MoPop. Photo: Jie Liu.
Burke Museum. Photo: Dennis Wise.
Museum of Flight. Photo: Andrew Kalat
Frye Art Museum Courtesy of Mark Woods

SeattleMuseums

Seattle is full of wonderful museums to educate and inspire.

The Seattle area is home to an excellent collection of art, history, maritime, and special interest museums. The Museum of Flight will take you on a thrilling adventure through aviation history with exhibits like the Great Gallery, the Personal Courage Wing and the original Boeing Headquarters, in one of the largest air and space museums in the world. At MoPOP you can learn to play an instrument, stroll through the Jimi Hendrix exhibit and explore the history of popular culture. History buffs will appreciate the Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI) and the Klondike Gold Rush Museum. Many of these museums are family-friendly and offer hands-on-activities for kids and adults alike!

"Occular" at Frye Art Museum

Photo: Linda Lane

Art & Craft Museums

Seattle is a magnet for both artists and art enthusiasts. The casual yet sophisticated setting, beautiful scenery and inspiring mix of people create a powerful environment for artistic expression.

DC-3 at The Museum of Flight

Photo: Bill Abbott

Aviation & Transportation Museums

The greater Seattle area has an extensive collection of historic planes, from public displays to private collections open to the public. See how far we have come since the first airplane took flight in Seattle in 1910.

The Burke Museum

Photo: Loren Javier

History & Heritage Museums

Seattle is named after the respected Native American Chief of the Suquamish and Duwamish tribes. Shaped by many cultures, including the original Native Americans, along with immigrants from Asia and Scandinavia, we retain a strong and diverse cultural heritage that provides many opportunities to learn about Seattle from the roots up.

Photo: David Newman

Photo: David Newman

Maritime & Military Museums

The maritime heritage of Puget Sound is filled with fascinating stories of native traditions, intrepid explorers, pioneer sea captains and vessels, industrialists, and ordinary working people.

Pacific Science Center beneath a supermoon

Photo: Ingrid Taylar

Science & Natural History Museums

In a region that is notorious for its stunning natural beauty and technological innovation, is it surprising that we have fantastic science and natural history museums for you to explore?

Nirvana exhibit at EMP Musuem

Photo: Theresa Arzadon-Labajo

Pop Culture Museums

The optimistic and creative mentality of Seattle residents creates an attractive climate for innovative thinkers. This is why some of the most original and successful business concepts in the nation have been launched right here in Seattle. (Hint: think Boeing, Amazon, Starbucks, REI, Expedia, Zillow…)

Seattle Children's Museum

Photo: Nicholas Wang

Children’s Museums

While any museum in the area welcomes children, some offer special programs that keep the attention of even our youngest travelers. From hands-on exhibits to creative events catered just for kids, you’ll find yourself wishing that you were a kid again!

Upcoming Museum Events

Honoring 50 Years of Papunya Tula Painting

Now through 4/14/2024

50,000 years of Indigenous knowledge were largely ignored until 1971, so elders in the central deserts of Australia …

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Washington: My Home

Ongoing

Many people have called Washington home. Through this poetic exhibition, the Washington State History Museum helps us all …

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Underwater Dome

Ongoing

Step through a short tunnel and into a one-of-a-kind exhibit: an undersea dome with a 360º view into …

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Boundless: Stories of Asian Art

Ongoing

Asia can be defined in many ways, geographically, culturally, and historically. As the world’s largest and most populated …

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Chihuly Garden and Glass

Ongoing

Located at Seattle Center, Chihuly Garden and Glass brings together all the elements of artist Dale Chihuly’s work, …

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Guma’ Gela: Part Land, Part Sea, All Ancestry

Now through 5/12/2024

Featuring the work of the Guma’ Gela’, a queer CHamoru art collective made up of members from the …

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Pacific Species

Ongoing

Biodiversity inspires this selection of works, encouraging us to take a break from looking at one another and …

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Sound Check! The Music We Make

Now through 9/14/2024

Explores the role music has played in Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander lives & communities.

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Art and Life Along the Northwest Coast

Ongoing

Over their long habitation of the Pacific Northwest, First Peoples have shaped their lifeways around the resources of …

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Museum Partners

Museum of Glass Tacoma

Museum of Glass

  • Address 1801 Dock St, Tacoma, WA 98402
  • Phone (253) 396-1768
  • Connect
Frye Art Museum Capitol Hill

Frye Art Museum

  • Address 704 Terry Ave, Seattle, WA 98104
  • Phone (206) 622-9250
  • Connect
Seattle Pinball Museum International District

Seattle Pinball Museum

  • Address 508 Maynard Ave S, Seattle, WA 98104
  • Phone (206) 623-0759
  • Connect
Klondike Gold Rush NHP-Seattle Pioneer Square

Klondike Gold Rush NHP-Seattle

  • Address 319 Second Ave S, Seattle, WA 98104
  • Phone (206) 220-4240
  • Connect

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