Sherlock Holmes museum: how to get to 221B and what to see inside

In central London there is a door that gets photographed more often than many a museum. A fictional person lives behind it.

It is the house at 221B Baker Street. Holmes never had a real address in London. The number was assigned later, with permission from Westminster City Council (how the address came about). The house itself was built in 1815 and stands between buildings 237 and 241 (building data).

The museum occupies four floors of a Victorian house. An adult ticket costs £19, a child ticket £14, and sales are by time slot (ticket prices). Below are the opening hours, a floor-by-floor plan, and the route from the Tube. We also put together what to see nearby and which tickets to buy in advance.

Ad: this article contains affiliate links. We earn a commission if you book through them, at no extra cost to you.

History of the house on Baker Street

💡 In short:

• The museum operates in an 1815 house at 221B Baker Street.
• Tickets are sold for a specific time slot; the average visit takes 30-45 minutes.
• Opening hours were checked on the official website, prices on the museum's online ticket office, data as of 09/2026.

Baker Street became famous thanks to Conan Doyle's stories. The first Holmes stories came out at the end of the 19th century. The writer himself invented the address 221B, and no such number existed in real London at the time (the Conan Doyle canon).

The number 221 appeared only in 1934, when Baker Street was extended. It fell within the block of houses 219-229, which was occupied by Abbey National bank. Bank employees received sacks of letters addressed to Mr. Holmes (museum history). The bank even kept a dedicated position for answering such letters.

The museum opened in 1990 in the four-story house at 239, one of the few Victorian buildings on the street (the first Holmes museum). After that, the museum and Abbey National argued for a long time over the right to the iconic address. Number 221B at house 239 was granted later, with permission from Westminster City Council. That is why the number on the facade stands out from the rest of the street numbering.

Interior of the Sherlock Holmes house

The 1815 house is itself an architectural landmark of London. A round memorial plaque on the facade states that consulting detective Sherlock Holmes lived here from 1881 to 1904 (house description). Inside, the museum is furnished with authentic furniture and household items from the second half of the 19th century.

A constable stands at the entrance, and guests are greeted by the lady of the house, Mrs. Hudson. The setting matches the descriptions from the books. Seventeen creaky steps lead up to the rooms of Holmes and Dr. Watson (exhibit description). Every item on display is tied to the detective's work: personal belongings, card indexes, books, tools.

The apartments look lived in. It feels as if Holmes might walk out at any moment with his pipe and notebook. You can sit in the detective's armchair and take a photo as a keepsake.

What to see: four floors of the museum

The exhibition occupies all four floors of the house. The rooms are small, and each floor shows its own layer of history: daily life, work, surroundings, and the characters from the books.

First floor exhibition

The first floor is taken up by the souvenir shop, and you cannot miss it. This is where entrance tickets and Holmes-themed memorabilia are sold: books, caps, pipes, T-shirts, ceramics, keychains. The walls feature photographs of actors who played the detective in various screen adaptations. Frames from classic British Holmes productions hold a place of honor.

Second floor exhibition

The second floor holds the museum's main stage. This is where the sitting room with the fireplace is located, where Holmes and Watson received guests. The small room with wide windows is furnished with soft armchairs and a sofa. On the table lie the detective's and his assistant's hats, a magnifying glass, and a smoking pipe.

The walls with red wallpaper are decorated with paintings and Queen Victoria's monogram "VR," shot into the wall with revolver bullets. A set table stands in the corner. The sitting room also served as a study, so you will see a chemistry lab with a microscope, test tubes, and vials, volumes of books, stacks of letters and newspapers, candelabras, figurines, and a Turkish slipper for tobacco. A bearskin lies on the floor.

A violin stands by the fireplace. Playing it helped Holmes build logical chains of reasoning. In the bedroom adjoining the study, portraits of famous criminals of England hang on the walls. On the bed lie travel bags with a set of lockpicks, gloves, masks, and makeup.

Third floor exhibition

The third floor is given over to the rooms of Dr. Watson and Mrs. Hudson. Watson's study tells the story of its occupant. The bright apartments hold medical books, a blood pressure monitor, a collection of canes, a revolver, stuffed animals, and a handwritten diary about Holmes's adventures.

