Visitor Information

Visitor Information for the Museum and Tearoom

Opening Hours

February open Tuesday to Saturday, 10:00am - 5:00pm. Closed on Sundays and Mondays.

March open Monday - Saturday, 10:00am - 5:00pm. Closed on Sundays

April to September open Monday to Saturday, including public holidays, 10:00am - 5:00pm. Open Sunday 12 noon – 4.30pm.

October open Monday - Saturday, 10:00am - 5:00pm. Closed on Sundays except Half Term weekend.

November open Tuesday to Saturday, 10:00am - 5:00pm. Closed on Sundays and Mondays.

Last admission is at 4:15pm, 4:00pm on Sundays.

The Museum is closed throughout December and January.

Admission Charges

Type of Ticket	Price
1. Adult	£3.95
2. Concession
a. Individuals
(1) A person over 65 years of age.	£3.20
(2) A person who is currently in receipt of an unemployment benefit from the UK Government (on production of documentary proof).	£3.20
(3) A student between the ages of 16 to 25 in full-time education (on production of documentary proof such as an extant official photo-ID card issued by a UK school or place of further or higher education, or an extant International Student Identity Card).	£3.20
(4) A child under 16 years of age.	£1.15
b. Families and Groups
(1) A 'family' group of one or 2 adults accompanied by up to 3 children	£9.00
(2) A group of 10 or more. One free ticket for every 10 people.
3. Garden	£1.50
4. Garden Season Ticket	£5.00
5. Free Admission to the Museum and Garden for:
a. Serving members of the UK or allied armed forces (on production of their current Service Identity Document if not in uniform).
b. Members of the Regimental Associations of the 'former regiments'(on production of their membership card).
c. Close relatives* of any soldier who died while serving in the 'former regiments' or in The Rifles. (*spouse/civil partner, children, parents, siblings or grandparents of the soldier.)

Location and Parking

The museum is located in the north east corner of Cathedral Close, Salisbury, Wiltshire.

There is no public parking at the Museum. Limited parking is available in The Close, at a flat charge of £6. There are several other car parks in the city centre which are less than ten minutes walk from The Close, all clearly signposted on approach roads to the city. There is also an extensive Park and Ride system around Salisbury, (closed Sundays and Bank Holidays). For further information see the Park and Ride website. via our Useful Links /Local information.

There are several other tourist attractions in the Close – see the 'Local Information' section of our 'Useful Links' page.

Information for Disabled Visitors

One parking space is available in our private car for disabled visitors. Please display your Blue Badge prominently.

Salisbury has a Shopmobility scheme, located in the Maltings Car Park off Fisherton Street. For further information see the Shopmobility website.

Wheelchair access is provided from the road, via the signed path, to the right of the gravel car park as you look at the Wardrobe building. Wheelchair access is available throughout the public areas, to all the main display rooms, which are situated on the ground floor and to the Bernières Tea Room. The footpath in the garden is also suitable for wheelchair access.

There is a toilet specifically designed for disabled visitors.

No sound or visual guides are available for visitors with visual or aural impairments.

The Museum

The Royal Berkshire Regiment, with its Museum in Brock Barracks, Oxford Road, Reading, and The Wiltshire Regiment whose Museum was in Le Marchant Barracks, London Road, Devizes, merged in 1959 to become the Duke of Edinburgh's Royal Regiment. However the 2 Museums continued on their separate sites for a number of years before the move to a united Regimental Headquarters and Museum in Salisbury in the early 1980s. The DERR Museum was officially opened by HRH The Duke of Edinburgh, Colonel-in-Chief of the Regiment, on 29 July 1982.

In 1994 DERR amalgamated with the Gloucestershire Regiment to form the Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment. The collection and archives of the Gloucestershire Regiment are housed in the 'Soldiers of Gloucestershire Museum', Custom House, Gloucester GL1 2HE, you can access their web site by using our "Useful Links".

In 2005 the Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment became the Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Light Infantry and in 2007 merged with a number of other regiments to form The Rifles. The Museum therefore changed its name again to the present title of The Rifles (Berkshire and Wiltshire) Museum.

The Collection

This relates to the regular, militia and volunteer infantry units of Berkshire and Wiltshire. It does not contain any items for the yeomanry units of either county – see Links page for details of their museums – or other military units directly associated with the two counties.

The Collection is displayed in 4 ground floor rooms and tells the story of our Regiments and the soldiers in them over the last 250 years. Inevitably lack of space means that a large number of items are not on show – you can explore many of these through the online search facility on this website.

Education Services

The museum welcomes organised school groups for two types of structured sessions:- 'Remembrance' and 'The Home Front'. A charge is made for the service. Please telephone museum staff to discuss your requirements.

Presentations

If you would like someone to speak to your group or erganisation on the Museum, regimental history, researching military ancestors or using our website please contact us.

Typical titles are:-

'The Battle of Maiwand Afghanistan 1880', in which the 66th (Berkshire) Regiment was involved.

'Tracing Your Military Ancestors' - a general guide with specific examples from the Museum's collection and resources.

Drawing

Artists may visit the Museum to draw, but please note that only dry materials (but not charcoal or sprays) are allowed. Clipboards are advisable, as safety considerations rule out using the glass in the desk cases to lean on while drawing.

The Museum Shop

The Museum has a book and gift shop in which you will find items which relate to subjects represented in the collection (souvenirs, postcards and a selection of books with a theme sympathetic to the museum). You can now shop on-line. Select 'Museum Shop' from the menu.

Refreshment Facilities

The Wardrobe has a converted coach house, which is now the Bernières Tea Room. It is generally open on a daily basis from 10 am until 2 pm. Available are Morning Coffee, Home Cooked Lunches and baguettes or sandwiches to order. You are advised to confirm opening times with Bernières staff before a visit, on 01722 413666. There are no public parking facilities at the Wardrobe for Bernières customers.

FOR ALL OTHER VISITOR INFORMATION, INCLUDING OTHER TOURIST ATTRACTIONS AND ACCOMMODATION INFORMATION IN THE SALISBURY AREA, PLEASE LOOK UNDER OUR 'USEFUL LINKS' SECTION WHICH IS UNDER 'RESEARCH FACILITIES'. THEN SCROLL DOWN FOR 'LOCAL INFORMATION'.