Everyone likes to vacation differently. Some people like to lounge on the beach, sipping cocktails and sleeping in. Others plan extensive backpacking and camping trips, immersed in nature. Still others like to explore new countries, sampling new cultures and cuisines. When new people travel together, it’s always a challenge to reconcile travel styles. Interestingly, one of the most divisive questions asked when approaching this problem is “Are you a museum person?”

This is often asked with tension or mild disdain. To some, sitting inside a stuffy museum learning about the different types of train engines is akin to pulling teeth. Others love museums and will gladly walk the entire museum, reading every sign and placard, inevitably boring their anti-museum companion to tears. 

I propose that there is a way for everyone to enjoy museums – even if they ‘aren’t your thing’. Full disclosure, I am generally pro-museum. I like learning. But, like anyone, there is a limit and some museums interest me much more than others. It may surprise you to find out that I absolutely loathe modern art museums, Art museums tend to be very sparse on information, listing the artist, title and medium of each piece, but nothing else. Occasionally a special exhibit has a theme or story of a particular artist that they highlight. But by and large, it’s walking through a space looking at the pretty pictures, which, considering art is so subjective, may not even be images you enjoy! You could find an intricate sculpture made entirely out of safety pins, a masterwork watercolor landscape, or a literal blank white canvas. 

On the other hand, classical art museums that house the works of past masters are much more interesting to me. I value things from the past, and a sculpture that is renowned for its ability to make stone look like soft flesh or a transparent veil impresses me a lot more than… more abstract cerebral works.

Seeing masterworks by Caravaggio, Leonardo, even Dali or Monet is different; the reputation of those master artists gives the works weight and value. I will never forget seeing the David sculpture with my own eyes. (It is enormous!) Art is a way to look at the world through another person’s eyes, and being able to look through the eyes of someone famous, and long dead is humbling. And this brings me to my first piece of advice.

Finding the Right Museum

The key to enjoying a museum is finding the right museum. If history bores you, don’t go to a history museum! If you are fascinated by war, then seek out war museums. You can explore topics both esoteric and mundane; for every art or archeology museum, there is one dedicated to domestic house cats or toy trains.

In New Orleans, I immensely enjoyed touring voodoo shops and museums. In general, I have found the weirder the museum is, the more I enjoy it. Roswell has a well-known alien museum that I long to visit- known to be kitschy and whimsical. So find what interests you: art, Egyptian mummies, old arcade games. You will find a museum that has a topic and an atmosphere that you will enjoy.

Diversify Your Day

The second piece of advice is to diversify your activities. Even the most well-read and thorough scholar will tire after visiting museums for a week. Do your feet get tired from standing? Do your eyes fatigue from reading? Does your interest start to drift after an hour? Plan in breaks to eat lunch or rest. All-day tickets where you can leave and come back can be a great way to get outside for some fresh air and exercise before returning. If you get restless, plan a morning hike and a museum for the afternoon. If you get bored, pick a small museum amongst a day full of other activities. 

When I was in the Ozarks, I visited the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. As I stated before, I don’t particularly enjoy modern art museums. But Crystal Bridges was one of the most recommended things to do in Bentonville. Here, I was clever. I paired my museum trip with two other big activities. The first was trying out trail riding.

By the time I had finished riding the sculpture trail, I was ready to get off the bike and look at some art! My butt hurt, and my nerves were frayed from fighting for my life on the trails. I was grateful to walk into a calm and peaceful atmosphere (and enjoy some AC). My mood and attitude aligned for an enjoyable and open-minded experience. My second strategy, which was somewhat of a happy coincidence, was that the museum was hosting an art fair that day. That meant that once I’d had  enough of the quiet halls, I could wander back out into the sunshine and browse the local artists’ wares.

Know when to Fold

My last bit of advice for enjoying museums runs counter to the first two. If you enter a museum, and it just isn’t your cup of tea, bail. The sunk cost fallacy of the lost entry fee will keep you drifting from room to room much longer than you need to. Mistakes happen. But trips and vacations and time are limited. It isn’t worth it if you are miserable.

As a kid, I visited the Kennedy Space Center in Florida – perhaps the largest and most interesting place to learn about humanity’s desire to reach for the stars. There were old flight capsules, rockets, engines, space suits, and assorted memorabilia. I could follow the story of the space race and the moon landing. They had exhibits about the science behind space flight and all the intricacies of preparing a human for zero-G living.

After about an hour, I knew that If I saw one more low-res version of a rocket launch, I was going to chew my foot off. And I felt bad – these were some of humanity’s greatest achievements, the noble urge to explore and learn. And I couldn’t muster up any interest. If that happens to you, just call it. You can always try again another day, perhaps with someone who has a great interest in the subject matter, or just accept that the museum experience isn’t for you on this topic. It’s ok. Everyone feels that way about something. 

I have noble aspirations to walk through the entire Smithsonian, but I know myself well enough that the Air and Space Museum probably isn’t worth it for me.

Pace and Browsing

It is also ok to just browse a museum. Sometimes perfection or getting your money’s worth can go too far. If you are in a museum that covers a broad topic, find the exhibits that hold your interests! Don’t worry about doing it all. At the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds, a five story monstrosity that covered weapons and armor from every age, I realized it would take days to see everything. We had half a day.

So I did a highlight tour. I stopped at the suit of elephant armor, found the few medieval suits of armor that still had the colored enamel intact, read every detail about horse archery, then stopped to look at the most ornate pieces that caught my eye. I was traveling with two friends and my husband, and we all drifted our separate ways to explore the museum.

We would cross paths and point out especially interesting exhibits to one another (there was one on Star Wars and how the weapons and armor for the movies were designed). I briefly met up with my husband, but he both reads faster than me and is one of the must-read-every-placard-and-sign types. I skipped entire floors, I was way more interested in medieval weaponry than modern guns. 

And I left happy!

Accompanying a child to any sort of museum or zoo can give you a good lesson on pacing. Kids have very limited attention spans up until they don’t. Normally they dash about from one exhibit to the next. Then they see something cool and remain glued to the glass for several minutes. They sit (or complain) when tired, eat (or complain) when hungry. They seek breaks to play in jungle gyms or with interactive displays. Aside from missed naps or overtiredness, does a kid leave a zoo or children’s museum without having a great time? Never. You should too. 

Crowds and Atmosphere

On that note, if the types of museum you enjoy, namely science museums, children’s museums, or all ages places like zoos and aquariums are your area of interest, sometimes the crowds can be a deterrent. Going to the science museum seems great until you realize it’s full of shouting children and strollers. 

For every issue, there exists a solution. A lot of science museums and other places frequented by families will have adults-only events or nights. In San Francisco, my husband and I attended an after-hours, adults only visit to the Exploratorium. My co-worker was the one who told me about it, and extolled its virtues. It was quieter, and while it was well populated, there was a certain joy interacting with people who knew how to share, take turns, and walk everywhere. The Exploratorium had cash bars set up so you could visit the exhibits at your leisure, with a drink in your hand. People mingled and talked as much as they explored. It was an incredibly fun experience, made so by the intentional audience. 

For popular attractions like the Louvre, or Big Ben the key is to try to out time the crowds. Travel during the off-season, and be sure to get there very early or very late, depending on the operational hours. Going to see museums or attractions during meal times can also be a neat trick to get more space! Lastly, you can sometimes book exclusive tours, skip the line tickets, or timed passes. This is essentially buying your way out of the issue and it is up to you to decide whether it is worth it. Sometimes all you need to enjoy a particular museum is sufficient time and space!

Hopefully this expanded a few minds on the fun and potential that museums hold!