Top 100 best museums in the Netherlands

The Anne Frank House is the house where the Jewish girl Anne Frank was hiding with seven others for more than two years in World War II. The museum owns the original diaries and writings of Anne Frank. An important part of the museum is the ‘Achterhuis’, the place where Anne Frank hid and wrote her

More than 860 paintings and nearly 1,200 works on paper by Vincent van Gogh have been preserved. The Van Gogh Museum owns the largest Van Gogh collection, consisting of 201 paintings, 437 drawings and 31 prints. In addition to works by Van Gogh, the museum exhibits a collection of works by other maj

The Zaanse Schans is a neighborhood in Zaandam. Formally it is not a museum, but an outdoor attraction. It features old mills and houses. The Zaans Museum is located in the Zaanse Schans.

The Rijksmuseum is located in a unique historical building from 1885 by architect PJH Cuypers. The museum is dedicated to Dutch art and Dutch history. The collection is exhibited in over two hundred rooms and includes works by Dutch masters such as Rembrandt van Rijn, Johannes Vermeer and Frans Hals

The Mauritshuis is home to the Best of Dutch painting from the Golden Age. The compact, yet world-renowned collection, is situated in the heart of The Hague, right next to the government centre. Masterpieces such as Vermeer's Girl with a Pearl Earring, The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp by Remb

Diergaarde Blijdorp is one of the largest and oldest zoos in the Netherlands. It consists of several parts. The Oceanium is situated at the main entrance and contains many different fish. In addition, Diergaarde Blijdorp is divided into continents. It features the Arctic area, the North America area

Madurodam is a miniature park. Through models of buildings it illustrates a Dutch town and the Dutch society. Everything is recreated on a scale of 1 to 25. It includes buildings of historic city centers, modern residential areas, airports, roads, canals, port areas, natural areas and farmlands.

The Escher Museum is housed in ‘Paleis Lange Voorhout’, the former winter palace of Queen Emma. The museum is dedicated to the 20th century art of MC Escher. The museum features some 130 works by the Dutch graphic artist. Imporant in the museum is Metamorphosis III, a seven meter long woodcut. This

Museum Panorama Mesdag is an icon of The Hague, with the Panorama of Scheveningen being the absolute highlight. Step into the largest painting of The Netherlands, be inspired by the impressive collection of works by Hendrik Willem Mesdag and Sientje Mesdag - van Houten. Visit surprising exhibitions

The Kröller-Müller Museum is located in the National Park De Hoge Veluwe. The museum has a world famous collection that mainly consists of 19th and 20th century art. The sculpture garden and the large collection of works by the Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh are the most important. The museum has so

In Burgers' Zoo, visitors travel around the world. The animals live in 'eco-displays’ that simulate the natural habitat of the animals. Burgers' Zoo has the world's largest indoor rainforest in which thousands of mammals, reptiles, birds and fish life. It also features ‘Burgers’ Desert’ with camels,

The Louwman Museum features the world's oldest private collection of automobiles, including historic cars, motorcycles and carriages. The internationally oriented collection is collected by two generations of the Louwman family and includes approximately 250 classic automobiles. Each car tells its o

Kunstmuseum Den Haag (formerly known as Gemeentemuseum Den Haag) is a museum with a diverse collections of modern art, applied art, musical instruments and fashion. It owns the largest collection of works by Piet Mondrian and is the centre of the Hague School, owning works by Israel, Jongkind, Maris

The Rembrandt House Museum is housed in the former house of the Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn. This famous painter lived and worked in this house for nearly twenty years. The interior is restored to the style of the times in which Rembrandt lived. The museum displays paintings by artists who work

Artis is the oldest zoo in the Netherlands that opened its doors in 1838. The zoo features 27 historic buildings, of which most date from the 19th century. Because of this, Artis has a distinctive charm and a historical dimension that lacks in more modern zoos. The monumental aquarium contains tropi

Sealcenter Pieterburen, located in the quaint village of Pieterburen in the Netherlands, is a rescue center dedicated to the care and rehabilitation of seals. The center was formerly known as Seal Nursery Pieterburen, reflecting its initial focus on caring for young orphaned seals. Today, the center provides care for sick and weakened seals of all ages, with the aim of releasing them back into the wild once they have recovered.

