35 Best Museums around the World
Let’s explore the best museums around the world!
Gone are the days of stuffy, off-putting museums where the main focus was keeping guests as far away as possible from the items of display.
Instead, today's museums are vibrant, lively, and interactive: there's a focus on immersion and what the role of a museum is in today's society.
Often, contemporary museums ask as many questions about the visitors as they do about the exhibits.
These 31 museums are memorable, quirky, and thought provoking.
Many museums work to translate difficult subject matter into something that visitors can take away, while others are focused on topics that never would've been seen in museums 50 years ago like comic books and neon lights.
Below, you’ll find incredible museums from across the world, so you’re never too far from a new learning experience.
Add a few of these to your next trip and see how a fantastic museum can help you shape new opinions about the world around you!
The Cosmos Mariners kids check out the Impressionist paintings at the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, Florida
What to Expect at These Museums
Each of these museums is unique, but you’ll come away from each with a new perspective on history, culture, art, and/or science.
I’ve included a variety of museums, many of which were vetted by travel blogging friends of mine.
Are these museums kid-friendly?
You’ll find museums from all over the world below, and most are appropriate for the entire family.
I’ve made a note on how kid-friendly each of the museums is, and, if there is any difficult content, what you should anticipate.
We’re big believers in facing big conversations and tough topics head on with our kids, but I also know that some things are just too scary or overwhelming for kids. Consider your individual child’s personality and tolerance to make the best decisions for your family.
How much does it cost to access these museums?
In recent years, museums have worked hard to make their offerings accessible to everyone, so many of these museums are free or low cost.
If you’re visiting a free museum, I’d encourage you to leave a small donation if able as this helps the museum continue to offer more programs and exhibits.
What can I do at these museums other than see the art?
Many museums have tried to expand their visitor experience through interactive programs, docent-led walks, crafting days, gardens, and cafes.
Some, like the British Museum in London, even have little backpacks or kits that kids can rent to help them engage with a specific set of art, sculpture, or exhibits.
Others, like the Lightner Museum in St. Augustine or the National World War II Museum in New Orleans, have scavenger hunts for kids to do. This is great to focus their attention as you walk through the exhibits!
Ask at the information desk to find out what activities, tours, and programs will be on while you’re visiting.
The Best Museums in the World: A Guide
The British Museum, London, England
Natalie, the author of Cosmos Mariners, standing in front of the British Museum
This sprawling complex sets the standard in Europe for museums, seeing nearly 6 million visitors a year. And it’s easy to see why: it’s one of the best things for a first time visitor in London!
If you’re interested in history, this is the place to go, as you can learn about—and see artifacts—from everything from the Ancient Greeks to the Assyrians to the Ancient Egyptians.
When I studied abroad in London, my school was within easy walking distance of the British Museum, so I spend many lunch hours wandering around the exhibits.
The Elgin Marbles are one of the most controversial pieces within the museum as Greece continues to argue that they were stolen rather than sold to English collectors.
Spend some time trying to decipher the Rosetta Stone, the enegmatic tablet that ultimately allowed linguists to understand hieroglyphics.
When you need a break from the exhibits, head to the 2nd floor, where you can indulge in afternoon tea at the British Museum, one of my favorite traditional teas in London.
The Museum is free to visitors and is close to multiple Tube stops in Zone 1.
The Mattress Factory, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
The Mattress Factory in Pittsburgh, PA, is a unique contemporary art museums that challenges the preconceptions of the visitor and encourages them to get involved in the process of art.
While many tourists flock to the Andy Warhol Museum to pay homage to the town's most beloved artist, this lesser known spot is worth a visit, too.
Each room contains perplexing and one-of-a-kind art installations, making for a perfect afternoon rain or shine.
Contemporary art museums are so much fun to take kids to as they’ve got great perspectives on the exhibits. Encourage them to explore and describe what they’re seeing. You might be surprised at their reactions!
My favorite installation is the Infinity Dots in Mirrored Room by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama. If you're traveling through town, definitely make it a must-see!
Adult tickets are $22, but members of the museum get in free.
The Getty Center, Los Angeles, California
Submitted by: Adventures of a Carry-on
Perched on a hilltop in the Santa Monica mountains overlooking the City of Angels, the Getty Center represents the best of great architecture, art and nature.