The landlady's quarters are clean and tidy. A bronze bust of Sherlock stands here, along with display tables holding things Mrs. Hudson kept as mementos of her tenant. The exhibition is tied to the investigations: knives, poisoned blow darts, masks, a book with a hidden compartment for a pistol, a bowl with part of a human hand, bones, vials of poison.

Nearby are the landlady's personal items: shoes, a shoe dryer, ceramic figurines, candlesticks, a basket with thread. On the writing desk lies a guest book where you can leave a note.

Fourth floor exhibition

Two rooms on the fourth floor are occupied by wax figures of the book characters. The figures depict scenes from different stories. On the wall hangs the enormous head of the Hound of the Baskervilles, like a hunting trophy.

Recognizable characters are arranged around the perimeter. In the stooped man with the evil gaze you recognize Professor Moriarty, the head of London's criminal underworld. At a table, the red-haired pawnbroker Wilson is copying the Encyclopaedia Britannica. On the floor sits the reporter St. Clair, who moonlighted as a professional beggar. The stepfather from "The Speckled Band" is dying from the bite of a swamp adder. In the corner, a desperate lady fires a pistol at a blackmailer.

Tickets and opening hours

The museum is open daily from 9:30 AM to 6:00 PM, closed only on December 24. Prices verified on 09/14/2026 at the museum ticket office as of 09/2026.

A £1 booking fee is added to every ticket (booking terms). Tickets are sold for a specific time slot, and arriving late can cost you your ticket. It is best to book in advance, especially on weekends (Sherlock Holmes Museum tickets).

You can stay in the museum until closing time. Photography and video are allowed. The museum is small, so on weekends a queue forms at the entrance. The narrow staircase and small rooms are not designed for large groups, and at peak times you walk through in single file.

What else to see nearby

Madame Tussauds is on Marylebone Road, about 400 m from 221B (on the map). Book your wax museum ticket in advance, the entrance lines are long (Madame Tussauds tickets).

© Citizen59 · CC BY-SAPhoto: Citizen59, CC BY-SA (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/), Wikimedia Commons

Regent's Park starts just beyond it. From the museum to the south entrance is about a 10-minute walk (on the map). In summer, it is a good place to end the day on the grass after the stuffy rooms of the museum.

Baker Street itself, with its boutiques and cafes, runs right next to the museum. A bronze statue of Holmes stands outside the tube station exit, worth a look before or after your visit.

How to get to the museum

The museum is at 221B Baker Street, in the Marylebone area. From Baker Street tube station it is about a minute's walk, the exit leads straight to the house (visit plan). The Bakerloo, Jubilee, Circle, Metropolitan and Hammersmith & City lines all pass through the station.

Buses 13, 74, 189 and 274 stop a few steps from the entrance. Routes 18, 27, 30, 113, 205 and 453 run along Marylebone Road nearby (routes and station).

Sherlock Holmes Museum on the map

⁉️🤔 Frequently asked questions

Do I need to buy tickets in advance?

Yes, it's better to book ahead. The museum admits visitors by time slots, and on weekends the available windows fill up quickly. Online booking costs the same as a ticket on site, plus a per-person fee.

How long does a visit take?

An average visit takes 30-45 minutes (how long the visit lasts). It's self-guided, no guide needed. Nobody will rush you out: you can stay until the museum closes.

Can I take photos inside?

Yes, photos and videos are allowed in the museum. Visitors often sit in Holmes's armchair and take pictures of each other by the fireplace. A tripod and flash get in the way of other guests in the narrow rooms, so bring a regular camera or phone.

Are there tickets for children?

A child ticket for ages 6-15 costs £14, children under 6 enter free (prices and categories). A child under 6 is still added to the booking, but they don't need a separate seat.

How to get there from Baker Street tube station?

The museum is about a minute's walk from the station (how to walk from the tube). The station exit leads straight onto Baker Street.

In short: what to book

From here the choice is simple, and it depends on who you're traveling with and how much time you have.

• If you only want the museum: take a morning slot on a weekday, the line is shorter and the rooms are less crowded.
• If you're going with kids: add Madame Tussauds, 400 m away (on the map) from the house.
• If you want to see the city from above: get a ticket for the Coca-Cola London Eye.

A ticket to the Sherlock Holmes Museum costs less than twenty pounds. Check current prices and slots on the booking page.