Airborne Museum Hartenstein is housed in the former headquarters of the British forces that was used during the Battle of Arnhem in 1944. The museum is dedicated to this battle. The collection includes weapons, equipment, videos and pictures that illustrate the battle. In addition to the regular col

Safaripark Beekse Bergen is the largest wildlife park in the Benelux. Visitors can come face to face with wild animals.

The Frans Hals Museum is Haarlem’s museum of fine art. Home to the world’s biggest collection of Frans Hals's paintings, alongside works by famous Haarlem artists such as Judith Leyster, Cornelis van Haarlem and Jacob van Ruisdael. And discover also the museum’s rich collection of art from the 1880s

Teylers Museum has an important collection of drawings by Italian and Dutch masters, including famous prints and drawings by Rembrandt and Michelangelo. It also has a collection of paintings with works from the Romantic and Hague School. In the monumental Oval Room, various instruments are exhibited

The Zuiderzee Museum in Enkhuizen brings stories of the people who once lived on the shores of the Zuiderzee to life. See, hear, feel, taste and smell everyday life round the Zuiderzee as it was before the Afsluitdijk (the great IJsselmeer Barrier Dam) turned the former inland sea into what we now k

The Dutch Resistance Museum illustrates the history of people in times of war. The visitor learns about the Holocaust, resistance and daily life. The exhibition consists of authentic objects, film and audio clips, documents and photos. In addition there is a permanent exhibition on the Dutch East In

The Netherlands Open Air Museum presents an overview of the Dutch history of two centuries ago to the more recent history. It focusses on the culture associated with the everyday lives of ordinary people. It features various antique houses, farms, factories, mills, a farmer bar and shops from differ

Step into the wonderful world of automatic playing instruments and be amazed by the cheerful music. Through listening and experiencing, you will learn about the stories of each instrument varying from the smallest music box to the biggest street organs. During the Musical Tour, you can hear the inst

In the GaiaZOO the visitor travels across the world in one day. From Africa to the rainforests of the Amazon and to the far North. The includes gorillas, rhinos, giraffes, cheetahs and lions. In addition it contains animals that are found in no other zoos in the Netherlands, including musk foxes, wo

A visit to Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen is a journey through the history of art. Dutch and European masterpieces provide a comprehensive survey of art from the early Middle Ages to the 21st century, from Bosch, Rembrandt and Van Gogh to Dalí and Dutch Design.

The Muiderslot from 1285 is a medieval moated castle. It is a square castle with five towers, battlements, embrasures and a drawbridge. One of the inhabitants of the castle was the Dutch writer and poet Pieter Cornelis Hooft, who lived there in the seventeeth century. The visitor is taken back in ti

The Heineken Experience is housed in the former Heineken brewery in 1876. The building has served as a Heineken brewery until 1988. Visitors are introduced to more than 150 years of craftsmanship. In a show, Heineken shows that it is the most international beer in the world. In a 4D experience visit

DierenPark Amersfoort is a wooded zoo that contains rhinos, monkeys, bears, tigers, hyenas, elephants, and various birds.

Museum Ons' Lieve Heer op Solder is a former clandestine church. The building looks like an ordinary canal house. It is one of the oldest museums in the Netherlands. The 17th century church with an altar, corridors and approximately 150 seats is situated in the attic. After the Protestant Reformatio

The Loo Palace was a royal palace for three centuries. The museum shows how the successive royal families lived in the palace. The collection consists of some 160,000 objects, including paintings, sculptures, applied art, furniture, costumes, carriages and books. In a multimedia presentation, the st

