Time Out shine a spotlight on Wales’ Best Museum 2026

Nation Cymru staff

A museum which offers visitors a chance to step back in time and head underground has been named Wales’ best in a coveted rundown of the best in the UK by Time Out.

Ranking at number 7 overall, Big Pit, Blaenavon takes the crown as the best in Wales, who write that far from just places to hide from grim weather, Britain’s greatest museums tell stories, explore histories and get you fascinated by stuff you’d never previously spared a thought for.

According to Time Out, you’ll find countless of the cultural institutions peppered throughout our UK city guides, whether that’s a mighty, storeyed national behemoth or an adorably niche local exhibition space. Even better, plenty of those museums are totally free to visit (and they remain so, despite suggestions of change).

But which British museums are most essential to visit this year? Which ones are having a moment, basking in a refurb, putting on the most tantalising exhibitions? They’ve rounded up the most unmissable, all chosen by Time Out UK editors who’ve recently visited them.

Best in show for Wales, at number 7, is of course Big Pit – a retired colliery turned museum on a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Blaenavon.

Why go? They ask: “Coal mining shaped Welsh life for decades and nowhere can you appreciate that more than at Big Pit. Above ground, the pithead baths building reveals the story of local mining communities, their gruelling daily routines, industry disasters and the role of trade unions, while the mining galleries showcase all sorts of hefty (and rather threatening) digging equipment. But Big Pit’s real highlight is its underground tour. Kitted in a helmet, cap lamp, belt, battery and ‘self rescuer’ (the very same equipment worn by miners), visitors board the pit cage and descend 300 feet into the mineshaft. There, a former miner guides you around the dark meandering tunnels, talking you through the mining process, pointing out the original engine houses and stables that are still down there and sharing their own stories of working in the pit”

In a new deep-dive into the museum, Time Out’s Amy Houghton writes: “There was a time when Wales was the largest coal exporter in the world, when one third of all coal globally was mined in the Welsh Valleys. Those mining days are long gone, but signs of them can be seen all over the region – not least in the small town and UNESCO World Heritage site of Blaenavon where you’ll find the Big Pit National Coal Museum, one of Time Out’s best museums in the UK for 2026.

“Big Pit was a big working coal mine from 1880 until 1980. Three years after it shut down operations, it reopened as a museum with former miners returning as visitor guides. In the decades since, it has become on of Wales’ top attractions.

“Above ground, the pithead baths building is where miners would go to clean off coal dust and change into clean clothes before going home. Now, they’re home to four exhibition spaces that reveal the story of local mining communities, their gruelling daily routines, industry disasters and the role of trade unions.

“Next door, the mining galleries have a multi-media presentation telling the story of how the Welsh mining industry evolved and house huge machinery from across the decades, from an undercutting machine (a huge chainsaw) from the 1950s to a ‘power loading’ coal face from the 1970s. There are also various smaller buildings and bits of machinery dotted across the site to explore, such as the mortar mill, the winding engine house and the outhouse where explosives were kept.”

“However, the pièce de résistance at Big Pit is its underground tour. Kitted in a helmet, cap lamp, belt, battery and ‘self rescuer’ (the very same equipment worn by miners), the tour takes visitors 300 feet below ground into the mineshaft. There, an ex-miner takes you on a 50-minute walk around the subterranean coal faces, engine houses and stables, explaining the mining process and sharing their own stories of working in the pit. It’s a fascinating and intimate deep dive (literally) into the industry that shaped so much of Wales as we know it today.”

Big Pit National Coal Museum is free entry but visitors usually have to pay £5 for the underground tour, but visitors to Big Pit National Coal Museum will be able to experience the Underground Tour for free through the whole of the school summer holidays this year, as part of ‘Haf o Hwyl’, a series of accessible fun and family friendly activities planned at the Museum.

The Underground Tour at Big Pit takes visitors 300ft underground to the coal face with an expert guide, many of whom either themselves worked or had family members work as a coal miner. The tour, which attracts visitors from around the world, offers visitors a unique insight into what it was like for the thousands of people who worked underground in the coal fields of south Wales.

As with all Amgueddfa Cymru museums, entry to Big Pit is free. A charging trial for the Underground Tour has been in place since last year. The free entry period over the summer holidays means that families and visitors to Big Pit will be able to enjoy the guided Underground Tour for free, as well as the range of other free displays and buildings at Big Pit such as the Pithead Baths, King Coal: The Mining Experience, and historic colliery buildings.

Brian Lewis, Head of Big Pit National Coal Museum said: “Whether you’re a regular visitor or this is your first visit to us, Big Pit is a great day out and has plenty of activities and events taking place this summer for everyone to enjoy.

“Our world-famous Underground Tour is a big hit with visitors, so we’re delighted to be able to offer free entry for the tour over the summer holidays. School visits are free throughout the year, and we offer several free community weekends too.

“We’re looking forward to welcoming as many visitors and families as possible over the summer to experience this unique part of Wales’ industrial history.”

Alongside the free Underground Tours, a VIB (Very Important Bear) will be visiting Big Pit throughout the summer holidays – resident bear Butty, who loves a selfie. There will also be creative hands-on sessions exploring the hobbies and sports of mining communities, and special activities such as crafts and games themed around ‘Miners’ Fortnight’, inspired by the two weeks’ holiday miners would receive each summer.

In the first of her official visits to all seven of Wales’ national museums, Cabinet Minister for Culture and Sport, Heledd Fychan is visiting Big Pit today [Thursday 2 July].

Welcoming the news of the free Underground Tours and summer activities for families at Big Pit, the Cabinet Minister said: “Big Pit is one of Wales’ most treasured cultural sites and it is fantastic that even more families and visitors will be able to experience the world-famous Underground Tour this summer, and for free. This supports our priority as a government that everyone in Wales should have access to the arts and our rich cultural heritage.

“The history of our coalfield communities are an important part of our national story, and Big Pit tells those stories with real power and authenticity. I’d encourage everyone to make the most of this opportunity and visit Big Pit this summer – there really is something for all the family to enjoy.”

Free Underground Tours will be available between 18 July – 1 September. These are bookable on the day, subject to availability. For those wishing to guarantee a tour and a specified time slot, Job-a-Knock tickets are available to purchase in advance. These are £8 each, and £7 for children.

More information on Big Pit’s summer events and activities, and details for booking the Underground Tour are available at museum.wales/BigPit