Top Miami Museums to Visit

From contemporary art museums with glorious bayfront views to a turn-of-the-century Mediterranean Revival villa and interactive science museums, Greater Miami & Miami Beach offers a wide variety of museums. Whether you’re interested in art, culture, history or science, they’re awaiting your discovery.

Miami’s Premier Art Museums

Enjoy Contemporary Art & Breathtaking Views

Pérez Art Museum Miami was designed by Pritzker Architecture Prize-winning architects Herzog & de Meuron, who drew inspiration from the iconic Stiltsville homes built offshore of Miami in the 1930s. Overlooking Biscayne Bay in Downtown Miami, the structure, with abundant outdoor space where you can marvel at the views, is worth the visit alone. Inside, the museum’s thought-provoking contemporary collection and visiting exhibitions focus on international art of the 20th and 21st centuries from the perspective of the Americas. It’s also home to Verde, a lovely on-site cafe with more inspiring views.

Discover Emerging & Underrecognized Artists

With free admission, an alluring location in the stylish Miami Design District and a collection of cutting-edge contemporary art, the Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami, (ICA Miami) is a must for curious art lovers. Dedicated to experimentation and intellectual exchange, the museum’s programming focuses on local, emerging and underrecognized artists, with visiting exhibitions that have highlighted contemporary icons like Judy Chicago and Lucy Bull.

Explore South Beach’s Modern Art Institution

Set inside a landmark Art Deco building from the 1930s that’s on the National Register of Historic Places, The Bass is a South Beach institution dedicated to modern art. Arriving at the museum, located in picturesque Collins Park, is part of the experience, with public art on display outside, including Ugo Rondinone’s “Miami Mountain” totem of massive, neon-painted limestone boulders and Sylvie Fleury’s “Eternity Now” neon sign on the museum’s facade.

Interact With Mind-Bending Art

For a one-of-a-kind, immersive art experience, Superblue is a boundary-pushing, 50,000-square-foot art space in Allapattah with a labyrinth of interactive mirrors, light displays and digital art. It features work by world-renowned contemporary artists, including James Turrell’s transcendent light  installation, JR’s monumental photo mural and Es Devlin’s mirrored labyrinth. You’ll interact with truly cutting-edge art that can be mind-bending.

History & Culture Museums

HistoryMiami Museum: Dive Deep Into Miami’s Past

One of the largest private regional history museums in the southeast U.S. and part of the prestigious Smithsonian Institution Affiliations program, HistoryMiami Museum in Downtown Miami entertains and educates with more than 13,000 artifacts dating back to pre-Columbian times. The permanent exhibition “Tropical Dreams: A People's History of South Florida” will get you up to speed on Miami’s history, while captivating visiting exhibitions have included the Beatles’ British invasion in 1960s Miami and more.

Vizcaya Museum & Gardens: Journey Back in Time

Modeled after grand European villas, Vizcaya Museum & Gardens was built in the 1910s as the private waterfront estate of millionaire industrialist James Deering. Taking in the views of the elaborate, manicured gardens will transport you to Versailles, but on the east terrace overlooking Biscayne Bay, it’s more like a palazzo in Venice. The Mediterranean Revival villa is filled with elaborate Renaissance tapestries, Rococo furniture, Chinese objets d'art, Roman sculptures and early-20th century paintings. Rooms are styled after different Italian cities: Milan in the Music Room, Palermo at reception and Venice in various bedrooms.

The Wolfsonian-Florida International University: Find Out What it Means to be Modern

Situated in a historic Art Deco building in the heart of South Beach, The Wolfsonian–Florida International University is a museum, library and research center with an intriguingly specific scope and mission. The collection of over 200,000 artifacts, photographs, design objects and artworks dating from 1885 to 1945 sheds light on the compelling influence of art and design and examines the essence of modernity. Curators work with a collection of historical advertisements, posters, clothing, photographs and film to design their exhibitions.

Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU: Investigate 250 Years of Jewish History

Set within a stunning 1930s-era Art Deco synagogue in South Beach that’s on the National Register of Historic Places, with 77 stained glass windows, a Moorish copper dome, Art Deco chandeliers and marble bimah, the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU explores more than 250 years of Jewish history through its permanent exhibit “MOSAIC: Jewish Life in Florida.” Through audio-visual presentations, films, photos, documents and artifacts, you’ll discover how the Jewish people have maintained their history, tradition and culture in Florida.

Immerse Yourself in Haiti’s Rich Cultural History

For over 20 years, the Haitian Heritage Museum in the Miami Design District has been committed to highlighting and preserving Haiti’s rich cultural heritage through art, historical artifacts, music, film and literary works. Designed as a mecca for those outside of and within the Haitian diaspora, it’s a hub for cultural exchange, education and community programming, with exhibitions that highlight everything from Haiti’s important historical figures to contemporary artists.

Enter a Fixture of the Coral Gables Community

Coral Gables Museum, situated on a grand plaza near Miracle Mile, takes visitors on a journey through Coral Gables’ architectural history. Housed inside a historic coral stone building, it showcases architecture, urban design and planning, all with an eye toward sustainability. A fixture of the local community, the museum hosts a wide array of events, including Gallery Night on the first Friday of the month, when it stays open late with live music and refreshments, and a Gables Bike Tour on the third Sunday of the month.

Ride Into History at Gold Coast

The Gold Coast Railroad Museum in South Dade houses more than 40 passenger cars, freight cars, locomotives and pieces of antique railway equipment. Ride one of the many historic railway cars (offered most weekends), view "Ferdinand Magellan," the private railroad car built for President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and explore the vast array of model trains while learning about South Florida’s fascinating locomotive history.

Visit Miami’s Stonehenge

The Coral Castle Museum & Sculpture Garden is a fascinating roadside attraction in Homestead. As the story goes, the 1,100-ton castle was secretly built single-handedly by one man inspired by lost love. It’s a mystery on par with Stonehenge … only with a South Florida coral rock twist. Tour the mystifying site where these coral sculptures were built between 1923 and 1951.

Museums of Science, Discovery & Imagination

Go Under the Sea & Into the Stars at Frost Science Museum

Frost Museum of Science (Frost Science) is one of the only museums in the world with both an aquarium and planetarium under one roof. The hands-on, interactive exhibits make for a fun and educational outing. The aquarium spans three floors and includes an open 500,0000 gallon tank at the rooftop where you’ll spy hammerhead sharks, stingrays and giant mahi-mahi.

Explore & Play at Miami Children's Museum

For the young and the young at heart, Miami Children’s Museum, midway between Downtown Miami and Miami Beach on Biscayne Bay along the MacArthur Causeway, is filled with interactive exhibitions focusing on art, culture, community, communication, imagination and creativity. It’s also home to a two-story sandcastle of dreams, a 30-foot rock climbing wall, a life-sized cruise ship and an outdoor playground.

Eat Your Way Through the Sweetest Museum of All

A museum that invites you to play like a child and eat unlimited ice cream? Sign us up! The Museum of Ice Cream is a blend of art, theater and, of course, ice cream in Downtown Miami. It features an array of interactive experiences, including the Creamliner, a 1960s-inspired airplane, and the Hall of Freezers, filled with mysterious doors and sweet surprises. There’s also a double-helix slide and everyone’s favorite, the Sprinkle Pool, where you’ll jump into a pool filled with nearly 100 million brightly colored sprinkles. Vegan and dairy-free ice cream are also offered.

Paradox Museum Miami: Is It All an Illusion?

Home to more than 70 optical illusion-based exhibits, Paradox Museum Miami in Wynwood will have you feeling upside down and inside out. Bring your camera because the museum is filled with photo ops you won’t want to miss. Walk on the ceiling in the Reverse Room, disappear in the blink of an eye on the Camouflage Wall and defy gravity like an astronaut in the Zero Gravity Room. You’ll laugh out loud as you explore all the wild and wacky rooms in this fun-filled museum.

Explore the many fascinating museums throughout the destination.