9 cities · 14 museums · 10 free
The best museums in China are Capital Museum, Guangdong Museum and Hubei Provincial Museum. World Museum Guide covers 14 museums in China across 9 cities, with admission prices, opening hours and highlights for each. 10 have free standard admission.
Visitor information last reviewed 30 June 2026. Check the official museum site for current details.
| # | Museum | City | Admission | Time needed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Capital Museum | Beijing | Free | 2–3 hours |
| 2 | Guangdong Museum | Guangzhou | Free | 2–3 hours |
| 3 | Hubei Provincial Museum | Wuhan | Free | 2–3 hours |
| 4 | Liaoning Provincial Museum | Shenyang | Free | 2–3 hours |
| 5 | Nanjing Museum | Nanjing | Free | 2–3 hours |
| 6 | National Art Museum of China | Beijing | Free | 1.5–2 hours |
| 7 | National Museum of China | Beijing | Free | 3–5 hours |
| 8 | Palace Museum (Forbidden City) | Beijing | 60 CNY | 4–5 hours |
| 9 | Shaanxi History Museum | Xi'an | Free | 2–3 hours |
| 10 | Shanghai Museum | Shanghai | Free | 2–3 hours |
Beijing, China
Art Museum · Best for history enthusiasts & families
The Capital Museum was founded in 1981 inside the Confucius Temple and moved in 2006 to a vast new building in Beijing's Xicheng district. Architect Ren Qing's design features an angled bronze-clad elliptical hall that pierces the facade — one of the most distinctive museum buildings in China.
Free entry · ⏱ 2–3 hours · Closed Mondays
Guangzhou, China
Art Museum · Best for architecture lovers & history enthusiasts
Founded in 1957, the Guangdong Museum moved in 2010 into a new home in Zhujiang New Town designed by Rocco Yim. The cantilevered, perforated façade was inspired by traditional carved Cantonese boxes.
Free entry · ⏱ 2–3 hours · Closed Mondays
Wuhan, China
Art Museum · Best for history enthusiasts & music lovers
The Hubei Provincial Museum was founded in 1953 and sits on the shore of East Lake in Wuhan. Its modern complex has been progressively rebuilt and expanded, and it ranks among the most important provincial museums in China.
Free entry · ⏱ 2–3 hours · Closed Mondays
Shenyang, China
Art Museum · Best for history enthusiasts & chinese art lovers
The Liaoning Provincial Museum in Shenyang is one of China's largest and most important regional museums. Its striking modern building, opened in 2003, houses collections spanning Liaoning's archaeology from prehistoric times through the Liao and Jin dynasties, when the region was a centre of Khitan and Jurchen power.
Free entry · ⏱ 2–3 hours · Closed Mondays
Nanjing, China
Art Museum · Best for history enthusiasts & families
Originally proposed by Cai Yuanpei in 1933 as the National Central Museum, Nanjing Museum is one of the earliest modern museums in China. It was redeveloped in 2013 into six themed galleries.
Free entry · ⏱ 2–3 hours · Closed Mondays
Beijing, China
Art Museum · Best for art lovers & chinese art enthusiasts
The National Art Museum of China (NAMOC) on Wusi Dajie in Beijing was established in 1963 in a Chinese-style pavilion with traditional upturned eaves. It is the national gallery for modern and contemporary Chinese art — not to be confused with the Palace Museum in the Forbidden City.
Free entry · ⏱ 1.5–2 hours · Closed Mondays
Beijing, China
Art Museum · Best for history enthusiasts & first-time visitors to beijing
The National Museum of China flanks the eastern side of Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China. The museum's mission is to educate about the arts and history of China. It is directed by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the People's Republic of China.
Free entry · ⏱ 3–5 hours · Closed Mondays
Beijing, China
Art Museum · Best for history enthusiasts & first-timers
The Forbidden City was the seat of Chinese emperors from 1420 to 1912. After the abdication of the last Qing emperor, the Palace Museum was inaugurated in 1925, opening the imperial complex and treasures to the public.
60 CNY · ⏱ 4–5 hours · Closed Mondays
Xi'an, China
Art Museum · Best for history enthusiasts & first-timers
The Shaanxi History Museum opened in 1991 in a building styled after Tang dynasty architecture. It holds 370,000 objects from the cradle of Chinese civilisation — Xi'an was capital of thirteen dynasties.
Free entry · ⏱ 2–3 hours · Closed Mondays
Shanghai, China
Art Museum · Best for art lovers & history enthusiasts
Founded in 1952, the Shanghai Museum moved into Xing Tonghe's circular drum-and-square base building on People's Square in 1996. The form symbolises the ancient Chinese view of heaven and earth.
Free entry · ⏱ 2–3 hours · Closed Mondays
Suzhou, China
Art Museum · Best for art lovers & garden enthusiasts
The Suzhou Museum was founded in 1960 inside the Zhong Wang Fu, a former Taiping Heavenly Kingdom palace. In 2006 it was joined by a new building designed by I. M. Pei in homage to Suzhou's classical garden tradition.
Free entry · ⏱ 1.5–2 hours · Closed Mondays
Beijing, China
Art Museum · Best for art lovers & photographers
Founded by Belgian collectors Guy and Myriam Ullens in 2007, UCCA was one of the first contemporary art institutions in mainland China to gain international standing.
100 CNY · ⏱ 1.5–2 hours · Closed Mondays
Hong Kong, China
Art Museum · Best for art lovers & first-timers
Hong Kong's flagship art museum reopened in 2019 after a four-year, HK$930 million renovation that transformed its 1962 building on the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront. The expansion added gallery space, a new entrance lobby, and digital interactive features while preserving harbour views.
HK$30 · ⏱ 2 hours · Closed Thursdays
Hong Kong, China
Art Museum · Best for art lovers & first-timers
Designed by Herzog & de Meuron with TFP Farrells, M+ opened in November 2021 in the West Kowloon Cultural District — Asia's first global museum of contemporary visual culture. Its vast LED façade faces Victoria Harbour and becomes a screen for moving-image commissions at night.
HKD 120 · ⏱ 2–3 hours · Closed Mondays
The best museums in China are Capital Museum, Guangdong Museum, Hubei Provincial Museum, Liaoning Provincial Museum and Nanjing Museum, ranked by visitor numbers and collection strength.
World Museum Guide covers 14 museums in China across 9 cities — 10 with free standard admission.
10 of 14 museums in our China guide have free standard admission: Capital Museum, Guangdong Museum, Hubei Provincial Museum, Liaoning Provincial Museum, Nanjing Museum and National Art Museum of China and more. Special exhibitions can still be ticketed.