Built of white travertine and glass, this architectural beauty by Richard Meier perfectly captures the California sunlight and is an important aspect of your overall visit.
Aside from being a beautiful and inspiring place to visit simply for the location and the architecture, the permanent collection, changing exhibitions and outdoor art on view at the Getty Center, reaches across European and American history from medieval times to the present.
I never miss a chance to visit the Getty Center. It is one of the most enriching and educational places in the world for me.
Plus, the beautifully designed and manicured garden is a perfect place to relax in the California sun after a day of sightseeing.
The Getty Center is free to enter, though parking does cost $20 per car. Still, considering how expensive everything is in Los Angeles, that’s a bargain for a day of art and learning.
National World War II Museum, New Orleans, Louisiana
History buffs, plan to visit here immediately. This museum in the Central Business District of New Orleans is incredible, and offers exhibits on multiple floors across 2 buildings.
You’ll learn about the build up to the war, the war efforts at home, and both the Pacific and European theatres.
I did my M.A. thesis on London during World War II, so you know I had to read everything. Both of the Cosmos Mariners kids, who were 7 and 10 year old at the time of our visit, loved this place, too.
Many of the exhibits were interactive: they got to explore a replica of a kitchen from the early 1940s, complete a scavenger hunt for different types of planes, and listen to veterans’ audio interviews.
While the larger topic of the war is difficult, the museum presents everything in a way that anyone—regardless of their previous knowledge of the conflict—will be able to take away valuable insights.
The curators also did a great job of balancing topics like the Holocaust with the sensitivity of viewers, meaning I was comfortable letting my kids explore pretty much everything in the museum. (There was one video in the European theatre section that showed the Holocaust survivors being liberated. I had my sensitive 7-year-old skip that one.)
We spend about 5 hours here, and could’ve come back a second time. Highly recommend as one of the essential New Orleans kids’ activities!
International Museum of Surgical Science, Chicago, Illinois
Apothecary exhibit at International Museum of Science | source
Submitted by: Wayfaring Views
In 1935, the International College of Surgeons was founded with the goal of promoting the “exchange of surgical knowledge."
The museum in Chicago was opened in 1954 and is a repository for its collection of historically significant surgical instrumentation, artworks, books and manuscripts.
One of the more charming displays in the museum is a replica of a 19th century apothecary.
The museum also has displays of surgical instruments, statuary of significant people from the medical field, Ben Franklin’s bi-focal glasses and other curiosities.
These exhibits make the museum kind of creepy but it’s also quite earnest. The museum also houses a beautiful library with over 500 feet of shelves and contains 1,000 rare texts.
The Dalí Museum, St. Petersburg, Florida
The exterior of the Dalí Museum
Submitted by: The Calculated Traveller
Home to the largest private collection of Salvador Dalí artwork in the world, I love that tours at the Dalí Museum, both self-guided audio and docent led, are complimentary.
The tours allow the visitor to take full advantage of the Dalí experience by helping you to understand the meaning of the images and symbols that he incorporated into each piece of art.
Spending time exploring the beauty of the architecture of the museum itself, studying the genius of this surrealist artist's paintings (some are eight feet tall and cover entire walls) and sitting in the sculpture garden on a sunny day is a great way to spend an afternoon.
The museum is located near the pier in downtown St. Petersburg, which puts it in easy walking distance to discover some of the best museums in St. Petersburg, Florida, for families including the Morean Arts Center, the Chihuly Collection, and the Fine Arts Museum.
>> For more suggestions on what to do in this area, check out my complete first time visitors guide to St. Pete Beach and Clearwater, Florida! <<
Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), New York City, New York
A heavyweight in the world of contemporary art, photography, and architecture, MOMA should rank high on any list of things to do in New York City.
Collections in this Manhattan museum are arranged chronologically so visitors can see how modern and postmodern art has changed and reinvented itself multiple times.
If you’re visiting with kids, there are several ways to get them engaged in the exhibits. Ask at the information desk for one of the free Art Quest brochures, which guides kids through a handful of the museum’s permanent displays on an interactive scavenger hunt.
About once a month—usually around the 15th—the museum hosts a kid-centric art walk through the museum, which is free to any family visiting MOMA.
