News

Best motoring days out

A list of the UK’s top car museums

Ryan Barham

Ryan Barham

Last updated: 04/07/2025

Best motoring days out

Looking for ideas for family days out over the summer holidays and beyond? We’ve got you covered - especially if your family is full of petrolheads.

Whatever your passion for cars, the UK is home to an incredible array of motoring museums and attractions, each offering a fascinating journey through automotive history and innovation.

To help you plan your next adventure, a recent Tempcover study explored some of the UK's top car museums, ranking them based on popularity, value for money, and glowing visitor reviews. Here are our top 5:

Location

Monthly search volume

Google review rating

Adult ticket cost

Child ticket cost

Parking costs

Overall score

Jim Clark Museum, Duns

1,000

4.8

£9.50

£4.50

£0.00

7.41

Whitewebbs Museum of Transport, Enfield

1,900

4.8

£11.50

£5.50

£0.00

7.18

Dundee Museum of Transport, Dundee

1,900

4.6

£8.50

£4.50

£0.00

6.71

British Motor Museum, Gaydon

18,100

4.8

£17

£9

£0.00

6.71

Dover Transport Museum, Dover

1,600

4.8

£12

£6

£0.00

6.59

Map of some of Britain's most popular motoring museums
  • The Jim Clark Motorsport Museum in Duns, Scotland took the top spot based on the above factors. An interactive and exhilarating experience, it has an average of 4.8 stars on Google and costs just £9.50 for adults and £4.50 for children. Telling the story of Jim Clark, one of the greatest racing drivers of all time, the museum will delight race fans with the following:
  1. Racecars
  2. Film and imagery
  3. Trophy room
  • Whitewebbs Museum of Transport in Enfield is a family friendly day out for car enthusiasts that is home to a startling collection of classic vehicles, motorcycles and transport memorabilia - spread across four floors.
  • The Dundee Museum of Transport has a broad range of vehicles from local and national collections, taking visitors on an exciting journey through the city’s history of transport, from its tram network to railway and maritime heritage. This museum also has the cheapest combined ticket price.
  • Featuring ‘the world’s largest collection of historic British cars’, the British Motor Museum covers the rise, fall and revival of the UK’s motor history with plenty of exciting hands-on exhibits.
  • The Dover Transport Museum is home to a jaw-dropping collection of vintage and classic cars. It invites visitors to step back in time and enjoy these vehicles, authentic old-fashioned shop displays, and even a hands-on model railway.

Other days out for car enthusiasts

Do you need more inspiration for car-themed days out? Some of the UK’s popular family attractions house sports cars, classic cars and some you might even recognise from the world of film and TV.

  • Brooklands Museum in Weybridge, Surrey is home to the world’s first race track, a collection of London buses and aircraft including Concorde. It also offers guests the chance to step inside the workshop of Robin Jackson and learn about all about the first British Grand Prix races, which took place at the venue in 1926 and 1927.
  • Lakeland Motor Museum in Backbarrow in The Lake District features a unique collection of 30,000 exhibits including classic cars, motorcycles, scooters and bicycles.
  • Haynes Motor Museum in Sparkford, Somerset claims to be ‘the UK’s largest collection of cars and motorcycles, with over 300 vehicles to explore’. The museum features a 1981 Delorean (we can’t confirm whether it can reach 88mph), a 1915 Horstmann and 1969 Dodge Charger.
  • The National Motor Museum at Beaulieu in the New Forest in Hampshire is a hugely popular attraction that takes you on a journey from the earliest motor carriages to famous F1 cars and land speed record breakers.
  • Based in the idyllic surroundings of Cotswolds village Bourton-on-the-Water, The Cotswold Motoring Museum has a collection of rare vehicles, toys and memorabilia - from vintage motorbikes to 1970s caravans and the 1990s kids’ TV favourite, Brum.

A map of the UK’s car museums

MAP IMAGE WITH PINPOINTS from Design

What’s the best way to get to a car museum near me?

Whether looking for a motor museum in the local area or while you’re travelling the country during the holidays, you’ll always have to consider how you get there. While many are served by public transport, others may be more easily accessible by car.

Away for the week and struggling to fit everything in your car? Borrow a bigger one from a friend or family member with Tempcover. Our temporary car insurance is fast, flexible and fully tailored to your needs. Available from one hour to 28 days, you can get a quote in under 2 minutes.

Sources & Methodology

https://jimclarktrust.com/jim-clark-motorsport-museum/

https://www.whitewebbsmuseum.co.uk/

https://www.dmoft.co.uk/

https://www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk/

https://www.dovertransportmuseum.org.uk/

https://www.brooklandsmuseum.com/

https://www.lakelandmotormuseum.co.uk/

https://www.haynesmuseum.org/

https://www.beaulieu.co.uk/

https://www.cotswoldmotoringmuseum.co.uk

Ticket prices & parking information were collected from individual motoring museum websites, with on the day price selected.

Each metric was given a score out of 10 based on how it compared to others—so the best in each category scored 10, the worst scored 1. These scores were then averaged to create the final rankings.

Frequently Asked Questions

Related tags:

Temporary Car Insurance

Share:

Related articles

We’ve been recognised for our work with plenty of awards


Customer Satisfaction

We also currently hold an ‘Excellent’ rating on Trustpilot with over 30,000 reviews.