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The British Motor Museum at Gaydon is about 25 minutes’ drive from Stratford-upon-Avon, and this October half-term it’s built around the new Forza Horizon 6 game: free coding workshops, rides in old cars, a racing-simulator exhibition and a hunt for seven of the game’s cars. Here’s what’s on, what it costs and how to make a day of it, from the museum’s own pages on 20 October 2026.
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British Motor Museum at a glance
| British Motor Museum | |
|---|---|
| Where | Banbury Road, Gaydon, Warwickshire CV35 0BJ, five minutes from junction 12 of the M40 |
| From Stratford | About 15 miles by road; allow 25 to 30 minutes |
| Open | Every day, 10am to 5pm (the Collections Centre opens at 11am). Last entry 4pm |
| Adults | £18 booked online, £21 on the day |
| Children (5 to 16) | £9 online, £10 on the day. Under-5s free |
| Parking | Free |
| Allow | 3 to 4 hours, more with the family activities |
The museum calls itself the world’s largest collection of historic British cars: more than 400 of them across the main museum and the Collections Centre next door, which your ticket also covers.
October half-term 2026 at the British Motor Museum
Half-term runs from Saturday 24 October to Sunday 1 November at the museum (Warwickshire schools are off from Monday 26 to Friday 30 October). Everything below is included in a normal museum ticket, and the museum says the activities suit children aged 4 and over with an adult, unless it says otherwise.
| Activity | When | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| Future Vehicle Engineers coding workshops | Mon 26 to Fri 30 Oct, 45-minute sessions from 10.10am, last one 3.10pm | Ages 7+, 20 places a session, sign up on the day at the Family Activity Station |
| Car rides in a 1959 Vauxhall Velox or a 2002 Land Rover G4 Challenge | Mon 26 to Fri 30 Oct, 1pm to 3pm | Free (donations welcome), while places last |
| Forza Horizon 6 family tour | Every day, 11.30am | Sign up on the day at the Family Activity Station |
| The Big Build | Every day until 3.30pm (last entry 3pm) | Build a brick car, garage or trophy |
| Stamp your passport | Any time | Find seven Forza Horizon 6 cars around the collections |
Future Vehicle Engineers
The coding and robotics workshops are run with Playground Games (the studio behind Forza Horizon) and ComputerXplorers. Children program vehicles round a Forza Horizon 6 track and steer a robot with barcode commands, earning a Future Vehicle Engineer passport. No experience is needed and the kit is provided. They’re for ages 7 and up with a parent, there’s no booking in advance, and each session takes 20 children, so sign up at the Family Activity Station when you arrive if you want a morning slot.
Car rides and The Big Build
On weekday afternoons (1pm to 3pm, Monday 26 to Friday 30 October) there are rides around the site in a 1959 Vauxhall Velox or a 2002 Land Rover G4 Challenge. They’re free, with donations welcome, while places last.
The Big Build runs every day: families build a brick model of a car, pit stop, garage or trophy, and the museum photographs it. One photo goes home with you and one goes into a bag of bricks that’s given to community pantries and youth groups before Christmas, through the museum’s Brick Bank scheme.
Forza Horizon 6: The Experience
The museum’s big exhibition this autumn is the UK’s first Forza Horizon 6 exhibition, open until November 2026. Among the real cars from the game are a 1998 Subaru Impreza 22B STI, a 1992 Nissan Skyline R32 and the tiny 1962 Peel P50. You can play the game in an Xbox zone (with an accessible controller set up with the charity SpecialEffect) and set a lap time on racing simulators. It’s the reason teenagers will want to come too.
Pick up a passport and look for the seven Forza cars hidden around the museum and the Collections Centre; younger children can also take an activity sheet and family trail from the Family Activity Station and collect a sticker when they finish.
Spoiler Alert: hot hatches
Also on: Spoiler Alert, an exhibition of eight hot hatchbacks from the 1980s and 1990s to today’s “hyper hatches”, with retro toys and video games. It runs until 21 February 2027.
Great British Model Railway Show: 24 and 25 October
On the half-term weekend (9.30am Saturday 24 October to 4pm Sunday 25 October) the museum hosts the Great British Model Railway Show: more than 40 model railways, more than 30 traders and a hands-on modelling zone for beginners and families. Prices are different that weekend, and annual passes and vouchers aren’t valid.
| Ticket | Online | On the day |
|---|---|---|
| Show and museum, adult | £18 | £21 |
| Show and museum, child | £9 | £10 |
| Show and museum, concession | £16 | £19 |
| Show only, adult or concession | £15 | £17 |
| Show only, child | £7 | £8 |
Under-5s are free. You need a separate ticket for each day, and online show-only tickets stop selling at 9pm on Friday 23 October. On the Saturday only, a free bus runs to the museum from Leamington Spa station (times on the show’s website). The museum says EV charging isn’t available on show days.
