Tudor House and Garden

Tudor House and Garden

Tudor House and Garden
4.5
Speciality MuseumsHistoric SitesHistory Museums
10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
Tudor House gives a unique and atmospheric insight into the lives and times of both its residents through the years, and of Southampton itself. It appeals to visitors of all ages and interests, who find the family-friendly activities, interactive technology and fascinating displays a winning combination.
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  • Phil C
    Fareham, United Kingdom103 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Excellent museum with friendly and knowledgeable guides
    Been meaning to visit for ages and was not disappointed. The tour of the house starts in the banqueting hall with an unusual but very slick automated presentation. Visitors then take a tour around the garden and then follow a rambling route once back into the house. Hand held audio guides are available if you wish, but there are plenty of explanatory panels as you go round. Some parts are manned by volunteer guides, who are informative and entertaining. There is wheelchair access around the house. The history of the house is just extraordinary, encompassing everything from the mediaeval period to the present day. The museum looks to strike a fine balance of being both interesting to children and adults, and in this, I would say it succeeds in spades. The people manning the reception area couldn’t have been more friendly and are clearly invested in the place. My thanks to Tim, Sorrell and their colleagues for helping make this such an enjoyable visit. Excellent value at £7 a ticket (adult). Allow 1 – 2 hours for your visit. Highly recommended.
    Visited January 2024
    Travelled solo
    Written 2 January 2024
  • Joël L
    England, United Kingdom11 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    My home garden
    Southampton is my hometown and how could I not write a review for this. I just started writing reviews from today and have been writing everywhere that I went to. I am in love with Tudor Garden. I always go whenever I feel bored, too happy, or just sad. I was happy when I went with my girlfriend over there. It's a must visit when you're in Southampton.
    Visited December 2023
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 21 January 2024
  • Mark N
    Southampton, United Kingdom6 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Well worth spending an hour exploring
    My first visit to Tudor House for many years and I was impressed with how much it has been improved. I particularly enjoyed the introductory presentation from the ‘ghosts’ of former residents in the banqueting hall which was really engaging. My wife and I used the audio tours to guide us round the museum and they provided us with a wealth of information about the rooms and garden.
    Visited February 2024
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 7 February 2024
  • Debora
    4 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Attractive & interesting features in the house. Lovely staff.
    The Tudor House was a great immersive inside. I wanted to write a review to state that they had the best story boards I have seen because many of them are lenticular images. And they had lenticular postcards in the shop. Such a great idea.
    Visited April 2024
    Travelled solo
    Written 23 April 2024
  • 288foodlover
    Ajax, Canada10 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A Great Museum and Garden
    This Museum and Garden was a wonderful place to tour. It's not big but full of interesting facts and charm. The staff were great. Friendly, helpful and professional. Special thanks to Tim who made exceptional efforts in answering all our questions. He brought life and humour to the history of not only Southampton but England as well. Ask for him - you won't be disappointed!
    Visited May 2024
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 31 May 2024
  • Markmark1963
    Poole, United Kingdom340 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    The personal touch.
    We arrived early morning to visit the museum and gardens. Tim showed us around the whole site. He was extremely knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the former owners and Southampton’s mercantile history. We really appreciated the fact that all the staff were so friendly and welcoming. We thoroughly recommend visiting. Many thanks Tim.
    Visited June 2024
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 5 July 2024
  • coyotebanjo
    186 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Excellent small Tudor-era house museum
    Excellent small Tudor-era house museum. Friendly and outgoing staff. Some nice interpretative stuff with electronic films and sound installations. There is a pleasant formal garden and the site provides a good sense of Southampton's working-class history.
    Visited July 2024
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 10 July 2024
  • MrsPiket
    Rotterdam, The Netherlands3,919 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    A charming 15th century house and knot garden
    The Tudor House dates from A.D. 1491 and is located next to the medieval city wall, apposite St. Michael church. The House was minor damaged in the 1940 Blitz. The museum closed in 2002 for extensieve renovations. It opened again in 2012. There is a nice garden and a café. The garden is a recreation of a Tudor knot garden. At the side of the city wall there is an early 19th century naval gun. In the café you can have your coffee or tea, inside or at the small terrace in the garden. Recommended.
    Visited August 2024
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 9 August 2024
  • Tipps561
    Wellington, United Kingdom10 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Fascinating museum with great staff and a lovely cafe & little garden
    Not visited Tudor House Museum since I was a schoolgirl in Southampton in the early 1970s so was very interested to return with a friend who lives in the city and who hadn't been before. It's a great place to go, with a short & quirky audiovisual introduction giving a potted history of the much altered house over its centuries of existence and near misses with demolition. It has a lovely cafe looking out onto the stunning little knot garden, an oasis of calm in the middle of the old town with friendly staff. Particular thanks to Malcolm for the time he happily spent sharing his memories of the city back in the 1960s & 70s which is when I fondly recall it as a port bristling with majestic ocean liners, the container docks were only just being built & Saints were still playing at The Dell! Thank you so much for caring for this precious building, it was a fascinating afternoon out.
    Visited August 2024
    Travelled with friends
    Written 17 August 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

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4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles685 reviews
Excellent
362
Very good
234
Average
66
Poor
16
Terrible
7

diego
25 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020
The old house is well maintained and it has got many stories and war time hide outs, ammunition storage point etc. The entrance fee is minimal. The backyard is done creatively, but the garden part requires a little more maintenance. A small souvenir shop is at the ground floor.
Written 19 October 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jill G
Southampton, UK23 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2022
This is a review for the cafe in Tudor House. Being locals to the area and having our grandsons with us we wanted a lunch stop. In the past we had done the museum so no entry fee to just eat in the cafe. What a super find. Good choices on the menu of hot & cold lunches, good seating either inside or out in the peaceful garden. Exceptional staff working hard & very professional.
Written 28 July 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Smokeyham
Washington262 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2024 • Couples
I found this attraction to be a bit disappointing. The house seeks to display over 800 years of history but it does so in a very disjointed manner.