The Railway Museum is housed in the ‘Maliebaanstation’ from 1874. The museum is a museum park where the story of almost 175 years of railways in the Netherlands is told. The museum collection includes steam and diesel locomotives, electric locomotives, carriages and trams. The museum is divided into

Corrie ten Boom House - The Hiding Place is a museum dedicated to the resistance fighter Corrie ten Boom. The museum is housed in her former home. Part of the house is decorated as it was decorated in the past. Among other things, visitors can see the shelter, a small space behind a false wall in th

Museum MORE is located in the former town hall in Gorssel. It is the largest museum for contemporary Dutch realism. Works by leading contemporary Dutch realistic artists of the past 100 years are displayed in the museum. From Jan Mankes to Pyke Koch and Carel Willink to Charley Toorop. Their body of

The Afsluitdijk Wadden Center is an exhibition center situated on the Afsluitdijk in Kornwerderzand, in the Dutch province of Friesland. This location offers a unique opportunity for visitors to learn about the history and future of the Afsluitdijk, the Wadden Sea, the IJsselmeer, and the Fish Migration River.

The National Maritime Museum holds one of the world's largest and most notable maritime collections including paintings, ship models, navigation instruments and sea charts. Discover 500 years of Dutch maritime history and its strong link to society of today and tomorrow. The collection includes ship

The Apenheul Primate Park is a zoo where visitors walk among monkeys. Among other animals, it features squirrel monkeys, apes, gorillas and orangutans.

The National Museum of Ethnology is housed in the monumental, former academic hospital. It owns more than 240,000 objects and 500,000 audiovisual sources from around the world. The collection ranges from pants from polar bears’ fur to Indian headdresses and old pictures of Australian Aboriginals to

Dolfinarium Harderwijk is dedicated to dolphins. It features ten different shows with the dolphins and their trainers. After the show, visitors can come face to face with the dolphins in the underwater room. Besides dolphins, it also contains walruses, porpoises, sea lions, seals, rays and sharks.

Castle De Haar is the largest and most luxurious castle in the Netherlands. The castle illustrates the world of luxury in which the baron family lives. The museum consists of the castle, a collection of art objects and the surrounding park and the associated property. Both the guest houses and serva

Take a journey through the world of aviation. Discover the fascinating story of Dutch civil aviation with more than 100 unique aircraft. Step aboard the Constellation, discover the story from the historical Fokker Spin, feel how it is to fly a plane in one of the simulators and explore the enormous

In the museum you will experience the occupation and the persecution, the opposition, D-Day and the Battle of Overloon.

Madame Tussauds Amsterdam is a wax museum. The collection of wax sculptures includes famous pop stars, monarchs and famous Dutch painters, but also wax sculptures of movie stars and famous people like Albert Einstein, Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley. In addition there are moving sculptures and vibr

Body Worlds: The Happiness Project is a permanent exhibition. The exhibition illustrates the story of the human body and the impact of happiness on health. More than 200 anatomical specimens of human bodies are exhibited that illustrate the complexity, resilience and vulnerability of the human body.

The National Military Museum is located on the site of the former air base Soesterberg. The museum presents a broad thematic story on Dutch defense. It shows the meaning of the Dutch armed forces in the past, present and future. The National Military Museum especially focusses on the Dutch army and

The Bataviawerf is a shipyard where ships from the Golden Age are reconstructed that were important in the Dutch maritime history. In 1995, the Batavia was completed, after which the second project started: ‘De 7 Provinciën’, an admiralty ship from the 17th century on which Michiel de Ruyter had man

Vermeer Centrum Delft is dedicated to the life of the Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer (1632-1675). The museum covers his work and his relationship to Delft. The permanent exhibition illustrates how Johannes Vermeer worked in his studio. In addition, the stories are told of the 37 paintings that the V

NEMO Science Museum is located on the foundations of the IJ-tunnel in a building from 1997 designed by Renzo Piano. It is the largest science museum in the Netherlands. The visitor can discover the world of science and technology, by doing experiments on scientific and technical developments related

