Museums For All
One cannot go to Europe and fail to visit the greatest art museums for all in the world. We highlight Italy (Rome and Florence), Paris and Amsterdam as our favorite cities to do some museum trekking, but London, Madrid and many other European Cities are also great places to visit and spend some time with beautiful art.
Nevertheless, we also highlight a number of American museums for all with a different focus as well as two for a visit in New Zealand. Every great city, anywhere in the world, has a great museum that is a worth a visit.
Museums for All Amsterdam – Van Gogh Museum
Like Paris, see below, Amsterdam is a city of Museums. The Rijksmuseum is well known as it is the home of the Dutch Masters including Rembrandt’s famous Night Watch. However, we prefer the more modern and we believe the more interesting Van Gogh Museum. Perhaps it is our interest in impressionism, but it is also the amazing amount of work that Van Gogh produced in such a short, troubled life. The Museum does an excellent job of taking you through his life.
Museums for All – Paris, France
Paris is the “City of Lights” and the City of Museums for all. Of course, the Louvre, with its famous Mona Lisa painting is well known and clearly not a hidden gem. However, we wish to highlight three other museums that are certainly worth visiting while in the “City of Lights”:
Musee d’Orsay
Perhaps almost as well known as the Louvre, the Musee d’Orsay is our number one favorite museum to visit while in Paris. It holds the largest collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionists paintings in the World and unlike its better known cousin, The Louvre, it is easily toured and can be visited thoroughly in less than a day. It hosts paintings from all the well known Impressionist Artists including, Monet, Manet, Degas, Renoir and Van Gogh.
Picture By Daniel Vorndran / DXR, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=31953569
Okay, the Musee d’Orsay is not exactly a hidden gem. However, this picture with Robin looking out into Paris from behind one of the Museums great clocks is truly one of our best. The building hosting the museum was formerly a train station and as seen in the overall picture of the museum, these clocks are truly impressive. Below, are some of favorite pictures from the museum. The picture on the right is the famed American artist, James Abbott McNeill Whistler’s picture of his mother.
The Musee de l’Orangerie and the Musee Marmottan Monet
Two other great museums in Paris that focus on the works of Claude Monet are the Musee de l’Orangerie and the Musee Marmottan Monet.
The Musee de l’Orangerie is located in the western corner of the Tuileries Garden near the Place de la Concorde. It is a little difficult to find, but once you are there you will be rewarded with the sight of the eight famous large Water Lillies paintings of Claude Monet.
If you haven’t had enough Claude Monet at this point, then you must visit the Musee Marmottan Monet. This museum, located on the western side of Paris, near the Bois de Boulogne, hosts a collection of over 300 hundred of Claude’s paintings. They were gifted to the museum by Claude’s son Michel, his only heir.
For more information about all three of these great collections of impressionist and post-impressionist work please see our Best Impressionists in Paris Post.
And if that is not enough Monet, we highly recommend you visit his home in Giverny. It is a short train ride or river cruise west of Paris following the Seine River on the way out to Normandy. See our discussion and pictures of Giverny in Our Favorite Gardens. If you want to read more about France, please visit Planning a Trip to France Post.
Museums for All – Spain
Madrid, much like Paris and Amsterdam is a marvelous city to visit, especially to see the museums and the great works of art. We love the Prado Museum, and we plan on visiting the Reina Sofia National Art Museum on our next trip to Madrid in 2024. Having visited the Picasso Museum in Barcelona in 2022, we desperately want to see his famous ‘Guernica” painting.
Prado Museum – Madrid
The Prado Museum is a world-renowned art museum located in central Madrid, Spain. It is the main Spanish national art museum and houses the world’s richest and most comprehensive collection of Spanish painting, as well as masterpieces of other schools of European painting, especially Italian and Flemish art. The museum was opened on November 10, 1819, and was originally conceived as a house of science. However, King Ferdinand VII finally decided to use it as a museum to store the royal paintings.
