# Which of these museums have you visited? Do you have a favorite? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 24, 2010, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200 "2010-01-24T05:00:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/61 "2010-01-25T03:02:23Z")
The [Udvar-Hazy Center](http://www.nasm.si.edu/UdvarHazy/) of the [National Air and Space Museum](http://nasm.si.edu/) is a mindblowing experience. They have _a space shuttle._ How much better does it get than that? ---
**Author:** ![In\_Winnipeg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a8b319/32.png) [@In\_Winnipeg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/In_Winnipeg)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/62 "2010-01-25T03:24:56Z")
Jeez, I’ve never been to any of those…WAH! I have, however, been to: Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto Manitoba Museum of Man and Nature, Winnipeg National Museum of Ireland in Dublin James Joyce Museum (also Dublin) I have been to some of the cities you mentioned, but attending museums didn’t fit into my plans on those trips. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/63 "2010-01-25T03:29:18Z")
> [@In\_Winnipeg](#): > > Jeez, I’ve never been to any of those…WAH! > > I have, however, been to: > > Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto > Manitoba Museum of Man and Nature, Winnipeg > National Museum of Ireland in Dublin > James Joyce Museum (also Dublin) > > I have been to some of the cities you mentioned, but attending museums didn’t fit into my plans on those trips. You really are in Winnipeg! I grew up in Brandon, so we were at the Museum of Man and Nature or the Planetarium at least 4 times a year. If you ever find yourself 200km due west from there, there’s the [Commonwealth Air Training Plan Museum](http://www.airmuseum.ca/contents.html), which was started by the father of a friend. I still want to bring a copy of Patrick O’Brian and read it from the deck of the Nonsuch replica at the M of M & N next time I visit. Sorry, **Sidney** , completely missed your reference to the UBC Museum of Anthro. I used to cycle there twice a week from my apartment on Cambie - I was working my way through the cabinets one drawer per visit. Still never saw it all… ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/64 "2010-01-25T03:32:21Z")
American Museum of Natural History, NY is still my favorite. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/65 "2010-01-25T03:32:45Z")
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam Guggenheim Museum, NYC Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philly Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum‎, Boston ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 10:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/66 "2010-01-25T10:04:22Z")
I enjoyed the [Colombian National Museum](http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/South_America/Colombia/Departamento_de_Cundinamarca/Bogota-1579209/Things_To_Do-Bogota-National_Museum-BR-1.html) and the [Museo Del Oro](http://www.banrep.gov.co/museo/eng/home.htm) in Bogota. ---
**Author:** ![Negative\_Lite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Negative\_Lite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Negative_Lite)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 10:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/67 "2010-01-25T10:36:34Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > Was it…being renovated for a number of years, or something? Because I’ve never been, and my aunt lives in South Pasadena. She’s the one who took me to the Getty, and she’s also taken me to the Huntington Library. I feel like I remember that there was an art museum in LA being renovated… it just seems weird that I’ve never been if it’s the best art museum in LA. I don’t know. Norton Simon keeps a low-profile. It doesn’t surprise me you missed it - heck, I lived in Old Town Pasadena for two years and I didn’t visit it til fairly late in my stay. Check it out next time you’re in L.A. Not a world-class museum by any means but a cut above the LACMA, MOCA, and Getty for sure. [Website](http://www.nortonsimon.org/) ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/68 "2010-01-25T13:29:25Z")
Having grown up near New York, I’ve been to all the ones in NYC (and the ones in DC) on your list. I’ve always been partial to the American Museum of Natural History, which I used to make a pilgrimage to four times a year, at least. Its better, IMHO, than the Natural History museums in London, Washington DC, Chicago, and LA. Two other museums that belong on your list, which is shy on General Science museums, are the Exploratorium in San Francisco and the Ontario Science Center near Toronto. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/69 "2010-01-25T13:39:51Z")
The Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, N.Y., is a terrific museum. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/70 "2010-01-25T13:49:53Z")
