What are the best museums in Barcelona that you must visit?

In Barcelona, ​​without exaggeration, you will find dozens of quality museums and without a little guide you could easily get lost in the wide range of options. 

Seriously – for someone unfamiliar with the local "museum scene" It can be easy not to choose the best museums in the city just because there are so many of them, so the chance of getting confused is quite high. 

And that's why I put this together page with the best museums in Barcelona. At least in my opinion. 

What kinds of museums await you in Barcelona? 

The range of museums in the city is really wide and there is something for everyone here: whether you are a lover of art, architecture, history, design, music, science, culture or even seafaring.

And if you don't have the time to think much that day, you can choose a museum where you can "switch off" and just look - there are plenty of such original places and your children will certainly appreciate them as well as you: there is a wax museum, a museum of illusions or various interactive and entertaining museums where you won't need a doctorate in nuclear physics to understand the exhibits... 

But what prevails in the city for me are art and history museumsAnd it is precisely these types that the best museums for which you can purchase tickets fall. 

Top 3 museums in Barcelona

Ask me what the best museums in Barcelona are and I'll throw out these three without a second thought. If you're choosing where to go, you can't miss them, as they will introduce you to (not only) Catalan art, culture and all the local greats.

• Picasso Museum (Picasso Museum) – this museum is the most popular among art lovers in Barcelona; you will find an extensive collection of early works Pablo Picasso.
• National Art Museum of Catalonia (Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, MNAC) – a museum with stunning views of the city on Montjuic hill offers a cross-section of essential Gothic, Renaissance and modern works.
• Joan Miró Museum (Joan Miró Foundation) – another museum on Montjuic that you can’t miss. As the name suggests, it’s dedicated to the avant-garde Joan Miró; you’ll find paintings, sculptures and even tapestries here. 

And now let's take a look at another plethora of museums in the city, which are certainly also worth considering. 

For clarity, I have divided them into related categories so that you can quickly choose what you like and what you feel like...

Maritime museums and marine aquarium

A little bit from the end La Rambla street a of Port Vell cost Maritime Museum with a unique collection of nautical charts and everything else related to the sea and seafaring. The museum in a beautiful airy building is housed in the former royal armory from the 13th century. 

Snapshot from the Maritime Museum (Museu Marítim)

Marine aquarium (L'Aquarium) v of Port Vell is focused on the underwater fauna of the Mediterranean Sea. Here you can admire countless rays, moray eels, seahorses, crustaceans and other aquatic animals, including penguins. The final treat is a huge aquarium with a tunnel under which you can walk and observe sharks and other aquatic animals up close. More in the detailed article about the aquarium >

A little further in the harbor towards to the Barceloneta district cost Museum of Catalan History (https://www.mhcat.cat/).

Art museums in Barcelona

If Barcelona can boast of anything, it is the number of art museums, galleries and various exhibitions that take place in the city. 

Nearby, on Carrer Montcada, we find a unique Pablo Picasso Museum, where many of his early works can be seen.

Do Raval district go see Museum of Contemporary Art (MACBA, Museu d´Art Contemporani de Barcelona, http://www.macba.cat/)The collection here includes the latest artistic gems not only from Catalonia, but also the whole world. Check out the exhibition program.

Ciutadella park offers a specialized zoological and geological museum as well as a nearby one City History Museum (Museu d´Història de la Ciutat, http://museuhistoria.bcn.cat/en). A special feature is the underground part of the museum representing the remains of the Roman city of Barcino.

Na Montjuic hills resides National Museum of Catalan Art (MNAC, Museu Nacional d´Art de Catalunya, MNAC, http://www.museunacional.cat/en). The museum can be found in the premises of a beautiful palace. It represents one of the most famous museums of medieval art in Europe. The exhibition includes Romanesque, Gothic and Art Nouveau works. You can also visit nearby Joan Miró Foundation and Museum, which offers countless wonderful works by this famous Catalan artist.

If you like modern art and if graffiti is close to you, this is definitely not to be missed Banksy Museum a short distance from the main Catalan square. 

And if you're not in Barcelona just for a jump, I recommend buying a bus ticket and going to Figueres, where Salvador Dalí Museum.

Did you know that you can come across many pieces of art in public spaces and admire them for free? Take a look at mine article about street art, where there are some nice pieces of art to see while wandering around Barcelona. 

What else to see?

• cosmocaixa
• Chocolate Museum
• FC Barcelona
• Museu Frederic Marès – A unique collection of sculptures, historical objects and curiosities from collector Frederic Marès.
• White Rabbit
• Museum of Illusions

Do you want to go to the museum for free? 

Lots of museums in Barcelona have ve free entry on selected days. This day is usually Sunday. Sometimes the first of the month, sometimes regularly every month. E.g. the Pablo Picasso museum has free entry on the first Sunday of the month. Attention, you need to stand up a bit, there are often quite long queues in front of the museum during free entry - Sunday is a day of rest and almost all shops are closed. 

Museums with free entry in Barcelona

National Museum of Catalan Art (MNAC: Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya)
Parc de Montjuïc, Sants-Montjuïc, 08038
Free entry every Saturday from 15:00, every first Sunday of the month, 18 May, 11 and 24 September

Museum of the History of the City (MUHBA Museu d'Història de Barcelona)
Pl. del Rei, Ciutat Vella, 08002
Free entry every first Sunday of the month, other Sundays free from 15.00 p.m

Museum of Catalan History (Museu d'Història de Catalunya)
Plaça de Pau Vila, 3, Ciutat Vella, 08039
Free entry every first Sunday of the month. 

Museum of Music (Museu de la Música)
Padilla 155, Eixample, 08013
Free entry every first Sunday of the month, other Sundays free from 15.00 p.m

Frederic Marès Museum (Museu Frederic Marèsú)
Plaça de Sant Iu, 5, Ciutat Vella, 08002
Free entry every first Sunday of the month, other Sundays free from 15.00 p.m

Virreina Center de la Imatge (for art fans)
La Rambla, 99, El Raval, 08001
Free entry - always. 

Pablo Picasso Museum (Museu Picasso)
Montcada, 15-23, Ciutat Vella, 08003
Free entry every first Sunday of the month, free entry also every Thursday after 18:00

Museum of World Cultures
Montcada, 12, Ciutat Vella, 08003 - right across from Picasso (if you don't want to wait in line :)
Free entry every first Sunday of the month

Center of Contemporary Culture of Barcelona
Montalegre, 5, Raval, 08001
Free entry every Sunday from 15.00 to 20.00

Maritime Museum (Museu Marítim de Barcelona)
Av. de les Drassanes, Raval, 08001
Free entry every Sunday from 15.00 p.m

Botanical Gardens (Jardí Botànic)
Doctor Font i Quer, Sants-Montjuïc, 08038
Free entry every first Sunday of the month, other Sundays free from 15.00 p.m

NAT–Barcelona Museum of Natural Sciences
(The NAT, Natural Sciences Museum of Barcelona)
mainly for children, geology, zoology, archaeology
Pl. de Leonardo da Vinci, 4-5, Sant Martí, 08019
Free entry every first Sunday of the month, other Sundays free from 15.00 p.m