Dorset Museum & Art Gallery

This is a very impressive local museum with many top quality display areas but, for me, the visit was spoiled by the arcane charging system. We live 170 miles from Dorchester and were visiting solely to see the museum's current entertaining and informative Jane Austen exhibition. At the cash desk, I was frankly shocked to find that this would cost us £15 each. As avid museum visitors, we found such a charge for a local museum, albeit a rather good one, pretty extraordinary. I was already feeling grumpy when the very pleasant young woman at the till insisted that I must give my full name and email before I could have a ticket. I suggested that it was very unusual for museums to demand personal details before selling a ticket but she explained, very politely, that she could not issue a ticket without these. This left me totally bemused until I later received an email with a link allowing me to claim an annual museum pass. Neither of us had seen any obvious indication at the desk that even the casual visitor had to buy an annual pass to get in, and this was not explained by the assistant. Living so far away, we would certainly not be visiting again within a year and, in my opinion and based on my experience of local museums, £15 is an eyewateringly high price for a single entry. The most liberal local authorities offer free entry, as does my home town of Bedford to its equally impressive Higgins museum and gallery. Some charge £3 to £6 or £7. I would associate £15 with a major collection, which, lovely though it is, this is not

A fantastic evening Jane Austin event with a four course meal & museum tour cost £40. Optional Drinks flight £35. Petit four & coffee extra. We were both very surprised at the size of the museum., which had a large range of different artifacts and pieces of art. Gainsborough, Elizabeth Frink 😮. Mosaics, axes etc . The Jane Austin area was compact but interesting also had 2 areas for trying on costumes which everyone seemed to have a laugh & enjoy. We spend a good hour on our museum tour but only really scratched the surface as so much to see & read. Our tour guide was lovely, passionate & very informative. The food for the evening was amazing 😋. Staff were all very personable and professional. There are more events like this later in the year and We would highly recommend them.

They have the original Henry Moule Earth Closet among their extensive collection of things. Plus incredibly accessible bathrooms for all bodies and needs. Awesome!

Spent the day in Dorchester and explored the Dorset Museum & Art Gallery - truly fantastic! This museum is one of the best we've visited, with four floors of surprises around every corner…

Being a history lover (weirdly it bored me at school 55-60yrs ago) I enjoyed my couple of hours here , especially the Roman mosaics, Victorian hall and the library. The building itself is also worth a second look especially the windows. The cafe looked nice but I didn't use it so can't comment , likewise the toilets.

Very disappointed that it closes at 17:00 hours yet at 16:10 they refused to let me enter because I was 10 minutes late and they needed to close the rooms. Also the cafe doors were locked. So you don’t close at 5:00, you close as soon as the last person leaves as long as it is before closure time. The woman just said come back tomorrow. I won’t bother!! Be aware that traffic getting in to and out of Dorchester is horrendous. I saw the beautiful church next door and got to wander around the local shops. Everyone else I met was friendly and helpful. Shame.

Great museum, lots of Jurassic coast fossils and sea dinosaurs. A fantastic collection of archaeological finds from local locations, Bronze and Iron Age, Roman and Medieval. Human skeletons and fascinating local history including Roman mosaics, funny phalluses and a hoard of Roman coins. Enjoyed the art gallery too especially the Alfred Wallis paintings.

Ticket is valid for a year. Staff friendly & knowledgeable We were directed to exactly the section we were most interested in - Thomas Hardy. Fabulous collection, wish we had more time

A fascinating museum to visit, not least because of the memorabilia connected to the novelist, Thomas Hardy. In fact, this is largest Hardy collection in the world, left to the museum by his wife. There is a reconstruction of his study, with his desk, pens (each one inscribed by him with the name of the novel he wrote with it!) and his musical instruments too. This 'room' is behind glass and illuminated by gentle lamp light as it would have been in those days. Although the public are not usually allowed to enter and touch things, my husband (who is blind) was allowed inside to feel the desk and chair, and to hold the pens, violin and other things too. We appreciated this very much - the staff were very helpful indeed and went out of their way to make this an enjoyable experience in many ways. Recommended!