Smithsonian Museums
Many people plan to visit "the Smithsonian Museum" when they come to Washington, DC. But what some fail to recognize is that the Smithsonian is actually the world's largest museum complex and research organization. It comprises 19 museums and nine research centers. Each museum is devoted to displaying treasured icons and items of our past, present and future. Be sure to stop by the Visitors Information desk at each museum to pick up a free visitors guide to the Smithsonian system. It details each museum floor by floor and is invaluable in helping you make the most of your visit. You will no doubt find something of interest in the ever-expanding collections of these museums. Listed below are the museums in the Smithsonian system in the Washington, DC, area.
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(202) 633-3030 Various locations, and dates. Fee for attendance.
For visitors age 21 and older, the Smithsonian hosts a series of after-hours gatherings that combine food and drink in some of the Smithsonian's best-known venues giving visitors a uniquely memorable experience.
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American Art Museum |
America's first federal art collection is dedicated to American art. It includes sculpture, photographs, folk art, contemporary craft, paintings and decorative arts. You will find works by Winslow Homer, Edward Hopper and many others. |
Anacostia Community Museum |
This Smithsonian museum, which recently celebrated its 40th anniversary, is dedicated to African American history and culture. Everyday objects are featured to provide perspective in history and culture. For example, one exhibit includes a handwritten loan agreement dated 1833; the loan, for $155, secured the freedom of a young enslaved woman. |
Arts and Industries Building |
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Freer Gallery of Art and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery |
 These two Smithsonian Museums are connected by an underground exhibition space. They feature wide-ranging collections of American, Egyptian and Asian art works. Objects include paintings, manuscripts, ceramics and lacquerwork, precious metals, calligraphy, glass and earthenware. |
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden |
 This Smithsonian museum features international modern and contemporary art. Daily tours conducted by docents. The Sculpture Garden is located on the National Mall and contains more than 60 large-scale works of art from Auguste Rodin, Alexander Calder, Henry Moore and others. |
National Air & Space Museum on the Mall Hours and Admission: |
 With hundreds of historic and iconic aviation and space artifacts on display, including space capsules from America's first astronauts, Lindbergh's Spirit of St. Louis, and the Wright Brothers aircraft, Neil Armstrong’s spacesuit, this museum is among the most popular in the country. You can explore the history of flight, how things fly, learn about the effort to land a human on the moon, experience a flight simulator and many other interesting subjects. The museum also has a five-story IMAX theater and has two options for food service. |
National Air & Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center
Hours and Admission: Closed December 25 |
 This is a companion facility to the National Air and Space Museum on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. With the space provided in the Boeing Aviation Hanger in Chantilly, Virginia, thousands of aviation and space artifacts that could not be exhibited in the D.C. building are on display. It features three levels with aircraft hanging from an arched ceiling. Exhibits include the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, the Boeing Dash 80, the Enola Gay, the Mobile Quarantine Unit used by the Apollo 11 crew, the Gemini VII space capsule and other aircraft. The space shuttle Enterprise is the centerpiece of the museum. The museum has two options for food service, as well as several simulator rides available for an additional charge. |
| National Museum of African American History and Culture (202) 633-1000 Constitution Avenue Between 14th and 15th Streets, NW, Washington, DC |
| The Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture opened in September 2016 and is the newest of the Smithsonian Museums. It houses exhibits and artifacts where all Americans can learn about African American history, its contributions, and influences that helped shape this nation. |
| National Museum of African Art (202) 633-4600 950 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20560 Hours and Admission: 10am-5:30pm daily; closed December 25 No admission charged |
 The collection at this museum features artistic expressions from ancient to contemporary Africa, including ceramics, textiles, furniture, tools, masks, figures and musical instruments as well as traditional art forms of painting and sculpture. |
