21 museums in Australia to visit in 2021
Culture generally isn’t Australia’s strong suit. If you are going to visit in 2021, chances are you’re more interested in Australia’s national parks or wildlife encounters. But there are plenty of excellent museums in Australia – some worthy, some quirky. As part of the Australia in 2021 series, Australia Travel Questions has picked out 21 of these museums that should be on your radar.
One museum in the Australian Capital Territory
National Capital Exhibition: This small museum in Canberra explains how the national capital came into being. The design of the planned capital is an important factor.
Two museums in New South Wales
Elizabeth Farm: This handsome old home in Parramatta is one of Australia’s most unexpectedly important historic sites. It once belonged to John MacArthur, a convict, politician and landowner who had his sticky fingers in many pies, but essentially started the massive Australian wool industry. Elizabeth Farm these days tells of MacArthur’s conniving, and New South Wales’ transition from place of punishment to real society.
Fort Scratchley: One of Australia’s most important World War II sites, Fort Scratchley in Newcastle played a major part in the country’s coastal defence. You can go inside and take a photo of yourself with the massive guns.
Two museums in the Northern Territory
Royal Flying Doctor Service Darwin Tourist Facility: Comfortably the worst-named attraction on this list, the RDFS Darwin Tourist Facility splits in two halves. The first concentrates on the Flying Doctors, the second on the World War II bombing raids that hit Darwin.
World War II Oil Storage Tunnels: A totally different take on the Darwin wartime experience comes inside these once-secret oil storage tunnels. A trip inside is one of Australia Travel Questions’ 21 things to do in the Northern Territory in 2021.
Three museums in Queensland
Bee Gees Way: An outdoor exhibition in the Queensland town of Redcliffe, Bee Gees Way looks at the falsetto-voiced hitmakers. The Bee Gees started their musical careers in Redcliffe, and this laneway provides a hugely affectionate overview of their lives.
Museum of Brisbane: Inside the City Hall, the Museum of Brisbane tells the tale of the Queensland capital. There’s plenty on the colonial and Aboriginal past.
Qantas Founders Museum: In the Queensland outback town of Longreach, this museum is all about Australia’s biggest airline. It traces Qantas’ story from humble beginnings to major international carrier.
Museums in South Australia
Penong Windmill Museum: It’s more just a big collection of windmills than a museum. But this quirky attraction on the cusp of the Nullarbor Plain sure looks cool. One of the holes on the Nullarbor Links golf course is next to it, and surfer heaven Cactus Beach is nearby.
South Australian Museum: Adelaide’s top museum is particularly strong on Aboriginal culture and heritage. It’s a great starting point for discovering Indigenous Australia.
Museums in Tasmania
Design Tasmania: At the edge of City Park in Launceston, this is where you can check out the best in Tasmanian woodwork.
Museums in Victoria
Bonegilla Migrant Experience: One in 20 Australians has a relative who passed through this post-war migrant camp near Albury-Wodonga. Now converted to a museum, it offers an absorbing take on the immigrant experience.
Cooks’ Cottage: This absurd central Melbourne attraction was transported brick by brick from the UK. It’s thought to be where Captain Cook’s parents lived, and now contains a small exhibition about the famous explorer.
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village: More than 40 historic buildings have been relocated to Warrnambool on the Great Ocean Road. Costumed, in-character volunteers bring the fake village to life.
Immigration Museum: Thousands of stories of finding a new life in Australia combine in this Melbourne museum. It offers a constantly riveting look at Australia settlement and growth.
Pioneer Settlement: In Swan Hill on the Murray River, the Pioneer Settlement offers an unashamed trip back in time. Buildings such as shearing sheds and blacksmiths’ shops have been carefully relocated and reassembled to create a little town. Paddlesteamer cruises are also available.
Museums in Western Australia
Balladonia Roadhouse: This roadhouse on the Nullarbor Plain got an unlikely place in the limelight back in 1979. That’s when the Skylab space station crashed to earth nearby. It sparked an international race to find the debris. A small but engaging museum inside the roadhouse explains the chaos.
Discovery Bay: In the south coast town of Albany, this former whaling station is now a museum about whales and the whaling industry. Films are projected inside enormous oil silos, and the tales told of sharks attacking whale carcasses on the flensing decks are terrifying.
Museum of the Goldfields: The Western Australian city of Kalgoorlie grew on gold mining. The Museum of the Goldfields shows how the mining industry boomed, and an outback city has been made viable.
National ANZAC Centre: For a small city, Albany does cultural attractions exceedingly well. The National ANZAC Centre is a thoughtful, interactive exploration of the Australian soldiers who went off to fight in the First World War.
WA Shipwrecks Museum: In Fremantle, this museum explores the shipwrecks along the Western Australian coast. It unveils the exploration of Australia – mostly by Dutch sailors – that took place long before Captain Cook showed up.