There is lots to do here. The 1940s house is a wonderful display, as is the Blitz Experience and the Trench Experience, all allowing you to walk through mock-ups of the actual events. The temporary exhibit the Great Escape was fun, but we adults had to barge through the kids to get to play with the hands-on stuff (you need a timed entrance ticket for this, which can be bought on arrival at the museum).

There is a reasonable cafe which does a wide range of food and great cakes. The museum is spread over several floors and is cleverly laid out to keep even the youngest of children entertained with something. The shop provides all sorts of gadgets and toys, but also a huge range of reading books and videos, which is probably the best point about it.

This museum is really worth a visit and will take the best part of a day to cover fully.

If you are into World War I and II, this is the place for you. My boys love "war stuff", and they were in heaven. There were lots of actual machines of war here as well as some great exhibits on the wars themselves. They had a wonderful exhibit on life in London during the Blitz. We really enjoyed this museum.

The Imperial War Museum is not a fluffy museum; you will not come out hoping to buy a poster of a pretty picture. It is a serious and solemn memorial and historical information centre. That said, it is neither bland nor old- fashioned, with plenty of big guns (including the gigantic canons that loom in the centre of the formal approach to the building), and well-thought out, modern, exhibits.

The building itself is impressive enough, with its stark white facade and blue dome. The canons are complemented by a section of the Berlin wall, and it's all set in a small ornamental garden that complements the architecture.

Entrance is free, but you can buy guides at the entrance. I would advise against buying one, as it's unneccessary to have yet another thing to read. You come out into a tall hall, filled with tanks, WW1 and WW2 troop transport, and all kinds of vintage planes suspended from the roof. One interesting example is the shiny wooden rowboat that, as the plaque will explain, was used in the evacuation of soldiers from Dunkirk.

Go down to the basement for the WW1 and 2 exhibits and, for the rest of 2002, the reconstructed set of the 1940's house TV series. This is fascinating, only if in demonstration of the sheer contrast between the luxury of modern life and what was the norm only a relatively short time ago.

The main attraction, however, are the World War exhibits. Walk past a row of shocking war images, brilliantly accompanied by carefully selected quotes. These are exhaustive and exhausting - hundreds of glass cabinets stuffed full of letters, newspapers, and government propaganda, from every period of both wars, and on all fronts. It's best to pick out a few things to really look closely at. The ‘story’ of the wars is summarized on the walls for all those who have long forgotten Arch Duke Ferdinand! Examples that caught our attention were: the evidence of the pressure put on men of the right age to join the army in WW1, including a postcard written to one guy by a girl scout troop, inviting him to join their group, as he obviously wasn't a man. The 'Trench Experience' follows this, and is genuinely affecting, simply in conveying the sense of the horror and fear which must have been a part of the soldier's daily lives. The less well-done 'Blitz Experience' was similar in concept, but not as emotionally involving.

If you have the emotional stamina when you have finished in the basement, go up to the Holocaust exhibit on the upper floors. With similar tasteful and well- thought out presentation of documentary evidence (such as filmed footage of the testimony of survivors), this is a truly excellent monument as well as an exhibition.

This is (or can be) a serious experience. The museum is well-run and extremely well-designed. Bear in mind that to fully appreciate what this museum has to offer, you will need stamina and quite a few hours!

As a former Army officer, I am always interested in learning about military history. I figured that the Imperial War Museum would provide a compelling and informative accounting of WWI and WWII...and I was not disappointed. The Imperial War Museum actually details all of the conflicts the British have participated in since the beginning of the 1900s. The WWI and WWII displays were particularly compelling and I spent several hours walking through the displays and film rooms. There were also some special displays (i.e. the Trench Experience from WWI and the Blitz Experience from WWII) that were very well done. If you don't come out of this museum feeling a little more patriotic or touched in some way, then you weren't paying attention. The Holocaust floor was also very moving and was even more compelling set against the events of WWII on the lower floors. Uniforms, planes, vehicles, armaments, ammunition, propaganda, personal items and accounts, and everything else you can imagine are used to illustrate the history of British warfare...and the human toll and sacrifice of millions of people.

Regarding location, this museum is a bit removed from other attractions. The neighborhood is a bit rougher than on the other side of the Thames, but it is worth the effort. It also sets you up to see the Tate Modern and Shakespeare's Globe (which are also on this side of the river).

Admission is free.

Price for adults was 5.2 pounds. Dragged to the museum by my husband and son, I was surprised to find out that the exhibits were a comprehensive documentation of the human costs of modern wars. This is a "must see" museum that compliments a visit to the Cabinet War Rooms which we had seen on our previous trip. This museum emphasizes the real horrors of war technologically enabled to become ever more devastating to human life. My husband saw the Holocaust exhibit and said it was most graphic. This museum offers trips into the anti-human conflicts of the 20th century. This beautiful domed building was formerly the Bethlehem Royal Hospital, known more universally as the infamous "Bedlam."This is a staggeringly vast,comprehensive collection that is utterly unique in its emphasis on the impact of war on ordinary human lives.