You start with an overview provided by “ghosts” and a “time warper” in an audio visual show. There wasn’t sufficient room on the two benches around the edge of the room, so I ended up sitting on the floor for the 10-minute show. An audio tour/handset is included in the price of admission and was interesting, but frustrating in that it usually took three entries in order to get the stations to play on the handset.

You are then directed out to the gardens, which are well laid out and interesting. Returning to the house after the gardens there are a lot of display cabinets in the various rooms, but little else. There is no logical flow to the tour as you jump back and forth between time periods.

The “ghosts” provide some commentary during the handset narration, but I found this to be more distracting than useful. It would have been better if the rooms had more furniture and other displays from the various periods to show what life was like. Some form of connection between the rooms would have been very helpful.

We visited on a cool/wet day in April, with relatively few people which would be my preference. On a busy summer day I think this would not be much fun.
Written 27 April 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

lyanoli
chandlers ford33 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2023 • Friends
We visited The Tudor House and Gardens today for the first time (even though weve lived locally for 50 years!).
It is incredibly good value at £6 pp and we were there for 1.5 hours. The whole interactive experience is fantastic with an incredibly atmospheric start to the self led tour in the Great Hall, with clever visuals and audio which takes you right back in time. The house is so much bigger than i expected and the audio guide gives wonderful information as you explore the various rooms, taking you from the building's medieval history up to the present. The carefully restored building shows glimpses of the its past around every corner from original beams to carvings in the walls.
I was intrigued to learn about 'King John's Palace', which i had no idea was there, and i can't wait to come back in the summer and see the stunning garden in full bloom.
This place is a must if you're visiting Southampton and interested in history!
Written 5 March 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Michael B
Bellflower, CA24,492 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2019
Old timber-framed building from the late 15th Century, with a lovely garden and even older Norman house behind. Opposite Saint Michael Church, and close to the Dancing man Pub. This was Southampton’s first museum and opened in 1912. Besides the Tudor House exhibits there is an interesting Tudor Knot Garden to explore and Norman ruins. Open every day of the week except Fridays, it’s just a five-minute walk away from Southampton City cruise terminal, or a £1 bus it’s ticket from the train station to Town Quay, then a short walk down Bugle Street. The staff were very helpful and took their time to tell is about the museum.

TIP: Go early then walk down to the Dancing man Pub for lunch.
Thanks for reading. would appreciate a thumbs up if you’ve found this helpful.
Written 23 November 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Nick K
4 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2022
A wonderful museum that capture life in Southampton from Tudor times up till WWII. The audio guide was great and the the walking tour was well laid out. The remains of King John's palace really takes you back in time (they believed in stout walls and cannons for security) and the remaining architecture captures the changes in the house (and the peoples lives) over time. There are docents in a few of the rooms, and Mary on the upper floor was outstanding. As first time visitors to the Southampton area she explained not only the house but gave us a great review of what to see and do in Southampton. Well worth the time to visit.
Written 9 January 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Darren S
Holton Le Clay, UK909 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2023 • Couples
Decided to take a look here whilst staying in Southampton before a cruise. It killed a few hours and for £7 was in our opinion worth it to get the history behind the house and also the history of the city. We called in on a concession ticket so myself as the carer didn't pay but my partner does. The 1st part of the tour is well put together and gets you in the mood to take a good look around this Building. Good presentation well put together. Nice on site cafe with Coffee, Tea, Soft Drinks, and beers ,wines at good prices. Nice gardens to take lunch in and overall a nice place to visit with Electronic Guide books to use free of charge and clear to understand and use. We would come again to take more info in for a more in depth tour.
Written 1 October 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Sandra S
9 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2022
Very interesting well worth a visit . Garden lovely. Cafe was good, staff friendly and cheerful. The audio was very helpful as you went into different rooms informing you about the people who lived there and their occupations at the time.
Written 25 August 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Lucy T
Isle of Wight, UK1,526 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2022 • Couples
We had a very enjoyable time here. When you first enter, you listen to a pre-show about the history of the house, which was very interesting and then move through to the garden and cafe which sells drinks, cakes and ice cream, so we sat a while and enjoyed refreshments. Then it’s the museum with plenty to see and read. The creaky floorboards definitely add to the history. Great value for money, highly recommend!
Written 27 August 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

tony t
9 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2022 • Solo
I do not like leaving negative reviews but was very disappointed by my visit. For me, what the Victoria's did not wreck with over zealous 'restoration', the latest 21st century vandals have completed. How they have got away with this level of intervention in what is presumably a listed building is beyond me. For the video to then boast about the contemporary cafe and miles of cable installed just rubbed salt in the wound. I might just as well have visited a theme park with creaky floorboards. Perhaps this is what visitors expect now but as someone who lives in an old house (admitedly only 300 years old) it felt that the house was just a pastiche.
Written 30 June 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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TUDOR HOUSE AND GARDEN (2024) All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

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