| National Museum of American History (202) 633-1000 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 10am-5:30pm daily; closed December 25 No admission charged |
 This museum, recently renovated, features a state-of-the-art gallery for viewing its most famous exhibit: the Star Spangled Banner that served as inspiration for Francis Scott Key. Among other exhibits you will find Mister Rogers' sweater, Kermit the Frog and First Ladies Exhibit. The museum explores the social, political, cultural, scientific and military history of our country. |
National Museum of Natural History 1000 Constitution Ave., NW in Washington, D.C. 20004
Hours and Admission: |
 One of the first Smithsonian Museums opened on the National Mall, it houses exhibits focused on the natural world. That includes geology, dinosaurs, animal life, plants and insects. Among the displays you will find the Hope Diamond, a T-rex dinosaur display and Mammal Hall. There is also an IMAX Theater, which shows some of the films in 3-D. |
National Museum of the American Indian
Hours and Admission: 10am-5:30pm daily, |
 One of the Smithsonian's newest museums on the Mall, this one specializes in exhibits that celebrate and commemorate the ideas and experiences in Native life and history. Its mission is to advance knowledge and understanding of the Native cultures of the Western Hemisphere. The exhibits include materials from North, Central and South America as well as the Caribbean, and include clothing, baskets, textiles, precious metals, featherwork, ceramics and other objects that are associated with Native life. |
| National Postal Museum (202) 633-5555 2 Massachusetts Avenue, NE, Washington, DC 20002 Hours and Admission: Open Daily: 11:30AM-7PM Closed on December 25 No admission charged |
 You will find one of the world’s largest collections of stamps and philatelic materials. The museum has postal history material that pre-dates stamps, vehicles that were used to transport the mail, mailboxes and mailbags, postal uniforms and equipment. Visitors learn how the process of mail delivery has evolved and the importance of letters in our history. |
National Portrait Gallery
Hours and Admission: Open Daily 11:30AM-7PM Closed on December 25 No admission charged |
 Specializes in American art, history and biography , including works by Winslow Homer and Edward Hopper. It contains visual arts, performing arts and new media to portray individuals who have shaped our country's culture. Collections include American presidents, George Washington, Colonial America and the American Revolution. The America's Presidents exhibit is the nation's only complete collection of presidential portraits outside the White House. |
National Zoological Park Hours and Admission: October 1-March 14: 9am-4pm March 15-September 30: 9am-6pm Hours are subject to change due to special events. Please consult the National Zoo's website for today's hours. No admission charged, parking for fee. |
 The National Zoo is more than just a place to see wild animals. In the heart of the nation's capital, you can see giant pandas, cheetahs, zebra, bears, monkeys and gorillas. More than 2,000 individual animals of nearly 400 species are on display, including giant pandas: Tian Tian, Mei Ziang and their cub, Tai Shan. If you visit the Zoo in early morning hours before the buildings open, the animals are more active, and you can watch zookeepers feed and care for the animals. |
Renwick Gallery
Hours and Admission: |
 This National Historic Landmark is part of the Smithsonian Museum collection. It features American crafts and decorative arts from the 19th to the 21st century. |
Smithsonian Institution Building (The Castle) Open daily, 8:30am-5:30pm Closed December 25 |
 Popularly known as The Castle, the original Smithsonian Institution Building served as the home for the first Secretary of the Smithsonian Joseph Henry and his family. It is a medieval-revival-style building that was completed in 1855. The crypt of James Smithson (1765-1829), a well-to-do English scientist who was the benefactor of the Institution, is located here. Smithson bequested his estate of $508,318 ($10 million in today's dollars) to establish in Washington, DC, for the "increase and diffusion of knowledge." The Castle serves as the Smithsonian Information Center as well as the administrative offices. An 18-minute video orientation, two interactive touch-screen stations with information on the Smithsonian museums in six languages and one scale model of Washington, DC, are available here. |
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This is the original home of the National Museum, the first in the Smithsonian system of museum. The beautiful building, designed in a High Victorian style, was opened in 1881 in time to host the inaugural ball of President James A. Garfield. It originally housed the contents of 21 freight cars from 30 countries that became Smithsonian property after the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition. The Smithsonian Carousel is located near the building.
