Sherlock Holmes Museum

The Sherlock Holmes Museum was initially founded in 1989, on a site as close to that described by Conan Doyle as possible (it's actually at number 239). It fought long and hard for the right to claim the address 221B Baker Street as its own, which it now does, giving it a well-deserved bit of authenticity. When visiting you're likely to be greeted by a respectable-looking chap in a bowler hat and whiskers; this, you will deduce, is Doctor Watson. And every lovingly recreated detail here conspires to persuade visitors to suspend their disbelief and feel themselves travelling back in time to a preserved fragment of historical reality. The Sherlock Holmes Museum bristles with murder weapons, Victoriana and waxworks depicting scenes from the stories. Upstairs in Mrs Hudson’s room, there is a folder of letters addressed to Holmes by fans from all over the world and, apparently, a fair percentage of visitors do believe that the whole set-up is for real. One thing to note is this place is all about paying homage to Conan Doyle's version, so don't expect to see anything relating to the BBC television show featuring Benedict Cumberbatch. Still, plenty of fun on display – elementary and otherwise.