The National Museum of Computing - (Near Buckinghamshire, South East)

5 /5 M McTrnn: Loved this quirky small museum more than Bletchley Park and I’d recommend coming here first. (Bletchley Park felt quite overwhelming and we walked out feeling both humbled and quite stupid as the more we saw, the less we understood.) Lots of nostalgia at this museum for those of us who grew up with the first computers, including lots of fun hands-on free arcade and computer games to play. The volunteer staff are infectiously effervescent and incredibly friendly - can’t praise them enough for the lovely welcoming atmosphere they provide.

5 /5 Gill Crowe: Fantastic place to visit. All the staff were very friendly, helpful and knowledgeable. Learnt so much. My generation did not receive education about WW2 so it was helpful to slot things I knew into place and learn so much more. Especially about the codebreaking from Frank. Our adult sons were thrilled to see their school computer in the museum and of course we saw our old faithful Amstrad. So much to do and see and definitely needs a return visit. Have to commend Amanda in the cafe for excellent coffee and service. And the new toilets are the best public facilities I have ever seen.

5 /5 Lon Welsh: I would suggest that you go to Bletchley Park, which is immediately adjacent, sharing a parking lot, before you come here. This is gonna provide a lot of amplification and it’s all going to make a lot more sense if you’ve got the historical back drop of Bletchley Park first. I think Bletchley Park is gonna be more interesting to the historian or the person that tracks a little bit more on the human side. This museum is going to be more interesting to the engineer or IT person that likes to get a little bit more into the weeds of how you break a code and how do you develop a computer for the first time? I enjoyed both of them quite a bit and I think they fit together really well. You could do them both on the same day, but it would be pretty mentally taxing! Take a break in the middle. I think if your budget one and a half to 2 1/2 hours that should be enough for most people to get through the exhibits and watch some demonstrations This is an example we’re watching. The demonstrations actually is pretty much the reason why you’re gonna wanna come. Otherwise you just walk into a room you see an old machine from the 1940s you can look at it for me and say wow that looks complicated. And that’s about all that you get out of it. However, at least on the day I was there, they have a volunteer in multiple rooms that will spend about a half an hour, explaining the problem, walking through the solution, and the story of the person that worked on it, why this machine was a solution of the problem. And then they show you how the machine did it. The machines have been restored and they work! It’s absolutely amazing. Watching these stories come to life when they show you the demonstrations.

5 /5 paul thomas: Amazing place. Great displays and working exhibitions. The volunteers were great to talk to, with in depth knowledge. For me, this was like a trip through my technology life. So many memories, and the chance to see other things I’ve only heard of before. Was sad to leave, and looking forward to a return visit, just wish it was a little closer to home