Adults are $28 (if you buy online ahead of time) or $30 at the door. Kids are free.
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, New York
Submitted by: Ginger on the Go
The Met is well known for its Egyptian Temple, Armor Collection, Greek and Roman sculptures, and many other wonderful artifacts.
Take time to wander through the many galleries, where you’ll learn about history, art history, and culture ranging from medieval Europe to 20th century African American art.
However, my favorite part of the Met is the less explored rooftop.
It can be tricky to navigate and during busy periods there are often long waits for access.
Each summer the Met installs a new exhibit on the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden, so be sure to check that out during your visit.
Kids will enjoy the wide variety of art classes, family museum tours, story times, and classes that are available.
Tickets to the Met Fifth Avenue (the main museum) are $30 for adults, though NY locals can pay what they wish with a valid ID. Children 12 and under free.
The Lightner Museum, St. Augustine, Florida
The Cosmos Mariners kids in front of the Lightner Museum
This museum is housed in a building that was once the Hotel Alcazar, and the museum’s architecture has retained much of the hotel’s Art Deco decadence.
Across the museum’s multiple floors, visitors can see an eclectic mixture of modern art, antique furniture from the Hotel Alcazar, a massive crystal goblet collection, and sculpture.
Downstairs, you’ll find the mummy of an Egyptian child as well as a taxidermied lion that once belonged to Winston Churchill.
My kids loved this place since there was such a wide variety of exhibits and areas to explore. In addition to the more traditional art displays, the museum offers up the chance to walk through the hotel’s old bathrooms and saunas. Docents are on hand to share more about the history of the Hotel Alcazar.
You can even dine inside the hotel’s old pool! Cafe Alcazar is placed in the deep end of the massive pool structure, and it serves up a delicious lunch (I’d recommend reservations).
The Lightner Museum is an incredible mixture of things: part art museum, part hotel relic, and a completely unique spot in one of Florida’s most incredible cities. It’s a must do when exploring St. Augustine with kids!
Hakone Open Air Museum, Hakone, Japan
Just one of the many beautiful green spaces at the Hakone Open Air Museum
Submitted by: Just Go Places
One of our favourite museums is the Hakone Open Air Art Museum in the Hakone region of Japan.
Easily accessible by train from Tokyo, this open air museum is set in the majestic mountain side near Mt. Fuji.
The museum contains many famous names of contemporary sculpture from around the world, including Picasso, Henry Moore and Rodin.
We also enjoyed its many family-friendly aspects such as the artwork pieces where children are encouraged to climb and touch and the koi pond where you can feed the fish.
The Hakone Open Air Art Museum was a welcome respite from the noise and crowds of Tokyo.
If you go in the autumn, the mountains nearby will have a full display of color, which adds even more to this museum experience.
Edo-Tokyo Museum, Tokyo, Japan
Paper lanterns at the Edo-Tokyo Museum | source
Submitted by: Travel Yes Please
NOTE: The Edo-Tokyo Museum is currently under renovation and will not reopen until 2025.
This museum showcases what life was like in Edo and chronicles its transition to modern-day Tokyo.
There are large-size replicas of buildings, including my favourite, the Kabuki theatre, as well as automated exhibits, scale-model dioramas illustrating life of the townspeople and displays with tiny figurines carefully placed to show people going about their daily errands.
There are also some interactive areas and hands-on displays that help make the Edo-Tokyo Museum a fun and engaging place to learn about Tokyo’s past.
Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Israel
Pottery on display at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem
Submitted by: My Adventures Across the World
One of the best museums I have visited recently is the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.
A funky looking building with an incredible architectural structure, what makes this museum a place to visit in Jerusalem is the fantastic exhibition of artifact and objects that help get a better understanding of the history and culture of the region.
Even more so, on a separate building there is the Shrine of the Book where the Dead Sea Scrolls are kept.
These 800 scrolls were found in 1947 and later on in 1956 in various caves in the northwestern shores of the Dead Sea.
They have been dated to around AD 132-35 and their importance lies in how much they reveal of the history of the region, and their obvious religious significance.
Osaka Castle Museum, Osaka, Japan
The exterior of the Osaka Castle Museum
Submitted by: Not a Ballerina
Located inside the imposing Osaka Castle, the museum is spread across five floors and you spiral down through the levels after enjoying the vast views over Osaka from the observation deck on top of the castle.
