Opening Hours
Our museums and gallery are open to the public, free of charge, on Sunday afternoons, 2:30pm to 5pm. The Museum of Eton Life is also open on Saturdays, 2.30pm to 5pm.
Please check What’s On before planning your visit. Museums and/or the special exhibitions gallery may be closed for holidays or due to exceptional circumstances, such as changeovers between special exhibitions.
Our reading room for researchers is open by appointment Mondays to Fridays (except bank holidays). Hours are 9.30-1 and 2-4.30, with a slightly later start on Tuesdays, at 10am. Please email [email protected] to book.
Planning your visit
How to find us
Museums and Galleries
The Museum of Eton Life is in Brewhouse Yard, accessed from Eton High Street via Baldwin’s Shore.
The Natural History Museum and the Museum of Antiquities are on South Meadow Lane, Eton, SL4 6EW.
Access to the Verey Gallery is via the Museum of Eton Life.
College Archives, College Library, Fine & Decorative Art
Visitors with an appointment to visit the Archives, College Library or Fine & Decorative Art collection should report to the Porter’s Lodge, Eton College, Windsor, Berkshire, SL4 6DW, marked on the map of central Eton.
Getting here by train
Eton College is located just outside Windsor and is easily accessible by public transport. We recommend that you walk, cycle or come by public transport if possible.
The closest railway stations to Eton are Windsor & Eton Riverside (10-15 minutes’ walk from the college) and Windsor & Eton Central (15-20 minutes’ walk).
If a taxi is required, it is best to take the train to Slough (there is a taxi rank just outside the station).
Windsor & Eton Riverside station is served by South West Trains. Trains run between London Waterloo and Windsor every 20 to 30 minutes during the week and every hour on Sundays,(travel time approximately 50 minutes from London).
Great Western Railway (GWR) runs a frequent service between London Paddington and Slough (travel time approximately 20 minutes), and this line also serves many other stations further west along the M4 corridor, including Maidenhead and Reading. A branch line connects Slough and Windsor & Eton Central: trains run between the two stations every 20 to 30 minutes during the week and every 30 minutes on Sundays (travel time six minutes).
Getting here by car
Eton College is located just outside Windsor and is easily accessible by public transport. We recommend that you walk, cycle or come by public transport if possible.
For satellite navigation, use post code SL4 6DW (School Office).
Please note: There is no direct access for vehicles over the Thames from Windsor to Eton. Pedestrians can walk across Windsor Bridge up Eton High Street to the college, a distance of about half a mile.
Parking
There are two council-run public car parks close to Eton College.
Eton Court, Eton, SL4 6BY
Meadow Lane, Eton, SL4 6BS
Coaches
Coaches are not allowed access to Eton High Street, and parking in the vicinity of the college is very limited. Those visiting the school by coach should contact their host for details of parking arrangements.
Facilities
Toilets
Toilets, including a wheelchair-accessible toilet, are located in Brewhouse Yard, accessed from Eton High Street via Baldwin’s Shore. Further toilets, including a wheelchair-accessible toilet, are in the Jafar Hall, which houses the Museum of Antiquities. There is a toilet on the first floor of the Natural History Museum. For visitors to College Library and Archives, first-floor toilet facilities are available.
Food and drink
There is drinking water available in the Brewhouse Yard toilet facilities, the Jafar Hall (Museum of Antiquities) and College Library and Archives. There are a number of local cafes and restaurants on Eton High Street, a short walk from the college.
For families
- Baby-changing facilities are located in the toilets in Brewhouse Yard.
- Each museum has trails and activities for children and families. We also run special family events, which appear in What’s On when available.
- There are spaces to store pushchairs at each of the Collections locations. Please ask a member of staff.
Accessibility
We endeavour to open the collections as widely as possible to audiences of all demographics and abilities. We strive, wherever reasonably practicable within the protected historic fabric of Eton College, to allow everyone to access our facilities for the purposes of attending events, participating in engagement activities and visiting our historic collections.
Entrances and level access
- Getting here: Disabled parking is available; please give us 48 hours’ notice. Taxi drop off/pick up can take place at the Burning Bush, which has dropped curbs.
- Eton College Library and Archives, Tower Gallery: the library and archives are on the first floor; the Tower Gallery is on the second floor. There are stairs with a handrail and a staff-operated lift to each floor. Please note this is a small lift and can accommodate small wheelchairs only. In addition, visitors to the Tower Gallery will need to climb a small number of steps in and out of the lift on the second floor
- Museum of Eton Life and Verey Gallery: on ground level; there is a slight step at the entrance; a ramp can be provided and staff are available to assist.
- Natural History Museum: exhibits are located over two floors. Access to the ground floor is by stairs with a handrail and a staff-operated lift. Access to the first floor is only by stairs with a handrail. Please note that as of 19 July 2021, unfortunately this lift is out of order and awaiting repair. Our sincere apologies for inconvenience.
- Museum of Antiquities: on one floor, accessed by stairs with a handrail and a staff-operated lift.
- Austen-Leigh and Millington Drake Galleries (School Hall): There is ramp access to the Austen-Leigh Gallery from pavement level, but there is no permanent ramp access to the Millington Drake Gallery. At certain points during the year, a ramp is installed to provide wheelchair access, details of which will be included in What’s On.
- College Chapel: access is by stairs and by staff-operated lift.
Accessible toilets
- There are accessible toilets in Brewhouse Yard and the Jafar Hall (Museum of Antiquities).
- The nearest Changing Places toilets are at Curve (The), William Street, Slough, SL1 1XY and Tesco Extra, Brunel Way, Slough SL1 1XW 
Guide and assistance dogs
We welcome assistance dogs. Please inform us before visiting if you will be accompanied by one.
Visitors with limited mobility
Wheelchairs: We recommend you bring your own chair. We have a small supply of basic wheelchairs, available from the Porter’s Lodge.
Floor surfaces: This is an historic site with a number of uneven surfaces. Please be aware of:
- uneven surface on School Yard
- smooth and polished flooring in College Chapel
- uneven flagstone flooring in the Museum of Eton Life
- edges of carpets in College Library, Election Hall and Upper School
Seating: Each of the Collections locations offers seating. Some areas may have only a few chairs, stools or benches. If you are visiting and require a chair with arms/back rest, please contact us 48 hours in advance so we can provide a suitable chair for your visit.
Blind or partially-sighted visitors
- Handling sessions and touch-tables may be available for events or in the museums, please contact us in advance of your visit for more information.
- Large-print guides and catalogues are available in each of the museums and exhibitions
- There are some areas of low lighting in College Library, the Museum of Eton Life, and College Chapel.
Deaf or hard-of-hearing visitors
- Transcripts of audio interpretation are available in the Museum of Eton Life.
- Induction-loop systems for hearing-aid users are installed at the Porter’s Lodge, College Chapel and College Hall.
Neuro-diverse visitors
- Please see the Visual Story for Sundays for information regarding quiet spaces, noises to be aware of, and what to expect when visiting the museums.
- There is a range of activity materials and methods in each museum, and we provide a selection of aids including stim/fidget toys, reading rulers and writing tools.