Top 23 Must-Visit Popular Museums In India 2023

India is a beautiful country with many attractions. This nation offers cultural, traditional, historical, natural, and adventurous activities. There are several gorgeous and distinctively themed museums in India if you are seeking museums.

Here are some list of top famous museums In India

1.   National Museum, New Delhi

This is the country’s largest museum. Do you wish to view monarchs’ train carriages or Buddha’s relics? Here is the place to go if you want to see any form of historical element. This museum has various manuscripts, artworks, statues, utensils, craft items, armors, clothing, and other collections.

2.   Rail Museum, Delhi

The Delhi Rail Museum is one of the country’s few train-themed museums. This train-themed museum spans 10 acres and has over 100 life-sized trains from ancient India and the modern globe. This museum offers a toy train that will carry you around the museum’s numerous exhibits and halls.

The museum’s top galleries include a collection of signalling gear, functional models, antique railway décor items, old pictures, classic blue prints, and others. The main trains displayed in this museum include the 1928 Electric Locomotive, old railway saloons used by rulers of the realm, the 1914 fire engine, and others.

3.   Albert Hall Museum, Jaipur

The Albert Hall Museum is one of Rajasthan’s oldest museums. The construction of this museum is a spectacular example of the famed Indo-Saracenic architecture. Mummies from Egypt have their own display in the museum. Exhibits from the nineteenth century may be seen in the Clay Art Gallery and the Jewellery Gallery. A separate exhibition features a variety of historical musical instruments used in India.

4.   City Palace Museum, Jaipur

The City Palace is a notable tourist destination in and of itself. The museum is one among the palace’s attractions. The palace’s Chandra Mahal has been transformed into a museum.

This structure’s walls are covered in paintings and sculptures with inherent structures. A significant collection of armors, firearms (mainly pistols), and other battle equipment may be found. This is India’s greatest collection of pistols and firearms.

5.   Partition Museum, Amritsar

The town hall in Amritsar has been turned into the Partition Museum, which tells the tale of British India’s division into India and Pakistan. This museum, which opened in 2017, has newspaper clippings, pictures, notebooks, and other items. There is an exhibit with oral lectures and movies about partition history. Maps and census data concerning the borders are available at the Boundary Commission Room.

6.   City Palace, Udaipur

The City Palace is now a museum available to the public. Photographs made with Udaipur’s first camera in the 19th century, portraits of royalty, a silver collection, a musical instrument display, and other exhibits are available. The architecture of the palace is a gem by itself. The Pratap Gallery houses a variety of weapons and armors, including an elephant trunk that horses use to disguise themselves as elephants. Mor Chowk is well-known for its peacock embellishments and inlay work. This courtyard also has mosaic art pieces. Zenana Mahal has the Mewar Music Gallery, which houses the royal family’s collection of Mewar musical instruments.

7.   Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jodhpur

Umaid Bhawan Palace is a popular tourist site in Jodhpur. A substantial section of this castle is dedicated to displaying royal antiquities and treasures. The Queen presented the Victorian symbolic flag to Maharaja Jaswant Singh. Some of the exhibits at this palace museum include a classic automobile collection, stuffed wild animals, pictures, small paintings, rare royal artefacts, beautiful murals, and old clock collections.

8.   Vintage And Classic Car Museum, Udaipur

This devoted luxury museum houses the classic automobiles of Udaipur’s kings. The museum has 20 historic automobiles, including four Rolls-Royces, 12 Mercedes models, an MG-TC, a 1939 Cadillac, a 1936 Vauxhall-12 convertible, and others. Apart from vehicles, there are solar-powered rickshaws, a Shell Fuel Station, a motor workshop, and other businesses.

9.   Dogra Art Museum, Jammu

This is a collection of miniature paintings from the Basohli area, often known as the Dogra art gallery. The museum includes around 7000 artefacts, including rare manuscripts, metal artefacts, Shah Jahan’s gold bow, marble jharokhas, and others. This museum is well-known for its painting collection, decorative art exhibition, and terracotta collections.

10.  Patna Museum, Patna

This is one of Patna’s hidden gems, featuring Hindu and Buddhist art. The museum exhibits unique Victorian-era paintings, original WWI canon, a sacred relic box containing Lord Buddha’s ashes, and about 50,000 other rare things. A big bison is among the surviving animal structures in the natural history museum. The stone sculpture collection is well-known for its Buddha sculptures and Gupta-era relics. The Terracotta gallery contains terracotta artefacts dating from the Mauryan era through the rule of the Guptas.

11.  Princes of Wales Museum, Mumbai

This museum is in Mumbai, close to the Gateway of India. It was founded during the turn of the twentieth century. This museum has numerous areas, such as history, archaeology, and art. There are several manuscripts and other data linked to the Chalukyas and Gupta period.

12.  Mani Bhavan, Mumbai

In Mumbai, a historic edifice devoted to Gandhi has been transformed into a museum. Gandhi’s headquarters were formerly housed in this edifice. Now, the museum houses a big library, a collection of images from Gandhi’s life, press clippings, Gandhi’s chamber, a replica of Gandhi’s deathbed, spinning wheels, and other items.

13.  Chitra Museum, Goa

This is one of the country’s newest museums, with over 4000 relics dating back to old colonial times. Traditional relics, archaic tools, vessels, farming equipment, and other items may be found in the museum. There are also festival palanquins, musical instruments, organic farm exhibits, and other attractions.