The exhibits cover many important aspects of the history of both Osaka and Japan, focusing on the castle’s varied iterations over the centuries, and although they don’t all feature English explanations there’s plenty to explore and learn.
I’ve long been particularly taken by the dioramas which light up with holographic people to illustrate Osaka’s history.
Recently they’ve added the chance to dress up in samurai outfits and that’s a fun way to really get a feel for Japanese history.
Art Science Museum, Singapore
Submitted by: Once in a Lifetime Journey
This iconic building in the Marina Bay area of Singapore is a museum where you can find innovative, creative and modern exhibitions by the likes of LEGO or renowned artists like Dalí (who you can also see at the Dalí Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida, above).
The building stands out for its incredible architecture, which is very photogenic from the river onboard a river cruise.
At night, it is lit magically.
Once a month, the museum also has chill out sessions with performances.
Museum of Islamic Art, Doha, Qatar
The Museum of Islamic Art is the finest museum in the Emirate and one that houses the most complete and important collection of Islamic art --both secular and religious-- on the planet.
The building itself is monumental, thanks in no small part to architect I.M. Pei, who was coaxed out of retirement by the Emirate to undertake the ambitious project’s design, a center piece of Qatar’s goal to redefine itself as an international cultural center.
Pei admitted he knew nothing about Islam and little about the Islamic world, so at 91 he set off on a six-month quest to fill that knowledge gap.
The result was a five-story 45,000 square meter structure built on a small island constructed at the southern end of Doha Bay, housing 14 centuries of the finest Islamic art and artifacts collected from across the Middle East, Europe, Asia and Africa.
The collection runs the gamut: metalworks, ceramics, jewelry, woodwork, textiles, manuscripts, coins and glass are all included.
Buddha Tooth and Relic Museum, Singapore
This oddly named museum is found in a temple that houses the purported left canine tooth of Buddha.
It is therefore one of Singapore’s most popular spiritual hubs for Buddhists. It also attracts over 3.6 million visitors from all religions annually looking to learn more about the history, art and culture of Buddhism.
One of the reasons I love this museum, apart from its highly spiritual influence and the free vegetarian meals it provides its visitors, is its mix of old and new.
From the outside, the temple looks like a traditional Tang dynasty imperial Chinese building with its slanting bamboo roofs and red wooden beams.
On the inside, you’ll see that this $75 million complex built in 2007 enjoys air conditioning, lifts and TV screens.
I love the play of old and new, spiritual and materialistic, a true depiction of modernity and the bustling city in which it is housed.
War Remnants Museums, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
One of the many machines used during the Vietnam War | source
Submitted by: Getting Stamped
This museum tells the story of the long and controversial war that the U.S. and Vietnam engaged in during the 1960s.
This well done museum covers the horrific and often graphic devastation that the war brought to this former French colony.
It’s not an easy museum to walk through; you’ll more than likely need some tissue listening to some of the audio tapes.
Of all of the museums on this list, I think this one would be the most difficult to attend with kids. The materials covering the Vietnam War are presented unflinchingly, so many younger kids will either not understand what they’re learning about or will be frightened by the imagery and content.
You’ll have to make that call based on the ages of your kids and their overall personalities.
I however think it’s one of the most impactful museums and one I walked away with so knowing so much.
When picking which Vietnam destinations to visit, definitely make sure to have a few days in Ho Chi Minh City and spend a few hours at the War Remnants museum.
Tickets for adults are 40.000d (about $1.50), while kids 6 and under are free.
National Museum, Jakarta, Indonesia
Submitted by: Wander with Jo
The National Museum in Jakarta is a mecca of culture, history royalty and heritage.
My favorite piece was the statue of a king, over 4 metres tall, standing on a pile of skulls and, of course, the penis sheaths worn by Papuan men.
With gold treasures, monumental statues of kings and ancient Hindu-Buddhist artifacts, this museum has been preserving Indonesian heritage for over 200 years now.
CMP Block Museum of the Arts, Taichung, Taiwan
Submitted by: Lemonicks
An old department store, some school buildings and a deserted parking lot were converted into a modern and clean museum in Taichung, Taiwan.
It was named CMP Block Museum of Arts. The team spent a lot of effort and turned the whole area into a “living museum”.