The museum has an extensive collection of over 35,000 works of art, including paintings, sculptures, prints, and drawings. Some of the most famous works in the museum’s collection include Las Meninas by Diego Velázquez, The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch, and The Third of May 1808 by Francisco Goya. The museum also has an extensive collection of works by other famous artists such as El Greco, Titian, Rubens, and Rembrandt.
Picasso Museum – Barcelona
Museums for All – Italy
In many ways, Italy itself is just one big museum. Nevertheless, we found some fascinating museums in Rome and in Florence. If you want to read more about Italy, and in particular our visit to the Vatican Museum, please visit Planning a Trip to Italy Post.
Rome – Palazzo Barberini
The Palazzo Barberini is a true Hidden Gem, as it is somewhat off the beaten path in Rome. It is a former palace facing the Piazza Barberini in the Rione Tevi section of Rome. Today, it houses the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Antica, the main national collection of older paintings in Rome. The paintings are magnificent, including some from the famous artist Carvaggio.
Rome – Vatican Museums
The Vatican Museums , while not hidden, are a true Gem. They display works from the immense collection amassed by the Catholic Church and the papacy, throughout the centuries, including several of the most well-known sculptures and most important masterpieces of Renaissance Art in the world. The museums contain roughly 70,000 works, of which 20,000 are on display. The tapestries, particularly the map of Italy, are in the Vatican Museum and are magnificent.
Florence – Uffizi Gallery
The Uffizi Gallery is one of the most important Italian museums and the most visited. It is also one of the largest and best known in the world and holds a collection of priceless works, particularly from the period of the Italian Renaissance. The Uffizi is one of the first modern museums. The gallery had been open to visitors by request since the sixteenth century, and in 1769 it was officially opened to the public, formally becoming a museum in 1865.
Florence – Accademia Gallery
While perhaps as not as well known as the Uffizi, the Accademia Gallery is well known for its famous statue of David. It also has other sculptures by Michelangelo and a large collection of paintings by Florentine artists, mostly from the period 1300–1600. It is smaller and more specialized than the Uffizi, the main art museum in Florence.
Verrocchio’s David
At a temporary gallery that we visited in Florence we witnessed another famous statue of David, created by Leonardo da Vinci’s teacher Andrea del Verrocchio. It is rumored that Leonardo served as a model for this sculpture.
Museums for All – New Zealand
During our tour of the North Island in New Zealand, we found two wonderful museums; one in Auckland and one in Wellington. Certainly there are other great museums in New Zealand, but these were the two we found memorable.
Auckland, NZ War Museum
The Auckland War Museum is a true Hidden Gem. While there are very well done War Memorial displays, the highlight for us is the Māori artifacts. This is the largest collection of Māori artifacts in the world. In addition, the museum has excellent traveling exhibits. During our visit, in February, 2023, the museum was displaying an excellent exhibit on Stonehenge (see our post on England, UK). Interestingly we visited Stonehenge the previous year. However, we learned more about the history of Stonehenge, who built it and why, then we had learned from our actual visit.
Wellington, The Museum of New Zealand, Te Papa Tongarewa
The Te Papa Tongarewa Museum in Wellington is the National Museum of New Zealand. Like the Auckland War Museum it contains a very nice collection of Māori artifacts including additional war and travel double-hull canoes. The Museum also contains a very nice collection of items related to the Treaty of Waitangi (see the New Zealand Post for more information about the treaty.
However, the highlight for Cos and Robin is the WWI exhibit. This exhibit has larger than life statues of soldiers and stories about their bravery in the war, and in particular the battle in Gallipoli. It is truly a Hidden Gem exhibit. Many people, including Robin, were brought to tears by the emotion of the exhibit.
As we traveled around New Zealand we were puzzled that there were so many exhibits and memorials for the veterans who died in WWI, but little recognition of WWII. Despite the fact that WWI was fought primarily in Europe and not in Asia/Pacific like WWII, this stumped our limited historic knowledge of the wars.