Hortus Botanicus Leiden, of the Leiden University is the oldest botanical garden in the Netherlands, from 1590. The first plants were planted in 1594. Four centuries of collecting has resulted in a garden with a variety of exotic unknown plants. The Hortus features an Orangery from 1744, tropical gr

The Wereldmuseum Rotterdam is housed in the former clubhouse of the Royal Yacht Association from 1851. The collection consists of art objects and various other objects from cultures around the world. The permanent exhibition consists of some two thousand objects. Unique in the collection is a statue

In the Maritime Museum Rotterdam, you can discover the enormous effect that the maritime world has on our daily lives. Travel through the maritime past and present in modern exhibitions for adventurers large and small. Listen to stories and admire prize exhibits from our leading collection. The muse

The Philips museum provides a fascinating picture of the way in which Philips evolved from a small incandescent lamp manufacturer into a large and prestigious international group of companies. From the company’s origins in 1891 to the innovations of tomorrow.

The National Museum of Antiquities is housed in an old monumental building and ‘Begijnhof’. It is the Dutch centre for archaeology. A large part of the collection consists of objects related to ancient Egypt. Unique is the two thousand year old Egyptian temple in the central hall of the museum. Besi

The Tropenmuseum is housed in a monumental building on the grounds of the former ‘Oosterbegraafplaats’. The museum illustrates different cultures and the daily lives of people around the world. The collection consists of artworks, utensils, films, music and photos. The visitor travels through the wo

Fabrique des Lumières brings art to life: the work of the greatest artists ever, combined with image and sound using new technology.

The Memorial centre Westerbork transit camp is dedicated to the history of 'Polizeiliches Durchgangslager Westerbork'. The museum commemorates the lives of a hundred thousand Dutch Jews. There are several objects on display and the original walls of the barracks and various films are shown. Old road

Stedelijk Molenmuseum De Valk is housed in De Valk, a mill from 1743. The museum features the only preserved mill house in the Netherlands, from 1900. In the sleeping loft and the storage loft, the history and technology of mills and wheat grinding is illustrated. In the attic the visitor can see th

The Hermitage Amsterdam is part of the Hermitage in St. Petersburg (Russia). The museum organizes changing art exhibitions. A new exhibition is opened twice a year. The exhibited collections are on various topics such as Alexander the Great, Flemish art, religious art or Russian tsars. A separate bu

The Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam is the must-see museum of modern and contemporary art and design. The collection is one of the most important collections of modern and contemporary art and design in the world. The most meaningful movements in both art and design are represented with (inter)national

Naturalis owns a large natural history collection of 37 million objects. The collection is partially exhibited in the museum and includes animals, plants, fossils and stones from around the world. All aspects of nature are covered in Naturalis. The visitor travels from the first life on Earth to the

The DAF Museum is housed in an old brewery from 1884. The museum illustrates the history of Van Doorne's Automobile Factory (DAF). The permanent exhibition consists mainly of DAF vehicles including prototypes and produced sports cars. Furthermore, the museum houses a large collection of trucks. That

The Jewish Museum is housed in four synagogues. It is a modern museum about Judaism. Three exhibitions illustrate the culture and history of Jews in the Netherlands. The exhibitions consist of various utensils, paintings, drawings, films, photos and 3D presentations. Part of the museum is the Jewish

Museum Prinsenhof Delft is one of the Top 100 UNESCO monuments in the Netherlands. The museum illustrates the story of William of Orange and his role in the formation of the Dutch Republic. It is situated at the place where he was killed. The museum exhibits paintings, historical artefacts, prints a

The Amsterdam Museum presents exhibitions on a wide range of urban issues. We share knowledge, show art and heritage, and tell relevant stories - past, present and future. Historical and contemporary stories that make the city what it is, in all its forms. We do this at our museum locations in the h

The Eise Eisinga Planetarium is the oldest functioning planetarium in the world. It was built between 1774 and 1781 by Eise Eisinga. The entire building is a national monument. All planets move around the sun in the same amount of time as real planets do. In addition the museum exhibits an extensive

