The 5 Best Museums in Peel, Isle of Man

The Centre will remain closed in 2020 in the light of COVID (instead focussing on research) but reopens in 2021 - see website. At the site of the largest WW1 Internment Camp, where over 30,000 German, Austro-Hungarian and Turkish civilian men were interned behind its barbed wire between 1914 and 1919, the Centre tells the story of the internees, guards and staff, incorporating an interactive scale model of Knockaloe Camp and our wonderful collections of artefacts created by the internees. Our app guides a walk from the Centre, taking in the Guards and Internee graves, the site of the former Camp and the Garden of Barbed Wire which provides a quiet spot to sit and reflect. The Charity team are on hand to help descendants - please do let us know in advance if you are descended from an internee or guard and are intending to visit so we can do some preliminary research for you. We are a Registered Charity - we do not charge for entry but really welcome donations which help cover costs.

Mythical sea god Manannan guides you through this interactive museum which focuses on the Isle of Man's rich Celtic, Viking and maritime past. Discover life sized reconstructions of Celtic roundhouses, join the crew of the Odin’s Raven on a Viking longship as it returns from the battle of Clontarf, or find out what life was life in a Viking longhouse. You’ll also hear about the magnificent stone crosses dotted around the Island’s landscape and find out where you can still see them. Explore 19th Century Peel with a walk around the quayside, complete with traditional sights and smells from the Manx kipper yard, and uncover the importance of the sea to the lives of the people on the Isle of Man. During your journey from past to present you’ll also come face to face with characters telling you stories and superstitions from the Island’s past. An attraction not to be missed!