Thank the stars for the world’s eccentric collectors; hoarders of objects beautiful, strange or downright odd. It is these documentors of the great and trivial - who want to show us all something wonderful about their collections and share the insights into humankind each of them illuminates - who have created the most fascinating, wonderful and precious museums the planet has to offer.

Boggle at the enormity of space, get nostalgic at childhood memories or be dumbstruck by the International Museum of Toilets… Whether you’re a history buff, tech-head or have an inexplicable fascination with clowns, you’ll find world-class collections here to pique your interest.

Never drag your heels around a dull museum again!

Then & now // History museums

Acropolis Museum // Greece
British Museum // UK
Forbidden City // China
Goethe House & Goethe Museum // Germany
Imperial War Museum // UK
Museum of Alchemists & Magicians of Old Prague // Czech Republic
Museum of Mummies of Guanajuato // Mexico
National Museum of Anthropology // Mexico
Old Operating Theatre Museum & Herb Garret // UK
Prison Gate Museum // The Netherlands
Sir John Soane’s Museum // UK
Styrian Armoury // Austria
Torture Museum // The Netherlands
Vasa Museum // Sweden
Viking Ship Museum // Norway
Whitney Plantation // USA

The world around us // Natural history museums

Kunstkamera // Russia 6
Messner Mountain Museum // Italy
Sarawak State Museum // Malaysia
Smithsonian Institution // USA

Human creativity // Art & culture museums

American Classic Arcade Museum // USA
Belgian Brewers Museum // Belgium
Burlesque Hall of Fame // USA
Coffee Museum // Brazil
Erawan Museum // Thailand
Ghibli Museum // Japan
Grammy Museum // USA
The Green Vault // Germany
Museum of Childhood // UK
Musical Instruments Museum // USA
Soumaya Museum // Mexico
Vodka Museum // Russia

Things that go // Science & technology museums

Bicycle Museum of America // USA
Big Hole & Open Mine Museum // South Africa
Exploratorium // USA
National Maritime Museum // France
National Rail Museum // UK
New Mexico Museum of Space History // USA
New York City Fire Museum // USA
Pencil Museum // UK
Porsche Museum // Germany
Sewer Museum // France
Sulabh International Museum of Toilets // India

Peculiar passions // Quirky museums

Avanos Hair Museum // Turkey
Clown Hall of Fame & Research Centre // USA
Cupnoodles Museum // Japan
Gopher Hole Museum // Canada
International Cryptozoology Museum // USA
Museum of Broken Relationships // Croatia
Watermelon Museum // China

About Lonely Planet: Started in 1973, Lonely Planet has become the world’s leading travel guide publisher with guidebooks to every destination on the planet. Lonely Planet’s mission is to enable curious travellers to experience the world and to truly get to the heart of the places they find themselves in.

Important Notice: The digital edition of this book may not contain all of the images found in the physical edition.