I’m visiting every museum in NYC. Here are 9 worth a journey

Jane August is visiting every museum in New York City. So far she’s been to 106 of them. We asked her to share some of the standouts so far.

How many museums are in New York City?

When I ask this, people usually guess around 50. Typically, they name the Met, MoMA, the Guggenheim, maybe the Brooklyn Museum.

They’re often shocked when I tell them that there are over 170 museums across the five boroughs of New York City.

And they’re even more shocked when I explain that I am visiting all of them and documenting that journey on TikTok.

The project began in February 2021, a pre-COVID-vaccine world. I was 11 months into being furloughed from my job in live music, desperate to leave my house and see friends, but not willing to risk catching COVID in one of those “outdoor” dining sheds.

I realized that the city’s museums could be the way to overcome my cabin fever.

My best friend Jesse and I visited the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art, mostly because it was open.

Afterwards, I posted a video on TikTok announcing my plan to visit every museum in the city; when I woke up it had gone viral, with more than 42,000 views.

I realized that there were thousands of New Yorkers on TikTok who were also interested in discovering museums throughout the boroughs.

Some of the followers recommended museums I hadn’t heard about; others offered to give me personal tours of the ones where they worked.

Since then, I’ve gotten to see The Metropolitan Museum of Art at the crack of dawn. I’ve had a private tour of The Frick Collection. I’ve even started to appreciate the touristy stuff I used to roll my eyes at – like the Statue of Liberty and Empire State Building.

And most shocking of all, I’ve become a Staten Island apologist. I knew many New Yorkers dismissed the fifth borough because of the stereotypes and the distance, but after a few visits, I better understand some of its appeal. Plus, the Staten Island Ferry is the best free booze cruise in New York City.

I’m currently at 106 museums – about 70 left to go. To track museums, I’ve built my own spreadsheet, which lists 183.

If you want to start with a smaller goal, like just expanding your museum world, here are nine unique options you might not know about in New York City that are worth a journey.

Brooklyn Seltzer Museum (East New York, Brooklyn)

Before there was LaCroix and White Claw, New Yorkers’ fizzy drink of choice was good ole seltzer water in a glass bottle with a siphon. In May, the Brooklyn Seltzer Boys factory opened up the Brooklyn Seltzer Museum to share the drink’s 1,500-year history and why New Yorkers love it so much.

The museum is in East New York at Brooklyn Seltzer Boys – a family run business now in its fourth generation where they make, bottle, and deliver seltzer to the tri-state area.

You can only visit the museum by taking a tour, which they currently offer every Friday. On ours, hosted by the owner Alex Gomberg, we learned about the seltzer-making process, saw the bottling in action, and participated in seltzer and egg cream tastings. For more information, visit The Brooklyn Seltzer Museum. Tickets are $25.

South Street Seaport Museum (Lower Manhattan)

I love when a museum makes you realize that a museum is more than artifacts in a glass case. South Street Seaport Museum does just that since it’s not contained in one building, but sprawled across the South Street Seaport neighborhood in the form of galleries, ships, and even a shop.

The museum consists of an introduction gallery (which features some small, traditional, museum-like exhibits), a fleet of ships (you can climb aboard the 1885 tall ship Wavertree and 1908 lightship Ambrose), and Bowne & Co. Stationers (a fully operational and very old print shop).

The museum offers a plethora of additional activities, such as sailing the harbor on their schooner, printmaking classes, and opera performances on board their ships. To learn more about admission and their lineup of events, visit here.

The Living Museum (Queens Village, online)

The Living Museum is by far the most unique museum I’ve been to in New York City. It is located on the campus of the Creedmoor Psychiatric Institute and some of the artists on show are its out-patients, and occasionally, some are in-patients.

The main idea behind the museum is that art can be an asylum for people struggling with mental illness. There are now “Living Museums” in cities around the world, but the New York City one was the first.

The building doubles as both a museum and an art studio, with patients getting their own studio space to create anything – paintings, photography, sculptures, and even music. The museum has a house band.

To book a visit, you can call the museum directly at 718-264-3490. For more information, you can visit their website or, if you’re looking for a way to peek inside, there is a VR tour online.

Waterfront Museum (Red Hook, Brooklyn)

There are quite a few museums on boats in NYC, but the smallest is the Waterfront Museum in Red Hook, which is located aboard a 1914 railroad barge that was used to carry cargo across New York Harbor.

Throughout the museum, you can find binders of photos documenting the barge and life on the waterways, ship bells that you’re allowed to ring, and many nautical artifacts. For information on visiting hours and events, visit the Waterfront Museum’s website. If life on the water isn’t for you, they offer a virtual tour online, which is also the only way to see below deck.

Queens County Farm Museum (Glen Oaks, Queens)

Every year, when fall rolls along, my TikTok feed is full of girlies going upstate for seasonal activities like hayrides and corn mazes. Last year, I was excited to find out that you can actually have outdoor, agricultural fun year-round at the Queens County Farm Museum.

The “museum” is found across the 47-acre farm where visitors can learn about agriculture and the environment. There’s a 1772 Dutch farmhouse, the largest apiary in NYC, a farmstand, and many animals. You can feed the sheep and goats.

It’s worth visiting every season because they host different events like the Amazing Maize Maze, Winter Lantern Festival, and a tulip experience opening next spring.

City Reliquary (Williamsburg, Brooklyn)

I worked directly across the street from the City Reliquary in Williamsburg for three years before I found out that this little storefront is a museum. (My friends thought it was a closed bodega.) Talk about a hidden gem!

What at first looks like your grandma’s disorganized attic is actually a telling of New York City history through objects. The City Reliquary also puts on rotating exhibitions. When I last visited, they had one focused on candy manufactured in New York City.

They also host events and programming in their backyard which is just as eclectic. To learn more about admission and programming, visit here.

City Island Nautical Museum (City Island, The Bronx)

I am always surprised that people don’t know about City Island, the neighborhood at the tippity top of the Bronx, only 1.5 miles long and famous for its seafood.

If this article is the first time you’re learning about it, I recommend you make the trip and check out the City Island Nautical Museum while you’re there.

Located in a former school house, it shares City Island’s shipbuilding history as well as how the island evolved throughout the years.

It’s charming and you can learn more about admission at their website.

Jacques Marchais Museum of Tibetan Art (Egbertville, Staten Island)

This museum project has made me a Staten Island apologist and I’m not sorry about it. I’ve learned that there are some hidden (and I mean hidden in the center of the island and on top of a hill) gems that defy Staten Island stereotypes. One of those is the Jacques Marchais Museum of Tibetan Art.

Here you will find a replica of a Tibetan monastery in the United States – even the Dalai Lama approved – as well as one of the largest collections of Himalayan artifacts in the country.

They also offer some great programming such as tai chi, yoga, and meditation classes. When I visited, we got to experience singing bowl meditation, which was unbelievable. To learn more about admission and their upcoming events, visit here.

Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space (East Village, Manhattan)

I love learning the history of the spaces that museums call home. And for the Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space, that home is a former East Village squat.

The museum was founded in 2012 and shares the often untold history of activism on the Lower East Side from the perspective of the activists themselves, with a focus on 21st century efforts.

There are exhibits about past protests and community-based actions that helped create change in the city and there’s a section on Occupy Wall Street.

The museum, which is run 100% by volunteers, helps create and upkeep community gardens in the neighborhood. It’s all about community here and helping them reclaim their spaces. There’s no way you would leave this museum without feeling inspired by their work. Maybe it will inspire you to get involved in your own community. To learn more about the museum, visit here.