Amazing Museums in Indonesia You Must Visit

The Museum MACAN or the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Nusantara is an art museum of Jakarta. It houses a large collection of modern and contemporary art from Indonesia as well as from around the world. Famous for its active exhibitions, its chief highlight is the stunning masterpieces of Yayoi Kusama, a pioneer in the world of contemporary art.

Timings : Monday - Saturday: 10:00 AM - 8:00 PM

Entry Fee :
Adults: IDR 100,000
Students & Senior Citizens: IDR 90,000
Children: IDR 80,000

Museum Nasional or the National Museum of Indonesia is one of the premier locations to discover and understand Indonesian culture and history. With a collection that beautifully preserves nearly two hundred years of Indonesian Heritage, it is considered one of the most comprehensive museums in the Southeast Asian region. It is popularly known as Gedung Gajah or Elephant building due to the large elephant statue at the entrance.

Timings : Tuesday - Friday: 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM,Saturday - Sunday: 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Entry Fee : IDR 10,000

If you want to understand how the Indonesian banking system works, the Museum Bank Indonesia is just the right place. Situated in the Old Town, this colonial-style museum contains a large collection of historical currencies of Indonesia along with the rest of the world. The museum is quite comfortable and well-arranged, especially for children who want to learn about banking.

Timings : Tuesday - Friday: 8:00 AM - 3:30 PM Saturday, Sunday:8:00 AM - 4:00 PM

Entry Fee :
Adult: IDR 5,000
Students: No Entry Fee

Museum Wayang or Puppet Museum is a magnificent display of the Javan Wayang form of puppetry, exhibiting a huge collection of the classic flat wooden puppets. Situated opposite the Fatahillah Sqaure, this unique museum displays puppets portraying characters from across Indonesia, China, Vietnam, India, Cambodia and Europe, housed within its vintage cabinets. During the weekends, they have grand performances on interesting themes.

Timings : Tuesday - Sunday: 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Entry Fee : Adult- IDR 5,000
Children- IDR 2,000

Textiles have always played an important part in Indonesia's culture. Museum Tekstil or Jakarta Textile Museum is a 19th century museum, showcasing exquisite artistic skills that go into the making of Indonesian textiles by the usage of efficient technology that was ahead of its time. Visitors can make their own beautiful batik designs and learn about how fabric is made.

Timings : Tuesday - Friday: 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM

Entry Fee :
Adults: IDR 5,000
Children: IDR 2,000
For Batik workshops: Indonesians: IDR 40,000 Foreigners: IDR 75,000

Established by Balinese art-lover Sujata Neka, the Neka art museum displays a wide array of wayang and Ubud-style paintings, sculptures, Keris daggers and photographs from the 1930s to contemporary times. The museum features the work of both indigenous and local artists, incorporating a variety of influences on Balinese art and showcasing the evolution of painting styles in the country through the decades.

Timings : 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Entry Fee : Adults: IDR 75,000
Children: No Entry Fee

The Blanco Renaissance Museum is the palatial home-cum-studio of the famous artist Don Antonio Blanco. Located on a hilltop in Ubud that overlooks the Campuhan River, the museum displays various artworks of Blanco and his son Mario.

Timings : 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Entry Fee :
Adults: IDR 80,000,Children: No Entry Fee

The Agung Rai Museum of Art in Ubud offers a whole gamut of Balinese creativity and art and is one of the best museums in Indonesia that showcases traditional art forms. Not only does it showcase a range of paintings such as the classic Kamasan style paintings and those by Walter Spies and Adrien Le-Mayeur, but also offers art workshops and traditional dance performances for visitors. This is one museum where you don't just see the history, but experience it too!

Timings : 9:00 AM - 6:00 PM

Entry Fee : IDR 80,000

A walk through Ubud is incomplete without spending a while at Puri Lukisan Museum, home to several masterpieces of traditional modern Balinese art. The museum collection includes paintings from Sanur, Batuan, Keliki, and Young Artist schools of art, and is the perfect spot for art-lovers seeking a glimpse of Indonesian art history with a cup of coffee.

The prime museum for Balinese Culture, Museum Negeri Propinsi in Bali is the island's central museum located in its provincial capital Denpasar. Housing over 10,000 artworks, the museum has a variety of pieces on display- from prehistoric stone sarcophagi to dance costumes and masks, making it a comprehensive collection of the island's heritage.

