Around Barrow upon Soar, Mountsorrel Railway leads the list
5 of the 7 places to visit in and around Barrow upon Soar are museums or galleries. None of them is inside Barrow upon Soar itself. Beyond the town, Derby Museum and Art Gallery sits 29 km away.
Where to start near Barrow upon Soar
After Mountsorrel Railway, look out for 4 museums and a heritage railway.
Heritage railwayMountsorrel Railway900 m outside town, to the south
MuseumLoughborough Carillon3.5 km outside town, to the westMuseumMuseumStonehurst Motor Museum1.1 km outside town, to the south
Heritage railwayGreat Central Railway2.7 km outside town, to the northwest
MuseumCharnwood Museum3.6 km outside town, to the northwestMuseumMuseumJohn Taylor Bellfoundry Museum2.9 km outside town, to the northwestEach has a page of its own: what it is, who runs it, the weather month by month and what else is near it.
Where to find them
Leave town to the northwest for most of the 7 nearby.
The dashed line is Barrow upon Soar’s built-up area; orange marks its middle (where most people live). Numbers match the list below. © OpenStreetMap contributors · ONS built-up area 2022
The mix
Count 5 museums or galleries and 2 zoos, theme parks or other days out.
Green: inside Barrow upon Soar. Grey: within 5 km of its edge.
Every place to visit
Nothing is inside Barrow upon Soar itself; these 7 are within 5 km of its edge.
Loughborough Carillon
Grade II listed military museum in Loughborough, United Kingdom.
Stonehurst Motor Museum
Public museum and farm in Mountsorrel, Leicestershire.
Great Central Railway
Heritage railway based in Loughborough, England, UK.
Charnwood Museum
Museum in Loughborough, Leicestershire, England, United Kingdom.
John Taylor Bellfoundry Museum
Museum in Loughborough, England, UK.
The Old Rectory Museum
Museum in Loughborough, England, United Kingdom.
Close and well known first. Churches and listed buildings are on the History page, not here.
24 listed buildings are on Barrow upon Soar’s History page → · Parks, footpaths and green space in Barrow upon Soar →
Further afield: the best known within 40 km
Derby Museum and Art Gallery, 29 km away, is the best known of the 12.
MuseumDerby Museum and Art Gallery29 km northwest
CathedralLeicester Cathedral13 km south
CastleNottingham Castle22 km north
MuseumPickford's House Museum30 km northwest
MuseumMuseum of Making30 km northwest
Castle · English HeritageKirby Muxloe Castle14 km southwest
GardenBradgate Park8.6 km southwest
CathedralDerby Cathedral29 km northwest
MuseumNational Space Centre11 km south
Historic houseBelvoir Castle29 km northeast
Abbey or prioryMount St Bernard Abbey12 km west
CastleLeicester Castle13 km southPlaces well known beyond Barrow upon Soar (Wikipedia articles in several languages, published visitor counts, or a National Trust, English Heritage or Cadw property), close and famous first. Distances are straight lines from the middle of the town.
Questions about Barrow upon Soar’s attractions
What is there to see near Barrow upon Soar?
No attraction is mapped inside Barrow upon Soar itself. Within 5 km of it are Mountsorrel Railway, Loughborough Carillon, Stonehurst Motor Museum and Great Central Railway.
Does Barrow upon Soar have a museum?
5 museums and galleries are in or within 5 km of Barrow upon Soar: Loughborough Carillon, Stonehurst Motor Museum, Charnwood Museum and John Taylor Bellfoundry Museum.
Is there a National Trust or English Heritage property near Barrow upon Soar?
None within 5 km. The nearest well-known one on our list is Kirby Muxloe Castle (English Heritage), 14 km southwest.
What are the best-known days out near Barrow upon Soar?
Within 40 km: Derby Museum and Art Gallery (29 km), Leicester Cathedral (13 km), Nottingham Castle (22 km), Pickford's House Museum (30 km).
Where are Barrow upon Soar’s historic buildings listed?
Barrow upon Soar has 24 listed buildings. They are on its History page, from Historic England’s list, not repeated here.
How is this list made?
From OpenStreetMap (museums, galleries, zoos, theme parks and attractions, castles, forts and abbeys, and historic houses and gardens that are open to visitors) and Wikidata (what each place is, who runs it, its website and visitor counts). A place counts for Barrow upon Soar when it is inside the ONS 2022 built-up area, and as nearby within 5 km of its edge. Opening times and prices are not shown: check the official site.
Places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database Licence) and Wikidata (CC0), placed in the ONS 2022 built-up area (Open Government Licence v3.0). Visitor counts are the latest Wikidata gives, with their year.
Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (16)
- Mountsorrel Railway: Chris Allen, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Loughborough Carillon: User:Hassocks5489, CC0, Wikimedia Commons
- Great Central Railway: Duncan Harris, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Charnwood Museum: Adele Beeby, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Derby Museum and Art Gallery: Janet Roberts from UK, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Leicester Cathedral: NotFromUtrecht, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Nottingham Castle: Cosmicutencil, CC0, Wikimedia Commons
- Pickford's House Museum: sps1955 from UK, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Museum of Making: Matt Brown, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Kirby Muxloe Castle: en:User:Neddyseagoon, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Bradgate Park: Duncharris, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Derby Cathedral: Nick Moyes, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- National Space Centre: Kate Jewell, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Belvoir Castle: Nancy, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Mount St Bernard Abbey: Gtatler at English Wikipedia, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Leicester Castle: Kris1973, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.