14.  Hal Aerospace Museum, Bengaluru

HAL created the HAL Aerospace Museum in 2001 to showcase the history and accomplishments of Indian aviation. The museum houses several exhibits connected to the history of aviation, such as an exhibit of antique models of Indian aero engines. There are also a few authentic engines utilised by the Indian navy and aviation industries. This installation includes engines from Kiran, Jaguar, and Dornier aircraft. You may also participate in a simulated air traffic control tower or experience flight simulation.

15.  Folklore Museum, Mysore

This museum gathers folklore-related arts and crafts from around the state. There are three wings in this museum namely; Folklore section, huge doll wing, and folklife wing. Costumes, Hanuman crowns, Kathakali costumes, leather dolls, puppets, 200-year-old ink preparation, wooden altar, traditional musical instruments, sculptures, deities, and other items are on show in the folklore department. The doll wing has a significant collection of dolls and sculptures. Daily instruments, agricultural equipment, weaving implements, folk games, baskets, kitchenware, and other items are housed in the folklife wing.

16.  Indian Museum, Kolkata

This is a one-of-a-kind fashion museum. This museum houses skeletons, rare Mughal collections, jewellery, and other items. This museum is one of the oldest in the world.

This museum should be visited if you are in Kolkata, West Bengal. This museum houses archaeology, economic beauty, art, geology, and many more galleries.

17.  Government Museum, Chennai

This is in the Egmore neighbourhood of Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It was founded around the end of the nineteenth century.

There are several displays linked to botany, zoology, geology, and other sciences. There are several galleries dedicated to South Indian monarchs. There are other galleries dedicated to youngsters. This museum has a large library with historic books and numerous collections.

18.  Dakshinachitra Museum, Chennai

This is a living history museum known for its exhibitions of South Indian crafts, lifestyle, performing arts, architecture, and other cultural components. This museum, which opened in 1996, houses almost one million photographs and 4,220 items connected to Southern Indian heritage.The collection of 18 antique home constructions built by specialists to reproduce the history of India’s old living style is the museum’s main attraction. Silk goods, cotton textiles, cultural exhibitions of Brahminical groups, craft items, diaries, art works, and other items may be found. A huge library of literature on folklore, anthropology, art and craft, and other topics is available.

19.  Nizam Museum, Hyderabad

This is a museum with a one-of-a-kind collection. This museum is equipped with simply the presents that the last Nizam got at his silver jubilee celebration which was performed in 1936. It has several gold things, glass inlay work, diamond objects, silver elephants, a 1930 Rolls Royce card, a Jaguar Mark V, and other items. It also has the Nizam’s wardrobe and a 150-year-old elevator that was manually operated during his rule.

20.  Salar Jung Museum, Hyderabad

The architecture of this museum is its first draw. This museum has about 1.1 million objects in 38 galleries that cover two levels of this massive edifice. This museum houses art belonging to many monarchs and reigns from India, North America, Burma, Egypt, Nepal, China, and other countries.The dragger collection, Margaretta in Mirror, veiled Rebecca sculpture, 2nd century porcelain collection, clock collection, Quran collection, wood paintings, textiles, carvings, metallic works, and others are among the top exhibitions to view here.

21.  Calico Museum, Ahmedabad

This is a popular tourist attraction in Ahmedabad. It is a museum devoted to fabric art. This museum was founded in 1949 and exhibits cloth paintings ranging from prehistoric to modern times. The exhibits in this museum are quite appealing and have drawn a large number of foreign and local tourists.

22.  Paldi Kite Museum, Ahmedabad

This is a kite museum. Then again, who doesn’t? If you enjoy kites, this is an intriguing museum to visit. There are additional exhibits about the history of kites, advancements in kite manufacturing, kite flying skills, and so on.

23.  Napier Museum, Kerala

The Napier Museum was founded in the nineteenth century, making it the state’s oldest. This museum was named after the British governor of Madras (Chennai), Napier, and is located in the Trivandrum area. This museum is well-known for its collection of textiles, archaeological artefacts, ivory objects, bronze statues, stone sculptures, art, and other items. The museum is designed in the style of old Indo-Saracenic architecture. This is the greatest museum to visit if you want to learn about the historic lifestyle and culture of the region.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Which is the No 1 museum in India?

The National Museum in Delhi is India’s most iconic museum. The National Museum in Delhi is one of the most renowned museums in India and the world, containing approximately 200,000 artefacts from prehistory to the current era.

Which is the 2nd largest museum in India?

Kolkata’s Indian Museum – The Indian Museum is the country’s second biggest museum. The museum’s displays include dinosaur skeletons and a reproduction of the 2nd century BC Barhut Stupa.

Which is India’s most big museum?

The Indian Museum, founded in 1814 at the birthplace of the Asiatic Society of Bengal (at the Asiatic Society’s current location, 1 Park Street, Kolkata), is the first and biggest multifunctional museum not just in the Indian subcontinent but also in the Asia-Pacific area of the world.

Which is the most iconic museum in India?

The National Museum, one of India’s largest and most recognizable museums, houses a vast collection of artefacts from the majestic ancient age. 

What is the condition of museums in India?

This month, the Archaeological Survey of India wrote to the Union Cultural Ministry regarding two irreplaceable objects at Kolkata’s Indian Museum, a 2 BC Yakshi figure and a 3 BC Mauryan lion. 

 In 2011, UNESCO issued a damning study on the awful conditions at India’s top eight museums, noting sub-standard upkeep, lighting and signage, among other faults.  Our superb collections are evidence of a rich socio-cultural past, but when museums operate as just closed-door caretakers of treasures rather than aesthetically and intellectually spreading them to a large audience, they lose their mission.