As a result of visiting the museums, we learned that WWI was for the New Zealanders and others a much more horrific war and fought under very poor conditions with many deaths. We also learned that New Zealand and Australia were essentially forced to join Great Britain in their WWI European Campaigns. We don’t know if that was the reason for this apparent difference in honoring their soldiers. If anyone reading this post has more knowledge, please comment below and let us know your thoughts. Perhaps this might explain it.
Museums for All – United States
While history in Europe is clearly much more specific and detailed in their museums than in the United States. The United States based museums are equally important. Our collection of US museums is clearly limited. But we will continue to expand the list as we visit more and more and US museums.
Many of our US museums are in NYC, where we love to visit. However, the list here is limited. If you want to learn more about museums in NYC, please visit our new post “31 Cool and Unique Museums in Manhattan, NYC”.
New York City: Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially “the Met“, is the largest art museum in the Americas and is one of the most popular museums in New York City. It presents over 5,000 years of art from around the world for everyone to experience and enjoy. The museum lives in two iconic sites in New York City—The Met Fifth Avenue and The Met Cloisters1.
There are many reasons why you should visit the Met. Here are some of them:
- The quality of the collection: The quality and diversity of the pieces at The Met are as good as, or arguably better than, those at The Louvre and The British Museum. Founded in 1870, it actually is home to one of the largest permanent collections in the world — more than 2 million objects.
- The layout: The galleries cover an astonishing 17 acres!
- You can take photos.
- The Egyptian Art: This wing was one of our favorites to walk through.
- Visit The Met for three days on ONE ticket!:
In 2022 the Met welcomed 3,208,832 visitors, ranking it eighth on the list of most-visited art museums in the world, and the second-most visited art museum in the United States, after the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. The Met actually has a Hidden Gem sister museum, The Met at the Cloisters.
The Met at the Cloisters
Visiting the Met at the Cloisters was on Cos’s Museum Bucket List for a long time. The Cloisters is a museum in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan, located in Fort Tyron Park in Upper Manhattan. When he finally made the journey up to the northern tip of the Island of Manhattan, he was not disappointed. Certainly, the museum is a real Hidden Gem, as the trip to visit the museum can be a real challenge. Nevertheless, the art work is spectacular.
The museum specializes in European medieval art and architecture, with a focus on the Romanesque and Gothic periods. It is definitely worth visiting if you are interested in history as well as love to see a beautiful place, and have the time to make the trip to a different part of the city.
New York City: American Museum of Natural History
The American Museum of Natural History is one of the most popular museums in New York City. It is located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and is home to one of the largest permanent collections in the world — more than 2 million objects.
There are many reasons why you should visit the American Museum of Natural History. Here are some of them:
- The quality of the collection: The museum collections contain about 35 million specimens of plants, animals, fungi, fossils, minerals, rocks, meteorites, human remains, and human cultural artifacts1.
- The layout: The museum complex comprises 20 interconnected buildings housing 45 permanent exhibition halls, in addition to a planetarium and a library. The galleries cover everything from dinosaur fossils to faraway galaxies, discussing the worlds past and present.
- The admission fee: Admission is free or “pay as you wish” for New York State residents. For all other visitors: $25 for adults, $17 for seniors, and $12 for students.
- The dinosaurs exhibitions: There is one thing the Museum of Natural History NYC is famous for and that’s their dinosaurs exhibitions.
- The Hayden Planetariuim. One of the best planetariums in the world.
Washington, DC: Smithsonian
While New York City is often thought of as the #1 museum city in the United States, don’t count out the Smithsonian Collection, primary in Washington, DC as a close second. The Smithsonian is the world’s largest museum, education and research center complex.
The best Smithsonian museum to visit may depend on personal preferences and interests. Based on total visits in 2021, the National Museum of Natural History is the most popular Smithsonian museum. It is followed by the National Zoo and the National Museum of American History. You can find more information about other Smithsonian museums in Washington D.C. by this website: https://washington.org/smithsonian-overview.