The outdoor space has lots of geometrical and intriguing art figures and designs, involving aesthetics in our life.
The museum has no boundaries and pedestrians are encouraged to come to the exhibitions which are held throughout the year as per the theme and holiday trends. But the half buried cars, which are my favourite, are a permanent feature.
South Australian Museum, Adelaide, Australia
Submitted by: The Traveling Tom
Come learn about the history of Adelaide and beyond! The South Australian museum is free, which makes this offering even more irresitible.
There are three permanent galleries, which revolve around Earth science, biology, and Australian culture.
In the Earth science section, you can see meteorites, fossils, and rare minerals that have been found in this part of Australia.
In the Biology section, guests can learn about the animals that make up the unique ecosystems here, including giant squid, dolphins, kangaroos, and elephants.
Dive into Aboriginal history in the cultural section, and learn how Australian history is directly tied to Southeast Asia, the Pacific Islands, and beyond.
Rodin Museum, Paris, France
Submitted by: Sher She Goes
The famous “The Thinker” statue at Musée Rodin in Paris
The Rodin Museum is not so much a traditionally, stuffy museum but more a beautifully curated house and garden dotted with art from one of Paris’ most famous sculptors.
A walk into a room here, a stroll through the garden path: every couple of feet, a new work awaits!
Paris actually has two museums dedicated to Rodin- the old Hotel Biron in central Paris, the Villa des Brillants at Meudon, which was once Rodin’s home.
The Hotel Biron was Rodin’s workshop and where he subsequently donated his entire collection of sculptures to the French state.
Here, you’ll find some of his most famous works, including the The Thinker, The Kiss and The Gates of Hell.
The Thinker is the most popular sculpture here, and you can find it in the garden on the right hand side in a beautiful little circle surrounded by carefully sculpted bushes and flowers.
Russian Central Air Force Museum, Monimo, Russia
Submitted by: Inspired by Maps
My favorite museum is the Russian Central Airforce museum in Monino, and is a must see!
Not far outside Moscow, it's the largest aviation museum in Russia and the largest collection of Russian aircraft in the world outside the current Russian military!
You’ll find fields of rusting Soviet airpower you can't see anywhere else in the world, including rows upon rows of fighter jets through to supersonic bombers.
A Russian knock off of the Concorde and the largest helicopter ever built are just a few of the many highlights.
Some of these aircraft were the backbone of the Russian Air Force during the Cold War while there are others that are still in service.
One of the most fascinating aircraft on display is the Sukhoi T-4, which is an experimental bomber from the 70's. Able to reach speeds three times the speed of sounds, four were originally built but now only one remains.
This fascinating museum is a must visit for anyone with even a passing interest in aviation history when in Moscow.
11/07/95, Sarajevo, Bosnia
Submitted by: Two Scots Abroad
To describe the 11/07/95 Museum in Sarajevo as a favorite museum might sound off—especially considering it educates visitors about the 100,000 deaths caused by the four-year conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
This small but powerful space displays images taken during the war and projects videos of interviews from survivors and footage of the heartbreaking tragedy on two large screens.
The videos discuss the Sarajevo Siege, where citizens lived under gunfire and the risk of being shot at from the mountains every time they left their homes, as well as the atrocities which occurred at the United Nations 'safe area' Srebrenica.
Here, 8000 Muslim boys and men were slaughtered, the greatest impact of genocide that the country felt.
The museum offers guided tours for those looking for more information about the film still images on the walls too.
Stromness Museum, Orkney Islands, Scotland
Find artifacts from Scapa Flow, Skara Brae and the Ness of Brodger at the Stromness Museum, as well as many other pieces that date back to the Neolithic Age.
This little museum lets you step through the history of the Orkney Islands.
You can:
explore the Ness of Brodger’s artifacts,
learn about whaling, the Hudson’s Bay Company, who recruited Stromness workers to go to Canada for the fur trading outposts, and
follow the German Fleet in Scapa Flow in both WWI and WWII.
The Stromness Museum is rich with history, and you’ll come away with a great understanding of Orkney Island life.
Comic Strip Center, Brussels, Belgium
Did you know that comics originated in Belgium?