Ditto the love for The Getty. I also don’t think I saw anyone mention the Dali Museum (St. Petersburg, FL). Actually, Florida has quite a few great museums but the Dali is my favorite. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/71 "2010-01-25T14:52:13Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUB](#): > > Ditto the love for The Getty. I also don’t think I saw anyone mention the Dali Museum (St. Petersburg, FL). Actually, Florida has quite a few great museums but the Dali is my favorite. I visited Los Angeles before the Getty was built; bits of the whole collection were sharing the [Getty Villa](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Getty_Villa) with the antiquities. It’s a marble villa (mostly based on one in Pompeii), clinging to a hillside overlooking the Pacific. Housed in such a sumptuous building in a stunning location, the collection was almost secondary. Now, I’ll imagine the antiquities have room to breathe. LACMA was half closed during our visit, because of funding problems. But I especially loved its [Japanese Pavilion](http://www.lacma.org/japaneseart/japan.htm)–because of the collection & the lovely setting. [The Autry National Center](http://theautry.org/)looks at the Old West (& New West) in depth–from Native American artifacts through Hopalong Cassidy lunch boxes. I’m not listing the great museums of Europe, etc.–because I haven’t been there. Of course they’re great. Until the Grand Tour, why not check out some options in handier locations? Of course The Smithsonian Institution offers a banquet of US & worldwide arts, history & science. In a childhood visit, the Castle was still packed with exhibits–The Spirit of St Louis, The Wright Flyer & The Star Spangled Banner hovered over a veritable cabinet of curiosities. And the Natural History Museum was dark & scary; you proceeded over the creaky floors to look at cave man skulls & mummified Egyptian bulls displayed in wooden cases. Modern museology presents us with well lit rooms & chatty interactive displays–but a part of me still yearns for the old, creepy style. However, modernization brought us the National Air & Space Museum, plus smaller gems like the Freer Gallery–including [Whistler’s Peacock Room](http://www.asia.si.edu/exhibitions/current/peacock.htm). The [San Antonio Museum of Art](http://www.samuseum.org/collections/collection.php?uid=1&show=artwork) is housed in a wonderful old brewery complex near downtown. The Latin American art collection ranges from Pre-Columbian to Modern, with a highly amusing detour into folk art. The Western Antiquities collection is first rate for this part of the country. Houston has large, growing fine arts & natural history museums–but jewel in our crown is [The Menil](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menil_Collection)–with all those Surrealists. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/72 "2010-01-27T22:32:20Z")
Science and Industry, Chicago. Smithsonian American History Museum, Washington. Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington. National Civil Rights Museum, Memphis. And the Spam Museum (you think I’m kidding? I’m not), Austin, Minnesota. ---
**Author:** ![Proudest\_Monkey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/proudest_monkey/32/13257_2.png) [@Proudest\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Proudest_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/73 "2010-01-27T23:27:01Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam > Guggenheim Museum, NYC > Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philly > **Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum‎, Boston** I just visited the Gardner in Boston last weekend for the first time. It is unlike any other museum, and hard to describe. Isabella Stewart Gardner simply collected pieces she loved, built a home for them, placed every little thing just so (with stipulations in her will that they not be rearranged), and left it for us to enjoy. Anyone named **Isabella** has free admission for life. The courtyard is breathtaking, but it is the overwhelming sense of the woman who created the collection that impressed me more than any single piece of art within. **L’Orangerie** , in Paris, is a must for anyone who likes Monet. ---
**Author:** ![maplekiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@maplekiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maplekiwi)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/74 "2010-01-27T23:40:04Z")
It wasn’t a bad idea Sydney! This is fun! The one you have listed that I would most like to visit is The Hermitage. Another vote for should have listed 🙂 are - my favourite National Portrait Gallery & V&A, London. Too small for inclusion but I really love them & remember them more clearly than my visits to larger art galleries - an art gallery in Winterthur, Switzerland & one in Fredricton, Canada. The names have gone out of my head, but I can check my diary if anyones interested. The museum/exhibition at Waitangi is very moving for New Zealanders. I like the Auckland War Memorial Museum & the Dunedin Art Gallery. ---
**Author:** ![footballisplayedwithyourfeet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9f8e36/32.png) [@footballisplayedwithyourfeet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/footballisplayedwithyourfeet)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 10:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/75 "2010-01-28T10:45:15Z")
As said before, you mention the huge museums in Madrid and Paris; but the Reina Sofia and Mudee d’Orsay are much better (in my opinion). ---
**Author:** ![RedWood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f08c70/32.png) [@RedWood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedWood)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/76 "2010-01-28T11:28:14Z")
[http://www.exploratorium.edu/](http://www.exploratorium.edu/) Best! Museum! Ever! ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200/77 "2010-01-28T11:59:13Z")
> [@RedWood](#): > > [http://www.exploratorium.edu/](http://www.exploratorium.edu/) > > Best! Museum! Ever! Hear, hear! Also—although it’s not of the caliber of the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, but what is?—the [Hiller Aviation Museum](http://www.hiller.org/exhibits.shtml) is a dear old favorite of mine. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-museums-have-you-visited-do-you-have-a-favorite/526200.md?page=3)