Sitting between the Inna Grand Bali Beach hotel and Jalan Hang Tuah, the magnificent Le Mayeur Museum can be found on the beachfront of Sanur at Sindhum in Bali, right behind a row of stalls selling souvenirs and artworks. The fascinating Le Mayeur Museum is the first museum in Sanur and home to Adrien-Jean Le Mayeur de Merpres’ work as well as an extensive collection of the traditional art of Bali along with some local artefacts that he himself had collected while staying here.

The Ullen Sentalu Museum is built upon the on historic sites, such as Hastorenggo Guesthouse building that is owned by Sultan Hamengkubuwono VII (1877-1921) and Kaliurang Three Nations Commission Building. The word 'Ullen Sentalu' is an acronym of the phrase in Java language that is 'Ulating Blencong Sejatine Tataraning Lumaku'.

A must visit for families on vacation, Dream Museum Zone in Legian is a fun and interactive 3D art gallery. Using colours and light to create illusions, the gallery lets you take quirky photographs to take back the memories. Paintings that give an unusual twist to classics such as Van Gogh and Mona Lisa add to the fun.

One of the more recent fine art galleries in Bali, Museum Rudana exhibits a variety of sculptures and artwork by famous Indonesian and international painters. Founded by art collector Nyoman Rudana in 1995, the museum is spread across three levels surrounded by lush rice fields and displays emerging artists in a bid to boost the local art scene.

Museum Semarajaya is located in Klungkung, Bali and exhibits a variety of artefacts such as the gold-woven songket cloth and photographs of the Kingdom of Klungkung. The museum also houses a grand collection of paintings and statues by Emilio Ambron and has on display the traditional salt-making process of Bali, which makes this museum a fascinating place to visit.

If volcanoes fascinate you, the Batur Geopark museum in Bali is not to be missed. With models accompanied by interactive displays and rock samples, the geology of Mt.Batur and the workings of a volcano are brought to life. A UNESCO project, this museum is best enjoyed with your kids while exploring Bangli.

A prominent attraction of Yogyakarta, the De Arca museum exhibits carefully sculpted figures of national heroes, world leaders, celebrities and superheroes. Made of fibreglass, these figures provide for some memorable photographs to take back from your trip, and the helpful guides make the experience even better.

The Kite Museum of Jakarta was opened in 2003 to impart kite education to the citizens. Particularly fun for children, this museum helps organizing many exciting kite festivals and workshops where people design their own kites. Along with many interesting kite displays, watching movies based on their history is a must for the visitors.

Located near the Sunda Kelapa Harbour, Museum Bahari exhibits the history and the importance of sea trade via the harbour that helped build Jakarta's economy. The displays mostly consist of maritime objects with detailed information about them. Access is allowed only into the well-maintained parts of the museum, but while one is exploring the attraction, they would also come across the areas which were extensively used during the bygone times. A visit to Museum Bahari is recommended to everyone visiting the harbour.

Museum Seni Rupah Dan Keramik or Museum of Fine Arts and Ceramic is a resplendent display of the traditional art and ceramics of Indonesia. It is located in a beautiful Dutch building known as the Court of Justice in olden times. It is conveniently located near famous museuems like the Jakarta History Museum and Wayang Museum.

Satria Mandala Museum is a military museum of the Armed Forces of Indonesia displaying a huge collection of military weapons, tanks, and other artefacts. The name Satria Mandala comes from Sanskrit meaning "a sacred place for the knights." Some notable collections include Soviet weapons used during Operation Trikora, a draft of the handwritten Proclamation of Indonesia written by President Sukarno and many more.

Museum Sejarah Jakarta or the Jakarta History Museum is one of the largest museums in Old Jakarta Town. It is filled with more than 23,000 artefacts from the Dutch civilization and various Indonesian kingdoms can be seen here, a proud display of the heritage of the region. 27 ornately adorned rooms filled with articles that chronicle the city's history, from when it was founded and known as Jayakarta, to when it was rechristened Batavia when it was the capital of the Dutch East India Company, and to when the country became independent.

Situated in Kebayoran in Jakarta, the Art:1 New Museum, as its name suggests, is a recently opened contemporary art museum. It stores a collection of artefacts dedicated to Indonesia's arts and culture. The complex of the museum is divided into two buildings. One building is the eponymous Art:1 New Museum housing modern collections and the second building is Artspace:1, dedicated to the contemporary arts. The museum also holds many exhibitions and painting classes.