Museums and galleries in Sydney
33 museums and galleries in Sydney, from the big collections to small independent spaces.
Ranked with the travel guide's picks and well-known places first.
Museums and galleries in Sydney
- SeeCity Centre
ANZAC Memorial
A large war memorial in the middle of the city, built after World War I. It is a focus of military memorial events in New South Wales and includes a museum which covers the experiences of NSW citizens who have served in the Australian military.
except Good Fri & Christmas DayFree
- SeeCity East
Australian Museum
With an international reputation in the fields of natural history and indigenous studies research, community programs and exhibitions, the Australian Museum was established as Australia's first museum in 1827 with unique and extensive collections of natural science and cultural artifacts. The skeleton room, displaying hundreds of animal skeletons, including a blue whale hanging from the roof, is an attraction in itself. The museum also has an exhibit on early man, including species like Homo heidelbergensis that did not reach Australia. There is a cafe next to the entrance that can be accessed without requiring payment for admission to the main exhibition area.
, closed Christmasfree, temporary exhibitions have additional fee
- SeeDarling Harbour
Australian National Maritime Museum
Two floors of internal exhibits, outlining the maritime role in Australia's history. Houses significant full scale exhibits. Outside there are ships and submarines to explore.
Galleries & exhibitions: $7 adult, $3.50 child & concession, $17 family / free entry to permanent galleries on first Thursday of the month. Additional charges for vessels
- BuyCity South
Central Park
This shopping centre is part of a larger complex that includes parklands and apartments. There is a wide selection of unique fashion and homeware stores along with general retail and a supermarket. Central Park is also great for its wide range of food and dining options, from cafes to restaurants. If you visit, be sure to check out their website for events that include workshops, art galleries, local markets and the BYO Cinema.
10AM-8PM
- SeeCity Centre
Circular Quay
pronounced like "key"
The hub of the Sydney Harbour between the bridge and Opera House and is a vibrant, bustling place home to many buskers, the ferry terminal, overseas passenger terminal, as well as the Museum of Contemporary Art. It is one of the main areas of the annual Vivid festival.
- BuyCity Centre
Galleries Victoria
The modern answer to the historic QVB opposite. Some fashion and food, but also electronics, computer games, and gifts.
- SeeDarling Harbour
International Convention Centre Sydney
ICC Sydney
Sydney's main exhibition and convention centre. This new convention centre was built to replace the old convention centre and the Sydney Entertainment Centre to the tune of $1.5 billion. The centre is used for exhibitions across the year, as well as for music acts, talks and concerts in the two large theaters on either side of Exhibition centre.
- SeeCity Centre
Justice and Police Museum
Built as a police station to Court in 1856, and closed in 1886, the museum has now been restored to its 1890s facade displaying its theme of crime and punishment.
Sat-SunFree
- SeeEastern suburbs
Kamay-Botany Bay National Park
La Perouse has a museum explaining the interesting history of the area. The Kamay Botany Bay National Park takes its name from the Kamay people (the Spear people) of the nearby Cook's river and Botany Bay. There are walks and great views over the ocean and the bay. The park contains rich marine environments and remnants of the heathland vegetation which Banks and Solander, Cook's botanists, first studied in 1770. You can explore the Banks-Solander track, with its fascinating insights into the once-widespread vegetation communities that Cook's botanists explored in 1770. Or learn about Australia's Aboriginal history and European Colonisation, told in the Lapérouse Museum and the Visitor Centre. Enjoy the Cape Baily Coast Walk, with its windswept heaths, historic sites and spectacular coastal views. All easily accessible by car or bus.
- SeeInner West
Macleay Museum
The oldest natural history museum in Australia, largely kept in storage, but they have quite a collection of insects from Darwin, Raffles and other keen entomologists.
Mon-Fri 10AM-4:30PM, first Sat of the month noon-4:30PMFree
- SeeThe Rocks
Museum of Contemporary Art Australia
Art museum focusing on work by contemporary Australian artists. Housed in a fabulous 1930s art deco building, former location of the Maritime Services Board and facing onto the western side of Circular Quay and Sydney Cove, the MCA has been dedicated since its opening in 1991 to showcasing great works of modern and contemporary art in all media. One wing is newer, contemporary architecture; the other is a historic building used for port administration until the 1930s. The museum runs some arts education programs for children and disabled people.
