Smithsonian Museums Guide: Which to See and How

The Smithsonian Institution runs seventeen museums and the National Zoo in and around Washington, and they are all free. That changes how to use them: instead of trying to see a whole museum, go in for the one gallery you care about and leave while you still have energy. Most are on or near the National Mall, and most open every day of the year except Christmas Day. Bags are checked at the door.

With time for only two, pair the African American history museum with Air and Space, and keep Natural History for a rainy afternoon or for children.

National Museum of African American History and Culture

The newest and, for many visitors, the most affecting. Start at the lowest level, in galleries on the slave trade, and climb through segregation and the civil rights movement to music, sport and culture on the upper floors. Allow at least three hours. Free timed passes are released online 30 days ahead, with a smaller batch released each morning for the same day.

National Air and Space Museum

The Wright brothers' 1903 Flyer, the Apollo 11 command module and the Spirit of St. Louis. The building has been renovated gallery by gallery since 2018, with the work finishing in 2026, so almost everything should be open again. Check the website if there's a gallery you particularly want to see. The much larger Udvar-Hazy Center near Dulles Airport holds the Space Shuttle Discovery and a Concorde.

National Museum of Natural History

The Hope Diamond, the Hall of Fossils with its dinosaurs, and the African elephant in the rotunda. Popular with families and busy in school holidays, but big enough to absorb the crowds.

National Museum of American History

The original Star-Spangled Banner, the flag that inspired the national anthem, is displayed in a darkened room. Nearby are the lunch counter from the Greensboro sit-ins and Julia Child's kitchen.

Smaller and calmer

The National Portrait Gallery and the Smithsonian American Art Museum share a Greek Revival building in Penn Quarter, with a glass-roofed courtyard that makes a fine place to rest. The National Museum of the American Indian has one of the best cafés on the Mall, with food from across the Americas.

Not Smithsonian, but free

The National Gallery of Art, on the Mall, is run separately and is equally free. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, just off the Mall, needs free timed passes for its permanent exhibition from March to August. Allow time afterwards.

Museums close during some federal government shutdowns, so check the Smithsonian website if the news mentions one. Our things to do list adds the Capitol and the Library of Congress, and our 3-day itinerary spreads the museums across three days.