Groups are welcome at The National Archives. For information on how to get here, including how to book a coach bay, see How to find us.
Group exhibition visits
Groups of 10 people or more must make a booking at least seven days before your visit. To manage capacity and ensure that we offer a safe and quality visitor experience for all, we do not accept group bookings in the first and last two weeks of an exhibition run.
To request a booking, please use the form below. Completing the form does not guarantee a booking. You will be contacted by a member of our team to confirm your arrangements and, where applicable, take payment.
Enquire about a group exhibition visit
Love Letters visit packages
We are trialling offering two paid packages for groups to book to visit our Love Letters exhibition (open from 24 January to 12 April 2026). Availability is limited, and we expect them to sell out, so early booking is advised.
You can request to book these using our group exhibition visit enquiry form. The packages are:
Love Letters package 1: Exclusive entry
Groups of between 10 and 30 people can book exclusive access to the Love Letters exhibition between 09:00 and 10:00, Tuesday to Saturday, for a set fee of £25.00 for the group.
This package does NOT include any form of tour.
If you are interested in booking a group of more than 30 people, please complete our booking enquiry form at the earliest opportunity so that we can discuss it with you.
Love Letters package 2: Exclusive entry with a private tour
Groups of between 10 and 20 people can book a 45-minute private tour of the Love Letters exhibition with our exhibition curator, between 09:00 and 10:00, at a cost of £15.00 per person.
Exhibition visits during regular opening hours
We try to accommodate group visits to our exhibitions during regular opening hours. Please note that:
- We cannot guarantee entry for groups who have not contacted us prior to their arrival.
- Groups may be requested to wait to enter the exhibition at busy times.
- Groups may be split up when entering the exhibition at busy times
Educational groups
There is no charge to book Love Letters package 1 (exclusive entry) if you are organising a group visit for educational facilities such as primary and secondary schools, international schools, colleges and universities. Please complete our booking enquiry form in advance of your visit.
Government departments
There is no charge to book Love Letters package 1 (exclusive entry) if you are organising a group visit from another government department. Please complete our booking enquiry form in advance of your visit.
Postgraduate student visits
Bringing a group of university students to The National Archives is a great way to introduce them to using archival collections and original source material as part of their research.
Visits can be arranged for a wide range of disciplines from history, politics, and archaeology to literature, art and media.
We offer three basic packages for visits:
Research package 1
A 45-minute tailored introduction to The National Archives’ collections delivered by a specialist in your field. It includes an introduction to archives and archival research and advice on how to use catalogues and finding aids to access relevant documents. It does not include any work with original documents. This costs £130 for up to 15 students or £260 for up to 30 students, including admin and billing time.
Research package 2
A 2-hour records-based session with a specialist in your field. This includes all the information in the 45-minute tailored introduction plus a document workshop either focusing on records related to the course students are studying or a general ‘dissertation inspiration’ taster selection of our collection. This costs £345 for up to 15 students or £500 for up to 30 students, including admin and billing time.
Research package 3
A half-day archival skills workshop. This is an in-depth workshop focussing on records on a particular topic or from a particular series, including how to use relevant finding aids and work on the format and formulae of the records, using original documents. This costs £540 for up to 15 students or £860 for up to 30 students, including admin and billing time.
Please note we require six weeks’ notice to organise a visit, for more information, please email: academicvisits@nationalarchives.gov.uk.
School and undergraduate visits
For more information about workshops, videoconferences and undergraduate visits, please see our Education website.