Things to do · Banbury
Banbury Museum and Gallery
Banbury's free town museum, on the Oxford Canal with an entrance in Castle Quay: Bronze Age finds, a cannon from Banbury Castle, plush cloth and a canal gallery, with paid touring exhibitions and a canalside café.
Family-friendly · Rainy days · Car-free
The place to go in Banbury when it rains, or when you want to know why the town is the way it is. It is free, and the Waterways Gallery spans the canal. The charged exhibitions in the Pye Gallery are the variable part, so see what is on.
- Good: Free entry to the Banbury and Waterways galleries, no booking
- Good: Lifts to every floor
- Good: Next to the bus station, and a short walk from the trains
- Worth knowing: Temporary exhibitions cost extra, in one-hour slots
- Worth knowing: No parking on site
- Worth knowing: Closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year's Day and Easter Sunday
About
Banbury Museum and Gallery is the town's free museum, on the Oxford Canal in the middle of Banbury. Its main entrance is inside Castle Quay Shopping Centre, with the back door on Spiceball Park Road. It suits a wet morning, and anyone who wants the town's story.
The galleries
The two main galleries are free. The Banbury Gallery on the first floor covers everyday life and trade: Bronze Age finds from around the town, a Saxon brooch found at Hornton, a cannon from Banbury Castle, fine plush cloth of the 1700s, and tools and costume from more than 200 years. Look too for the constables' truncheons from the police force of 1836, the Wardington Carriers Cart, and the Alcan Mural of 1957, which shows the aluminium company's work in the town.
The Waterways Gallery spans the canal, linking the shop in Castle Quay with the main building, and tells the story of the people who lived and worked on the Oxford Canal. The museum says it is part of an ongoing project on a new canal gallery.
Exhibitions
Touring shows in the Pye Gallery are charged, in one-hour slots, and the museum recommends booking. Tickets are non-refundable but transferable, and concessions are offered. The Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards run from 14 November 2026 to 7 March 2027, at £5 for adults, £2.50 for children aged 5 to 18 and £3 for concessions, with under-5s free; timed slots are booked through the museum's Bookwhen page. The museum says past exhibitions have included work by Grayson Perry, Damien Hirst and J M W Turner.
Visiting
The museum opens Monday to Saturday from 10am to 4pm and Sunday from 11am to 3pm. There is no parking on site, so use a car park from our guide to parking in Banbury. The bus station is next door. Gwen's Canalside Café serves Tuesday to Sunday, with a Sunday roast.
Tooley's Historic Boatyard is next to the museum, and Spiceball Country Park is a short walk up the towpath. Banbury Cross is at the top of the High Street.
Opening hours and season
Closed, opens Mon 16, 10:00
| Mon | Opening | Café |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | 10:00 to 16:00 | Closed |
| Tuesday | 10:00 to 16:00 | 10:00 to 16:00 |
| Wednesday | 10:00 to 16:00 | 10:00 to 16:00 |
| Thursday | 10:00 to 16:00 | 10:00 to 16:00 |
| Friday | 10:00 to 16:00 | 10:00 to 16:00 |
| Saturday | 10:00 to 16:00 | 10:00 to 16:00 |
| Sunday | 11:00 to 15:00 | 11:00 to 15:00 |
Café: Sunday roast 11am to 3pm
Closed Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year's Day and Easter Sunday. The café is closed on Mondays.
Facilities
- Gwen's Canalside CaféHot drinks, cakes and hot meals; Sunday roast
- Museum shop and welcome centreIn Castle Quay
- LiftsConnect the shop to the museum floor and all floors
- ToiletsAccessible toilet on the ground floor; baby changing on all floors
The details
- Time to allow
- About an hour, longer with a paid exhibition
- Features
- Café · Shop · By the water · Events and meetings
- Parking
- None on site. Use Castle Quay, Riverside (next to Spiceball Park) or Chamberlaine Court; some have time limits. See also our guide to parking in Banbury.
- Without a car
- Banbury Bus Station is next to Castle Quay and the station is a short walk. M40 junction 11 by car.
Photos
Banbury Museum and Gallery 
The museum's bridge over the Oxford Canal 
The museum café 
The museum shop
Location
Accessibility
- Accessible toilet
Lifts serve all floors. Closest Blue Badge parking is Castle Quay North 1, with level access from the museum's rear entrance on Spiceball Park Road. Castle Quay South has lift access to the shop. No accessible parking on site. Changing Places toilet in Castle Quay.
Places to stay nearby
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The Three Pigeons, Banbury
Pubs · Banbury
A Grade II listed 17th-century inn, partly thatched, on Southam Road, Banbury, with real ales and ciders, a courtyard, Smash Cow street food from Thursday to Saturday and three en-suite rooms.
Dog-friendly · Car-free
Verified Nov 2026
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Whately Hall Hotel, Banbury
Hotel · Banbury
A Grade II listed 17th-century inn, now a 71-room hotel on Horse Fair in the middle of Banbury, with gardens, an oak-panelled restaurant and six EV chargers.
Dog-friendly · Family-friendly · Wedding venues
Verified Nov 2026
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Banbury Cross Bed and Breakfast
B&B · Banbury
A family-run Victorian B&B on Broughton Road, Banbury, with seven bedrooms, about 370m from Banbury Cross, with free off-road parking, cooked breakfasts and rates from £77. No under-18s.
Car-free
Verified Nov 2026
Nearby walks, places and things to do
- Tooley's Historic Boatyard 0.0 km away
- Lock29, Banbury 0.1 km away
- The Apothecary Tap, Banbury 0.3 km away
- The Coach and Horses, Banbury 0.3 km away
Sights nearby
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Banbury Cross
Sight · Monument · Banbury
The cross of the nursery rhyme stands at the top of Banbury High Street, but it is a Victorian monument of 1858 to 1859, put up about 250 years after the town's medieval crosses were pulled down. Grade II*, free and seen from the street at any time.
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Banbury Market Place
Sight · Historic building · Banbury
The square at the centre of Banbury, where a Thursday market has run since before 1155. The charter market is on every Thursday and Saturday, 9am to 4pm (Cherwell District Council, 2026), among timber-framed houses of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
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Oxford Canal, Banbury
Sight · River · Banbury
The Oxford Canal through the middle of Banbury, from the lock and Tooley's Boatyard, a scheduled monument, past the museum to Spiceball Park, with a towpath north to Cropredy. Free, open always, and a few minutes from the station.
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People's Park, Banbury
Sight · Common or park · Banbury
Banbury's town centre park, opened in 1919 to mark the peace, with an aviary of budgies and cockatiels, a walled garden, rose garden, bowling green, tennis, a play area and a café. Free, and run by the town council.