Despite the regular production of Batman, Superman, and other comic-related movies and books in the US, Belgium was home to the first comic series in the world, including The Adventures of Tin-Tin.
The Comic Strip Center in Brussels is a huge gallery featuring early sketches and famous figures that walk you through the history of comics.
After walking through this museum, you’ll come away with a better appreciation behind the art and creativity that led to the worldwide obsession with comic books and their unforgettable characters.
Cinquantenaire Museum, Brussels, Belgium
Submitted by: CheeseWeb
From the outside, the Cinquantenaire Museum in Brussels, Belgium doesn’t look that large, particularly since it is dwarfed by the towering Cinquantenaire triumphal arch.
Don’t let appearances fool you; inside is a warren of art and artefacts from all over the world.
The exhibits are organised loosely by region and you’ll find displays dedicated to global cultures from the First Nations of Canada to ancient Egypt to Iran and India.
This museum of civilisations is part of the Royal Museums of Art and History gifted to the Belgian people by the royal family, and it is in a constant state of renovation.
This means some wings are at the cutting-edge of museum technology, while others are a step back to museums of the past, making for an interesting cultural study in itself.
My favourite hidden away corner of the Cinquantenaire Museum is dedicated to Belgium’s glorious Art Nouveau past.
The display features jewellery and decorative items contained inside an entire Art Nouveau shop interior designed by Brussels’ architecture legend Victor Horta.
Olympic Museum, Lausanne, Switzerland
Tamason Gamble, Travelling Book Junkie
The Olympic Museum in Lausanne encourages participations from its visitors, making it much more engaging than the traditional museum.
Nothing on show is trapped behind a glass barrier, but, instead, everything is placed out in the open allowing visitors to really see everything.
From the Olympic torches to the outfits worn by Torvill and Dean during their Olympic gold winning performance, you can get up close with it all.
It is also the most interactive museum we have ever visited.
From trying to beat Usain Bolt’s world record 100m time to completing cross-country running tracks and competing with yourself against a beeping wall of illuminating lights, it is easy to see why people spend hours here.
As soon as you walk up the well-manicured gardens you know this museum is going to be special.
The famous Olympic rings hang high and many famous athletes, now immortalized in stone, have been placed around the grounds.
Once inside you wander up a sweeping slope unable to see what the interior of the museum has in store for you – it is all kept a mystery until you enter into the inner sanctum.
This is a museum that all ages will love.
Museum of Brands, Packaging, and Advertising, London, England
Submitted by: Fiona Travels from Asia
This museum is much more than a collection of advertising artifacts and thus caters to a much larger audience than those interested in consumer culture.
This evocative museum features an amazing time tunnel where British products, packages and brands from Victorian times to the present are exhibited.
For British visitors, this tunnel is like a walk down memory lane. Foreign travelers who might not be familiar with British brands will still learn a lot about British history and social developments through these artifacts.
I particularly found it fascinating to see women’s magazines in the 19th and early 20th century displayed here.
Looking at these made me realize how much women’s roles in the British society have changed in a positive way, although stereotypes such as “home economics is a woman’s business” are still prevalent in many societies nowadays.
One more reason to visit this museum is its beautiful café with a view to a stunning courtyard garden.
One just can’t stop feeling inspired here.
Helsinki City Museum, Helsinki, Finland
Submitted by: The Crowded Planet
The Helsinki City Museum is definitely one of the best I've ever seen! It's a more recent addition to the Helsinki museum scene, this museum is free, making it accessible to visitors on any budget.
In a city that is known for being very pricey, it's great that there's a new addition to the list of free things to do in Helsinki.
Normally, city museums are quite stuffy and boring, but the Helsinki City Museum includes interactive exhibitions and installations.
For example there have been past exhibitions on smell, which recreated iconic Helsinki smells, and on history, which presented sceneries related to the shared past of the city.
There's also a children's exhibition, and another called 'Time Machine' that will make you feel as if you travelled back to the early 20th century.
Natural History Museum, London, England
Submitted by: You Could Travel
This incredible museum requires at least a full day to start, and you’ll likely want more. Here, you will encounter interactive exhibitions including a journey into the Earth's core, where you can experience our planet's beautiful and forceful side.
There are also rooms filled with meticulously catalogued skeletons, information about dinosaurs, mineral displays, and so much more.
