court by the visitors' desk to the right of the entrance of the British Museum. Dates: Daily Return point: Concludes at the British Museum
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.1
(29 Ratings)
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Meredith_b
Aug 17, 2023
Great guide, super crowded museum - Our guide was Paul who was amazing. He shepherded us through the hi lights of the museum and through the massive amounts of people there. I am not sure I would have stayed more than 10 minutes without his guidance because it was so crowded. He explained a lot of the history and relevance of what he showed us.
Review provided by Viator
Danny_a
May 6, 2023
British Museum - Marguerite shared the highlights of the museum and was very knowledgeable. We enjoyed our day! Lots of fascinating exhibits and a museum you can tour for hours and still not see everything.
Review provided by Viator
Victoralfredo_r
Jan 7, 2020
ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL - Our Spanish guide got sick at the least minute, and the operator was so kind to get us a new guide overnight. Even thought Marguerite is not a Spanish-speaking guide, (she does Italian, German and English) she was wonderful. She was on time, friendly and so very professional. She knows SO much about art and history. She knows the museum to the detail. It was delicious to see it with her. The Brit Museum is something you DO NOT want to miss when in London. Book this tour, with good luck Marguerite will be your tour guide.
Review provided by Viator
Donald_m
Aug 7, 2019
Musing at the Museum - On an August Tuesday afternoon, the museum was very busy with groups as well as families with young children. Our guide, Maria Letts, smoothly helped us navigate among the exhibits, and she increased the volume of her voice to enable us to better hear her over the rather loud background of the excited chatter of others nearby. Her breadth of experience and knowledge, and her gracious manner, enabled us to both identify and more deeply understand the significance of the almost overwhelming number and diversity of exhibits. She also went far out of her way to help me try to access a1782 British Army field map of significance in the American Revolution. This is the third Viator-brokered private tour that my wife and I have engaged this summer. Each, while different, has been an excellent value.
Review provided by Viator
Fern_s
Jun 22, 2019
Best of the British Museum - Maria Rosa was an excellent guide. In 3 hours, we saw all of the highlights and she provided fabulous background information. She was very knowledgeable and friendly. A very worthwhile tour.
Review provided by Viator
Heumanntouch
Apr 23, 2019
Place of wonder - I want to first start off by saying if you plan on visiting the museum this is the way to do it. We got in to the museum before the public and got to take pictures unobstructed by crowds of folks. We took the enlightenment tour and while the guide was a lovely woman she was a bit boring or should I say speaking too long on various subjects. This is a general tour and should be handled in that fashion, while experts are amazing folks they tend to not make good guides or speakers as they rarely discern the temperature of the audience and change their approach and cadence. I did learn a lot but would have wanted more area covered and "facts" or "stories" breifened as to not lose your audience. There was so many things that we missed just in the first section. This is a fantastic institution and excellence should be the order of the day. TIP: After leaving the museum (about 15 mins of opening) the lines were crazy. It was Easter so maybe that was the reason!? They have a queuing area that did seem large and it appeared it was used all the time.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Linda_r
Aug 25, 2023
NO SHOW! - Our tour guide never showed up. Never responded to emails or phone calls! Do not use this if you value your money!
Review provided by Viator
Casey_w
Jun 5, 2023
Terrible - The lady was nice but very tired as she indicated she was on medication. She had to sit often I will be asking for a major discount or refund. Please let me know information to better help you understand
Review provided by Viator
Francisco_d
Jun 30, 2022
Too bad - While the tour guide it was obviously Jameson very knowledgeable it was impossible to understand her or hear. The past is the tour was extremely slow as the guide was not physical able to move at a normal pace. Note the description says tickets included, it the admission to the museum is free!
Review provided by Viator
Mark
Jul 3, 2019
Pay for an audio tour instead!! - This private 4 hour tour for my husband and me was a total waste of time and $$! Our guide was very nice and knowledgeable but she spoke very softly and was very hard to hear and understand most of the time. The museum was crowded so the background noise was quite loud which made it even worse! We covered a lot of the collection, but it was a painful three and a half hours! We would have done much better by going ourselves and using the audio guide for much less money! We have used Viator in the past years in multiple countries and been very satisfied but this current trip to Italy & England we’ve had 3 tours that have had major issues!! Do your homework!!
Review provided by Viator
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up to 8 guests
1 Adult
June 2024
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