Ecomare is a nature museum with seals, bird, an aquarium and a ‘duinpark’. The museum is dedicated to the North Sea and the Wadden Sea. Many different species of fish, starfish and shellfish live in the various aquariums. Each aquarium shows another habitat, illustrating the differences between life

The Orchideeën Hoeve is a butterfly garden where thousands of butterflies fly around. The garden is 1500 m², making it the largest butterfly garden in the Netherlands. In the butterfly valley 55 different tropical species of butterflies fly and there are wildlife trails and mountain streams. The mou

Museum Beelden aan Zee focuses exclusively on contemporary sculpture.The first sculpture in the collection was purchased by the founders Theo and Lida Scholten, in 1966. The museum was founded in 1994 and now holds nearly one thousand sculptures and several hundreds of medals. This is the only Dutch

The Kijk-kubus is the fully decorated museum house of the ‘Blaakse Bos’. The Kijk-Kubus is part of the cube houses that were built and designed by architect Piet Blom in the period 1982 – 1984. The interior illustrates how people live in these cube houses. Exhibition of models, photographs and multi

The Drents Museum is housed in an old building from 1885. The museum originally opened in 1854 and is one of the oldest museums in the Netherlands. A large collection on the prehistory of Drenthe is on display. In addition, the museum displays bog bodies such as the ‘Yde girl’ and owns a collection

The Portuguese Synagogue, also called Esnoga, is a synagogue that dates to the 17th century. At the time of construction it was the largest synagogue in the world. The building is still used for worship by the Portuguese Jewish Community. The collection illustrates the four century history of the Po

The Rietveld Schröder House is designed by Gerrit Rietveld in 1924. The house is completely designed according to the ideas of the De Stijl art movement and is since 2000 on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Visitors can see how pliable and multifunctional in particular the central "living room" is on

The Royal Palace of Amsterdam is the palace of the royal family where visitors are received. When the palace is not used by the royal family, the building is open to the public. It was built between 1648 and 1665 as a town hall, designed by Jacob van Campen. Several works by famous artists refer to

Kasteel Keukenhof is a castle from 1640. It was built as a mansion for the former commander of the VOC, Adriaen Maertensz. Block. In the 19th century, the towers were built, and the house became a castle. The various rooms are decorated with furniture from different style periods and years. The inte

Steenkolenmijn Valkenburg illustrates the world of mining. In an underground, in mining style decorated film room, a promotional film is shown of the State Mines (DSM) from the sixties. The film gives an overview of the mining industry. Ex-miners show the world of coal mining, while visitors walk al

The Groninger Museum is housed in a building that is considered one of the highlights of postmodernism. The museum has four diverse collections with the following themes: history of Groningen, applied art, contemporary art and old art. The collection includes works by Hendrik Willem Mesdag and Jozef

The Zaans museum is housed in a modern building on the Zaanse Schans. The museum illustrates the cultural and industrial heritage of Zaandam. It exhibits paintings, films, photographs, objects and painted furniture. The Verkade Pavilion is part of the museum, a chocolate and biscuit factory from the

The Municipal Cave was created in the past when the Romans needed the marl from the soil as a building material. Fossils and shell layers show the natural conditions of the past. The Municipal Cave also provides an overview of various artistic expressions and living conditions of different generatio

The Noordbrabants Museum is housed in the former Military Governorate, a monumental 18th century city palace. It is a museum of art, history and culture of North Brabant. The museum illustrates the cultural history of North Brabant by exhibiting historical objects and works of art. The collection ra

Museum De Mesdag Collectie is housed in the old house of the Dutch painter Hendrik Willem Mesdag. The museum exhibits paintings by French and Dutch masters of the 19th century, which were collected by Hendrik Willem Mesdag and his wife Sientje Mesdag-Van Houten. To decorate the house and the museum,

