Hull runs its museums on a simple principle: they are all free. That includes an entire Museum Quarter of them within a couple of streets of each other, which is unusually convenient when you are herding children.
The big news is that Hull Maritime Museum reopened on 8 August 2026 after a £20.4m transformation, with around fifty per cent more objects on display. Entry is free, but it is running timed tickets and the opening weeks booked up fast, so book ahead.
Free things to do in Hull with children
- Hull Maritime Museum — Reopened in August 2026 after a major refurbishment. Whales, whaling, trawlers and the sea. Free, but check whether you need to book a timed slot.
- Streetlife Museum — Two hundred years of transport, including a recreated street you walk down and vehicles children can climb into. Free, and the reliable favourite.
- Hull and East Riding Museum — Iron Age chariots, a Roman mosaic and a woolly mammoth. Free.
- Wilberforce House — The birthplace of William Wilberforce and a serious museum on the transatlantic slave trade and abolition. Free. Better suited to older children.
- East Park — A splash boat, an animal education centre and a large lake. Free.
Worth paying for
Not free, but cheap enough to be worth it, and all reachable without a car:
- The Deep — One of the country's better aquariums, with sharks and penguins. It charges, but tickets convert to an annual pass.
- The Humber Bridge walk — Free to walk across, and it is a very long way down.
Getting to Hull by train
Hull Paragon Interchange puts the station, the buses and the city centre in one building, and the Museum Quarter is a walk of a few minutes.
Going by train also means nobody has to find a parking space, and children can move about, look out of the window and eat crisps for the whole journey.
Click here to book train tickets to Hull
Opening hours, admission prices and booking requirements change, and some attractions close on certain days or for refurbishment. Always check the attraction’s own website before you set off. This page was written in August 2026.
Disclosure: the train ticket link on this page is an affiliate link. If you book through it I may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