During our July, 2023 visit to Washington, DC we visited the Hirshorn Museum and the Sackler Gallery of Asian Art. While both museums are less popular than the larger museums, the art collections were excellent.
New Orleans: National WWII Museum
The National WWII Museum, formerly known as The National D-Day Museum, is a military history museum located in the heart of New Orleans. The museum is located approximately 7 minutes from Decatur Street in the French Quarter. The museum focuses on the contribution made by the United States to Allied victory in World War II. Founded in 2000, it was later designated by the U.S, Congress as America’s official National WWII Museum in 2004. The museum is a Smithsonian Institution affiliated museum, The museum emphasizes the American experience in World War II.
Sacramento: California Train Museum
Okay, Europe doesn’t have all the interesting museums. Located in California, a true Hidden Gem, the California Train Museum in Sacramento is well worth a visit. Robin and I made a quick stop on our way to Lake Tahoe. The museum has a collection of some vintage steam locomotives. It also has an interesting collection of momentos from the joining of the Transcontinental Railroad. See the picture on the bottom right. If you are interested in other fun things to do in California, please see DIY Travel in California.
Seattle, Washington: Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum
Dale Chihuly, most likely, is the worlds most famous glass artist. His exhibition in Seattle, next to the Space Needle is truly incredible. We classify this as a Hidden Gem, because we were not aware of the Museum before we got to Seattle, and this has totally opened us up to really appreciate blown glass art.
Museums for all: Virginia USA
One of our oldest states, has some great museums. We recommend you visit them all.
Richmond, Virginia: Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
Richmond Virginia has a fine collection of museums. While visiting Richmond we visited the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and the Science Museum of Virginia. The Virginia Museum of fine Arts is one of the largest art museums in North America. It has a collection of over 33,000 pieces of art, and contains a wonderful collection of Russian Faberge pieces. It also has nice collections of African, Asian and Tiffany art.
The Museum also has a great collection of outside statue art. One piece we found very interesting was a glass piece developed by Seattle artist Chihuly.
Richmond, Virginia: Science Museum of Virginia
The Science Museum of Virginia is a hands-on museum that is fun for children of all ages. We enjoyed the space and flight exhibits. The pendulum exhibit at the entrance to the museum demonstrated Earth’s rotation. Clearly, it demonstates to everyone’s fascination the way the earth rotates. Suprisingly, we really enjoyed the museum, although it is much more centered around hands-on experiences for children.
Virginia: Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s Art Museums
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s vast collections comprise more than 70,000 examples of fine, decorative, mechanical and folk art. Included are exceptional examples of American and British ceramics, glass, furniture, textiles, costumes, tools, firearms, numismatics, metals, toys, prints, maps, paintings, drawings and architectural fragments from the 17th, 18th and early 19th centuries, as well as American folk art up to the present day. Many of these objects are shown in innovative changing exhibitions at the Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg, the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum and the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum.
Particularly, we enjoyed the Edward Hicks Collection which included his series Peaceable Kingdom. Although it is not considered a religious image, Hicks’ Peaceable Kingdom exemplifies Quaker ideals. Hicks painted 62 versions of this composition. The animals and children are taken from Isaiah 11:6–8 (also echoed in Isaiah 65:25), including the lion eating straw with the ox. Hicks used his paintings as a way to define his central interest, which was the quest for a redeemed soul.
Sarasota, Florida: John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art
When you hear about the Ringling Museum, the first thing you think about is the circus. And yes, there are plenty of exhibits that recall the great days of the circus. You learn loads of fun facts about the circus. We loved the miniture layout of the travelling circus with all its train cars, tents and animals. But what makes this museum a true Hidden Gem, is the collection of fine art. The pictures below don’t due it justice, but we strongly recommend that you visit Sarasota, Florida and this wonderful museum.