If you’d rather avoid the crowds, the half-term weekdays (Monday 26 to Friday 30 October) have the workshops and car rides and normal prices.
British Motor Museum tickets and prices
| Ticket | Online | On the day |
|---|---|---|
| Adult | £18 | £21 |
| Child (5 to 16) | £9 | £10 |
| Under 5 | Free | Free |
| Concession (65+, students, unemployed, serving military, police, fire and NHS staff, with ID) | £16 | £19 |
| Carer (with a paying visitor who needs help) | Free | Free |
There’s no family ticket, so a family of two adults and two children pays £54 online or £62 on the day.
Ways to pay less:
- Book online. It saves £3 an adult and £1 a child.
- Turn your ticket into an annual pass. If you choose to donate your entry fee with Gift Aid when you book, your ticket becomes a 12-month pass for no extra cost. You have to choose it when you book, not on arrival, and it isn’t valid on show days such as the model railway weekend.
- Blue Peter badge. Children aged 6 to 15 with a Blue Peter badge get in free with an adult paying for an adult or concession ticket. Bring the badge and ID.
- Tesco Clubcard. Clubcard vouchers cover adult, child and concession museum tickets, but not on show days.
Guided tours are included and don’t need booking: the museum at 11am and 2pm, the Collections Centre at 12 noon and 3pm.
Getting there from Stratford-upon-Avon
The museum is about 15 miles east of Stratford: about 25 to 30 minutes by car, out past Wellesbourne, or by the M40 (junction 12, then about a mile along the B4100). The museum says sat navs should be set to the British Motor Museum as a place rather than the postcode; its what3words for the entrance is smiled.harmonica.ivory.
- Parking is free, with Blue Badge spaces.
- EV charging: six chargers at the back of the visitor car park (two 22kW, four 7kW) and four 7kW chargers at the conference entrance, paid through the Shell Recharge app or a QR code. Not on show days. For charging before you set off, see our EV charging guide.
- Without a car it’s awkward: the nearest stations are Warwick and Leamington Spa (8 miles) and Banbury (11 miles), then a taxi. There’s a bike park behind the main building.
Food, dogs and access
- Food: the Junction 12 Café serves hot and cold meals and homemade cakes, with a children’s lunch box and vegetarian and gluten-free choices. There’s also a playground and picnic area.
- Dogs: only assistance dogs are allowed inside. Pet dogs are welcome in the grounds on a lead no longer than 3 metres.
- Access: step-free throughout, with lifts to every level and a portable induction loop. A few wheelchairs can be borrowed free; reserve one on 01926 895300 after buying your ticket. Baby changing is in the accessible toilets on the ground and first floors.
- Children 16 and under must be with an adult. Drones aren’t allowed anywhere on site.
Make a day of it
The museum is open until 5pm, so it fits with a morning or afternoon somewhere else. For more ideas for the week, see our October half-term guide, Halloween days out near Stratford and things to do with kids in Stratford. Eating out in town afterwards? Here’s where kids eat free in Stratford this half-term.
British Motor Museum FAQ
How much does the British Motor Museum cost?
£18 for an adult and £9 for a child (5 to 16) booked online, or £21 and £10 on the day. Under-5s and carers go free. Gift Aid the ticket when you book and it becomes a free annual pass.
Is parking free at the British Motor Museum?
Yes. Parking is free, including Blue Badge spaces.
How long do you need at the British Motor Museum?
The museum suggests 3 to 4 hours for the museum and the Collections Centre, and longer if you’re doing the family activities or a tour.
What’s on at the British Motor Museum this half-term?
From 24 October to 1 November 2026: Forza Horizon 6-themed family activities, coding workshops for ages 7+ (Monday to Friday), free car rides (weekday afternoons), a daily family tour at 11.30am and The Big Build, all included in admission. The Great British Model Railway Show is on 24 and 25 October, with its own prices.
How far is the British Motor Museum from Stratford-upon-Avon?
About 15 miles by road, 25 to 30 minutes by car. It’s in Gaydon, near junction 12 of the M40.
Can you take dogs to the British Motor Museum?
Only assistance dogs inside. Pet dogs can go in the grounds on a short lead.
No business paid to be included.
Alex Harrington
Alex Harrington grew up in Stratford-upon-Avon and runs What's up, Stratford? as an independent guide to the town.