The museum also has an Earth science-focused garden that carries visitors through time and space.
Plus, the building itself is stunning, having been built by Alfred Waterhouse in the 1880s.
The Natural History Museum in London offers free entry, although a discretionary donation is advisable.
Transport Museum, Budapest, Hungary
Submitted by: LooknWalk
Exterior of the Transport Museum | source: Looknwalk.info
It’s SO much more than cars! The Transport Museum is large and covers all means of transportation. Visitors can walk in old, restored train carriages and fly on a simulator.
You’ll even get a certificate if you complete your flying well!
Walk through the rooms filled with motorcycles and cars, both antique and modern.
Elsewhere in the museum, you’ll find a train car and railway station where you can pretend to wait for the next train.
Many of the descriptions are in Hungarian, but most of the displays also have an English translation.
Children under 6 get free admission and young people ages 6-26 get 50% off.
Neon Museum, Warsaw, Poland
Submitted by: My Wanderlust
The Neon Museum is located in the Praga district of Warsaw at the grounds of Soho Factory, one of the artistic hubs in the city.
The museum itself was founded by my friends Ilona Karwinska and David Hill, who had this crazy idea to preserve old neon signs from the cold war times.
What started as a passion turned out to be a huge success! The Neon Museum is now known as one of the highlights in Warsaw, welcoming numerous tourists each day.
All the old neon signs got the second chance to shine again and they are as beautiful as ever!
The museum constantly welcomes new items in the collection so each visit there is different. When you come to Warsaw, a visit in the Neon Museum is a must!
Blists Hill Victorian Town, Shropshire, England
This working Victorian museum in Shropshire, England is interactive. Guests walk around the town just as you would have in the Victorian period.
Visitors also can purchase real life products in the shops—which include a bakery and a fish and chip shop—have a beer in the local while they enjoy a sing song, ride a merry-go-round, or visit the pigs on the farm.
You're having so much fun you don’t realise you're learning about history at the same time.
The museum does an excellent job at highlighting the ways that England has changed since the Victorian period—and all of the ways that we’re still just the same.
Kids will love playing on the little playground on-site, taking a bus around town, and dressing up in the Victorian Photography Studio.
Tickets to Blists Hill are currently £26.50 (about $33 USD) for adults and £15.50 (about $20 USD) for kids.
Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
Submitted by: Surfing the Planet
The modernist complex of Hospital de Sant Pau in Barcelona was designed by the Catalan architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner and was built during more than two decades at the beginning of the 20th century.
It was a functioning hospital for almost a century, and during that time it was probably the most beautiful hospital complex in the world with a beautiful art-nouveau façade that takes your breath away.
The hospital building was declared an UNESCO World Heritage site in 1997, and, after closing its doors in 2009 as a hospital, it was converted into a museum and cultural center, which opened in 2014.
When you visit the Hospital de Sant Pau, you will see beautiful art-nouveau pavilions decorated with stained glass and mosaic, separated by beautiful gardens.
In the museum you can learn a lot about the history of the city as well. This museum is also our personal favorite, because it is in our neighborhood (El Guinardó), and we lived through the building’s conversion into a museum from a hospital.
Musée de l'Homme, Paris, France
Submitted by: World in Paris
After being closed for more than five years for renovation work, the much awaited Musée de l’Homme, or the Mankind Museum, came back to the Parisian museums scene in style.
Inaugurated in 1938, the Musée de l’Homme focuses on the evolution of humans from the anthropological point of view but also with a social and cultural approach.
This description may sound a little bit serious but, actually, this is a great museum to visit with kids, thanks to a winning combination of different experiences—contemplating, touching, listening, smelling—where all the senses are engaged.
The Musée de l’Homme has three main sections, questioning visitors about our past but also about a sustainable future in this world: "Who Are We?," "Where Do We Come From?," and "Where Do We Head?"
The museum has many engaging exhibits.
I especially liked the large hanging rail with 91 plaster busts representing human diversity and the wall-sized world map of the spoken languages, where visitors can stick the mural tongues out to listen to some of these languages.
I also enjoyed shaking hands with a chimpanzee, a Neanderthal man and an homo sapiens--all real scale models!
The bonus of the Musée de l’Homme? An amazing view over the Eiffel Tower, with no crowds.