Tue-Sun 10AM-5PM
- SeeCity Centre
Museum of Sydney
Built on the site of the first Government House, erected in 1788 by Governor Arthur Phillip and demolished in 1846. The remains of the building were excavated after rediscovery in 1983 and the original foundations can now be viewed through glass floor panels in the museum. Fascinating changing exhibitions of art and photography, films and state-of-the-art technology spin stories of colonial life, Aboriginal culture, environment, trade, authority / law and everyday dramas and dreams in early Sydney. The Museum of Sydney Cafe, by the museum entrance is not really part of the museum, and is much more a restaurant than a cheap and casual cafe.
Daily (closed Christmas Day and Good Fri)Admission adult AUD 10, child / concessions AUD 5, family AUD 20, members free (run by the Historic Houses Trust)
- SeeCity East
National Art School Gallery
Old Darlinghurst Gaol
The National Art School is housed in a beautiful sandstone prison precinct built in the 1840s.
10AM-4PM, closed Sun
- SeeThe Rocks
National Trust Centre
The headquarters of National Trust NSW, it was once a military hospital and state school. The SH Erwin Gallery is located within and hosts exhibitions every now and then.
Mon-Fri 9AM-5PMFree entry, prices apply for special exhibitions
- SeeInner West
Nicholson Museum of Antiquities
Contains the largest collection of antiquities in Australia, featuring ancient artefacts from Egypt, the Middle East, Greece, Rome, Cyprus and Mesopotamia, collected by the University over many years. Also mummified cats and humans.
Mon-Fri 10AM-4:30PM, first Sat of the month noon-4:30PMFree
- SeeCity South
Powerhouse Museum
The Powerhouse Museum is a large museum, essentially of popular culture. It has displays on the history of fashion and transport, decorative arts, music, and space exploration exhibits. It also partly plays on a sci-tech theme, with interactive hands-on and discovery displays of technology, design and industry There is usually a special exhibition on as well. There are in-depth displays for all ages, but also displays especially created for young children to discover and play.
Daily 10AM-5PM$15 adults, free for 16 and under
- SeeCity Centre
Powerhouse Museum (Temporarily closed)
The Powerhouse Museum is closed (as of February 2024) for refurbishment and does not have an estimated reopening date. Usually, it has a variety of permanent and temporary exhibitions including the King's Cinema, an intact art deco cinema, Locomotive No 1, Experimentations, Ecologic, the Strasbourg Clock, the Steam Revolution and Interface. There is a cafe and museum shop.
10AM-5PMFree (plus paid exhibits)
- SeeCity Centre
Reserve Bank of Australia Museum
Hosted by the Reserve Bank of Australia in its city headquarters, this museum displays Australian bank notes and currency from the earliest issues to the present day. Interesting but basic. Drop in for 15 min or so if you are passing by Martin Place.
Temporarily closed as of June 2025; otherwise open Mon-Fri 10AM-5PM, except bank holidaysFree admission
- SeeCity Centre
Royal Botanic Gardens
One of Sydney's greatest assets, from in front of the State Art Gallery, out to Mrs Macquaries chair, across to Farm Cove and onto the Sydney Opera House. The Gardens back onto the historic Sydney Hospital and Parliament House. This is the oldest scientific institution in the country and home to an outstanding collection of plants from Australia and overseas. The Domain surrounds the Royal Botanic Gardens. The walk along the harbour's edge (Farm Cove) from the Opera House (Queen Elizabeth II gate) to Mrs Macquarie's Chair (Yurong Gate) is for many the epitome of a Sydney experience. The Gardens have an example of the Wollemi Pine, raised from a seed collected from a handful of trees discovered in the wilderness and unchanged since the dinosaurs. A tropical pyramid holds examples of tropical vegetation in a controlled humidity atmosphere. See the rose garden, herb garden and succulent section. The collection has many varieties of Australian plants and grasses. During the summer months there are often open air night time film screenings inside the Botanic Gardens, entry charges normally apply to those screenings.
The gardens are open from sunrise to sunset. It is fully fenced, so take care not to get locked in at closing timeThere are no access charges to enter the Botanic Gardens (except for the tropical pyramid)
- SeeCity Centre
State Library of New South Wales
Includes a large exhibition space with changing artistic, historical and cultural exhibits. The Mitchell Reading Room is a historical large open book-lined room, and worth a look inside. The reference library is a modern addition, and really only of interest for research. The library collection includes a copy of every volume published in New South Wales, and many rare texts. There is a cafe on the ground floor near the entrance to the reference library and the bookshop.
