See

The University Museum of Zoology

The University Museum of Zoology displays a great range of recent and fossil animals, emphasising the structural diversity and evolutionary relationships among the animal kingdom. The collections were accumulated from 1814 onwards, and include many specimens collected by Charles Darwin. To find the museum, look for the spectacular whale skeleton, hung above the entrance and visible through the archway from Downing Street.

Address: The New Museum Site, Downing Street
Hours: Tue-Sat 10AM-4:30PM, Sun noon-4:30PM, and Bank Holiday Mondays noon-4:30PM
Price: Free
Website: museum.zoo.cam.ac.uk (opens in a new tab)

Directions Suggest a nearby place

Listing from Wikivoyage: Cambridge, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Updated 28 Sept 2026. Something wrong? Tell us.

Close by

See
Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology
The museum contains large and important collections of archaeological and anthropological material from all parts of the world. The archaeological collections from all periods include significant collections from Palaeolithic Europe, Asia and Africa; Precolumbian Central and South America; early civilizations of the Mediterranean; and British archaeology. The world-renowned anthropological collections include important collections from the South Seas, West Africa and the Northwest Coast of North America; historic collections from the 18th century; and extensive photographic collections from the 19th and 20th centuries.
Tue-Sun 2PM-4:30PM; closed at Christmas and Easter and on most public holidays; possible extended summer opening - please telephone or email for detailsFree
See
The Whipple Museum of the History of Science
The Whipple Museum is a pre-eminent collection of scientific instruments and models, dating from the Middle Ages to the present. Included in this outstanding collection are microscopes and telescopes, sundials, early slide rules, pocket electronic calculators, laboratory equipment and teaching and demonstration apparatus. Visitors are advised to check beforehand by contacting the museum if you have special access requirements.
Mon-Fri 12:30PM-4:30PM; closed at weekends (ex third Sat per month), bank holidays and occasionally over the Christmas periodFree
See
The Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences
One of the university's many hidden treasures, and actually its oldest museum, the Sedgwick is packed full of fossils with more than 1 million in its collection. These range from the earliest forms of life from more than 3000 million years ago, to the wildlife that roamed the Fens less than 150,000 years ago. Displays include a gallery of minerals and gemstones, the world's largest spider, rocks collected by Charles Darwin on the 'Voyage of the Beagle', dinosaurs from the Jurassic and Triassic, and fossils from the local area including a hippopotamus from the nearby Barrington gravel pits. The museum organises many activities, so it's always a good idea to check its website..
Mon-Fri 10AM-1PM and 2PM-5PM; Sat 10AM-4PM; closed on Bank HolidaysAdmission free
Eat
Trockel, Ulmann & Freunde
13 Pembroke St