Discover the wonders of the human body: your body, at CORPUS! See, feel, and hear how your body works in a spectacular, nerve-wracking journey. Follow the acrobatics of a red blood cell in the 5D heart theater and learn all about the intestines, kidneys, and the command center of the human body: the

What is it like to be blind or partially sighted? You can read about it or someone can tell you about it from their own experience, but during a visit to MUZIEUM (MUSEEUM) you will experience it yourself. Enter a world in which your other senses - hearing, smell, touch and taste - suddenly play a fa

Museum of the Canals is housed in a monumental seventeenth-century canal house. The museum illustrates the Amsterdam city expansion that was caused by the construction of canals. In addition to an interactive tour, there is a temporary exhibition in our period rooms.

At Avifauna Bird Park, visitors are introduced to hundreds of different birds, including the American bald eagle, the giant toucan, the blue-yellow macaw and the white-necked sapphire, the smallest species of bird seen in European zoos. Flamingos live in the Cuban brackish water swamp, and in the Ph

The Botanische Tuinen Utrecht are built on and around Fort Hoofddijk from the 19th century and covers an area of seven hectares. There are six different gardens. The rock garden features various herb plants. The theme garden features plants to smell and feel. The animal garden is made for small anim

The Steamtrain Hoorn Medemblik museum is dedicated to the steam train in the Netherlands. The museum uses the former freight and classification yard of that station of Hoorn. Steam trams drive from village to village on the railway between Hoorn and Medemblik from 1887. The collection consists of st

The Museum of Prostitution illustrates the life of prostitutes that work in the Red Light District, as well as illustrate the life of courtesans in brothels.

Museum Catharijneconvent is housed in a medieval monastery from the 15th century. It is dedicated to the past and present of Christianity in the Netherlands. The museum exhibits old and contemporary art, and various other objects that illustrate the story of Christianity. The permanent collection is

The Hunebedcentrum is dedicated to dolmens and Funnel beakers, the builders of the dolmens. The tombs were built some five thousand years ago. 52 of the 54 dolmens in the Netherlands are found in the province of Drenthe. The museum shows how Funnel beakers lived five centuries ago. Visitors can also

Trompenburg Tuinen & Arboretum used to be one of the ‘buitenplaatsen’ in Cralingen. Now there are gardens with fountains, herbaceous borders, a desert greenhouse and an aviary. There are thousands of perennials and bulbs, and hundreds of trees and shrubs. The old part of the garden has an English la

The EYE Film museum is housed in the iconic white building at the IJ. Everything is film in EYE. This national museum of film manages more than forty thousand movies and features every genre: a representative selection of movie history, with classics blockbusters and cult movies. It is a museum of f

Dierenrijk is a zoo especially aimed at children.Children experience what it is like to climb like a ibex, to sit on a stick like a chicken or to walk like a stork. Dierenrijk also organizes regular themed events and live performances and daily feeding presentations take place.

Kunsthal Rotterdam is housed in a modern building designed by Rem Koolhaas. It is an exhibition site of 3300 square metres. Kunstal Rotterdam does not have its own collection. For this reason, it organizes various exhibitions on art and culture. There are often several exhibitions simultaneously, al

The Africa Museum is dedicated to African art and culture. The indoor museum exhibits a collection of African art. The collection is based on themes such as African architecture, contemporary African art, African vision on art and beauty and society and religion. The outdoor museum illustrates the d

The Archeon is a theme park that shows how people lived in ancient times. Visitors can participate in various activities themselves, such as sword fighting, calligraphy and archery.

Micropia is located in the historic ‘Ledenlokalen’ from 1870. In Micropia the invisible world of microorganisms is made visible and accessible for a broad audience. Micro-organisms such as fungi and bacteria are everywhere and define how our world looks like. Visitors are informed about current issu

The Fries Scheepvaartmuseum is dedicated to the history of Frisian shipping from the 17th to the 20th century. The collection consists of two parts: the history of Frisian shipping and the history of the city Sneek. In addition to shipping and the regional history, the museum also covers water and i