Free
- SeeThe Rocks
Susannah Place
Owned by Sydney Living Museums. Built in 1844, Susannah Place Museum preserves a row of four terrace houses that incorporate a re-created 1915 corner store, providing a rare opportunity to construct patterns of domestic working class life from the mid 1840s to the late 20th century. It is evidence of the rich community that once existed in The Rocks. The modest interiors and rear yards illustrate the restrictions of 19th century inner city life.
Daily 2-5PM (closed Christmas Day and Good Fri) - guided tours onlyAdult $15, child/concession $12, family $38
- SeeDarling Harbour
Sydney Heritage Fleet
Sydney Maritime Museum Ltd
The Fleet restores and operates a number of historic vessels including the barque James Craig. In 2003 the International Congress of Maritime Museums gave the James Craig the Maritime Heritage Award. The offices, model workshop, some displayed boats, and the library are on Wharf 7 located in Darling Harbour. The James Craig is alongside the wharf.
10AM to 4PM daily$2 child, $5 adult, $12 family
- SeeCity East
Sydney Jewish Museum
The museum documents the Holocaust and explores the history of the Jewish people worldwide and also in Australia.
Mon–Thu, Fri, Sun (closed Sat and on certain Jewish holidays)AUD 15 for adults, AUD 12 for seniors, AUD 9 for students. Children under 10 enter free
- SeeCity Centre
The Art Gallery of New South Wales
the leading museum of art in New South Wales and Sydney, and one of Australia's foremost cultural institutions. It holds significant collections of Australian art, and presents nearly forty exhibitions annually. British Victorian art, along with smaller holdings of Dutch, French and Italian painters of the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, and a collection of modern British masters, European modernists and European classical art. The collection includes work by Reubens, Picasso, Van Gogh and many others. There is also an impressive collection of Asian, South East Asian, Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art. The new North Building has an extensive collection of contemporary art, including the dark 'Tank' level in the basement - a cavernous and strange area that used to hold fuel for shipping. Not all of the collection holdings are on exhibition at any one time and the gallery occasionally rotates significant works on exhibition. The building itself is a much-photographed sandstone structure with a large formal entrance. There is a popular cafe inside the gallery, with views over Wooloomooloo.
Daily, Wed untilFree admission with charges to some 'feature' exhibitions
- SeeCity South
White Rabbit Gallery
An Australian gallery dedicated to showing contemporary Chinese art, and claims to have one of the largest collections of it in the world. The teahouse serves an excellent selection of exotic teas along with dumplings and scones. The gallery is often closed in February and August to prepare new installations.
Wed-Sun 10AM-5PMFree
- SeeCity East Not mapped
Blender Gallery
also incorporates The Just Shoot Lomography Shop
Exhibition space over several levels in a typical Paddington terrace. Blender is an outlet for Australian and international photographers, collectors and enthusiasts.
Tue-Sat 10AM-6PM
- SeeInner West Not mapped
Boomalli Gallery
Boomalli Aboriginal Artists Co-operative is one of Australia's longest running indigenous owned and operated art galleries. It promotes urban indigenous art that sometimes has trouble being shown as authentic indigenous art in the mainstream.
- SeeCity East Not mapped
Brett Whiteley Studio
Look for the big burnt match
Studio of the late Brett Whiteley is now an art museum that is managed by the Art Gallery of New South Wales. The museum is a tribute to the life of Brett Whiteley, considered by many to be one of Australia's most gifted, best known and controversial artists.
- SeeCity East Not mapped
King Street Gallery on William
Contemporary Australian art
King Street Gallery on William represents a range of Australian artists, and features changing exhibitions throughout the year.
- SeeCity East Not mapped
Ray Hughes Gallery
This established gallery has a wide range of interesting work from many artists spanning several cultures and styles including works on paper, canvas and others.
Tue-Sat 10AM-6PM
- SeeCity East Not mapped
Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery
off Hampden Street
The gallery represents over 30 artists, who have had significant shows and whose works are held in major collections nationally and internationally. This gallery has supported work that is challenging and at the forefront of contemporary art practice.
Tue-Fri 10AM-6PM, Sat 11AM-6PM
- SeeHarbour Islands Not mapped
RAN Heritage Centre
Museum dedicated to the Royal Australian Navy.
Free
- DoCity Centre Not mapped
The Art Gallery of New South Wales
Free cinema on Wednesdays & Sundays, but usually old films.
Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Sydney (CC BY-SA 4.0).