Australian Museum

Founded in 1827, the Australian Museum is the oldest museum in the country, and its building on College Street has grown by accretion since the 1840s into a mix of sandstone galleries and modern extensions. The collections cover natural history, with skeletons, minerals, insects and a well-known dinosaur gallery, but the deeper strength is cultural: extensive holdings from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and from across the Pacific, presented with community involvement in galleries such as Garrigarrang and Bayala Nura. A rooftop terrace opened with the recent redevelopment gives views over Hyde Park and St Mary's Cathedral. General entry has been free since 2020.

What you actually see

• The First Nations galleries - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander collections and stories.
• The Pacific collections - one of the major holdings of Pacific material anywhere.
• The dinosaur and skeleton galleries - fossils and comparative anatomy displays.
• The rooftop terrace - views across Hyde Park and the cathedral.

When to go

Year-round; school holidays fill the family galleries and weekday mornings during term are calmest. Special exhibitions run for months at a time and are ticketed separately, sometimes requiring timed entry.

Honest expectations

The building's layout is confusing, a result of two centuries of extensions. Major touring exhibitions are expensive and can be crowded even with timed tickets. Some older displays feel dated next to the redeveloped galleries.

Nearby

Hyde Park is across the road; St Mary's Cathedral stands at its northern end.