National Museum Cardiff
National Museum Cardiff
4.5
Art GalleriesNatural History MuseumsArt Museums
10:00 AM - 4:45 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 4:45 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 4:45 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 4:45 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 4:45 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 4:45 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 4:45 PM
About
Witness one of Europe's finest art collections. Five hundred years of magnificent paintings, drawings, sculpture, silver and ceramics from Wales and across the world, including one of Europe's best collections of Impressionist art. The building also has galleries showing the diverse natural history of Wales, as well as a journey taking you through the Evolution of Wales (with dinosaur displays) from the very beginnings of time to the present day.
Duration: 2-3 hours
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The area
Address
Neighbourhood: City Centre
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See what travellers are saying
  • Niamh L
    12 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Air-conditioned!
    Visited the museum during a very hot day in June and was greeted by air-conditioning! There is lots to see here and something for everyone. The best bits for me and my partner were the dinosaurs/animals and the art work. The BBC exhibition was also interesting with some interactive parts. We spent about an hour in the museum and thought that this was more than enough time for us.
    Visited June 2023
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 26 June 2023
  • R D
    Swansea, United Kingdom3 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Good place.
    Good free museum. Would have liked to see more welsh history and art. The Italian expedition they had was very nice. Good place for fine art that covers views, lakes and things like that. Personally would have like to see some more art depicting war or some battles.
    Visited May 2023
    Travelled solo
    Written 28 June 2023
  • Gypsybling
    Cardiff, United Kingdom42 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Love this place
    I love this place and so do my kids with being 6 and 16 is no easy task! It’s free so already fantastic value :D has a lovely gift shop and cafe and is immaculately clean,lovely friendly staff,regular themed events(it was reptiles last time we went which as my whole life is herpetology this was a dream come true). Aside from the usual art we would all expect there is an amazing assortment of welsh and world history from wars to spacecraft and dinosaurs and animals! My kids favourite being the giant turtle and sharks! Beautiful grounds that we have picnicked in also and never seems “too busy”. Have spent hours here over the course of many years and never disappointed!! It’s a must see and in my opinion one of the most underrated places in wales!
    Visited June 2023
    Travelled with family
    Written 29 June 2023
  • Liliana J
    Newport, United Kingdom6 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Glorious Gallery
    We spent around 2 hours in the art gallery and thoroughly enjoyed seeing some incredible great masters and antique pieces. It was free but donations were welcome. There was a gift shop and coffee shop too. The restaurant is open on wrekends and Bank holidays.
    Visited July 2023
    Travelled with friends
    Written 22 July 2023
  • Go00393776686
    12 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Excellent collection of art
    We did not have a great deal of time to spare to do the museum justice, but we did visit most of the art galleries, which have an excellent collection of artworks. Would definitely like to return to spend more time in the museum. But as ever, they didn't sell postcards of the works we liked best!
    Visited August 2023
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 7 August 2023
  • G243UAemilyg
    South Wales, United Kingdom140 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Lovely museum very impressed.
    We had a lovely time at the museum, staff were very friendly. The building is beautiful and the displays in the museum are great. We will definitely come back. We also liked that it’s free definitely a good idea with children.
    Visited September 2023
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 5 September 2023
  • Craig S
    5 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great Place to Visit
    We visited St Fagans on the way back home and were pleasantly surprised at the number of exhibits that were on show. Really nice to see how the Welsh buildings have developed over the years and the open museum is set in lovely grounds. Staff were friendly and informative and the cafe offered a wide variety of choice. Best to visit on a dry day but definitely needs to be on the "To Do List". Free entry and ample parking which was £6 per vehicle.
    Visited September 2023
    Travelled with family
    Written 22 September 2023
  • grumpymum77
    Cottingham, United Kingdom72 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Bargain day out
    Amazing exhibits and far more to see than I expected. I didn't visit the art gallery section, art isn't really my thing and we ran out of time. You really need a full day to go round and really see everything. The only downside is the cafe, there was no menu to see what was available, it was rather limited in choice and seemed disorganised. I don't blame the staff for that, they can only work with what they have. Other than that, the staff in all areas of the museum were friendly. Very much worth a visit and the only fees to pay are parking which in itself was quite reasonable.
    Visited September 2023
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 23 September 2023
  • Barry C
    49 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Excellent natural history museum and art gallery.
    The National Museum has three main focusses: animal life, palaeontology and art. The largest hall was called Evolution of Wales, covering the geology and palaeontology of Wales up until the end of the ice ages, which was very interesting. At the start, they show examples of the oldest rocks on earth, in the UK and in Wales and from that point, you walk through section by section in chronological order, seeing examples of life forms that lived in Wales. The natural life section shows the plant and animal life in various habitats in Wales, as well as some examples from further afield. Finally, the art galleries on the upper floor has a good selection of historical art - I'm not a great fan of modern art, so it is always a shame for me when space is taken away from expertly produced items of beauty to display things of "originality" instead. Although some of the galleries were closed for repair, there was still plenty of nice things to see up here, including a collection of ceramics. We spent about two hours here, the museum is free of charge.
    Visited October 2023
    Travelled with family
    Written 29 October 2023
  • Malibu_Jenny
    Reading, United Kingdom322 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Absolute Gem!
    This is one not to miss if you’re visiting Cardiff with kids in tow! We were greeted at the door by a really friendly and helpful member of staff, who took the time to talk us through the exhibits and recommended the best route for the limited time we had. The Natural History galleries were spectacular and so interesting. Dinosaurs, wolves, earthquakes, sea shells, a whale skeleton, a shark ready to eat its prey. The depiction of the coal forests - swamps that once covered South Wales - was fascinating. It’s not often that this type of museums showcases something so locally specific. It was a couple of hours very well spent. This combines the attractive slickness of a modern museum with all the natural history elements that children have always been interested in.
    Visited October 2023
    Travelled with family
    Written 29 October 2023
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4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles2,723 reviews
Excellent
1,743
Very good
751
Average
177
Poor
29
Terrible
23

Beti-Blodyn
261 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024 • Solo
We are lucky in the UK to have some amazing museums and galleries especially in our major cities, so there's some tough competition out there. This one was still worth a look 'round as I was in the area, but a bit underwhelming in comparison to others I've visited recently.

The museum is easy to locate on Google Maps (the actual signposts peter out after the high street) and it's quite the imposing building with a beautiful foyer.

The staff were pleasant when spoken to, but otherwise were on their phones or chatting amongst themselves. None of them that I dealt with used any Welsh, which is a shame for one of Wales's national museums where all signs and annotations are bilingual (as they should be). I understand Cardiff doesn't have a high percentage of Welsh-speakers living there but even a 'bore da' or a 'diolch yn fawr' in an otherwise-English conversation would make a big difference.

I chose to take the lift up to the top and work my way down. The Reframing Picton and 'Go Home Polish' contemporary installations are brilliant and were the highlight of my visit - I do wish there'd been more of that especially as modern Wales is tied into their stories. It was great to see some Monets and Cezannes too, but not a lot of the historic art really grabbed my attention. The closure of a couple of the halls led to some of the work being exhibited in a tiny, dimly-lit room which was a bit offputting.

The natural history bit on the ground floor is - understandably - very geared towards kids and schools, so I wasn't exactly the target audience. It's still interesting and worth a look, especially the skeletons, but I didn't spend a lot of time there.

The Oriel restaurant was closed, but I did browse the foyer cafe. It wasn't very well-lit and felt a bit stark and exposed, so I kept it to a cup of tea and got food elsewhere.

All in all, it was a nice way to spend a couple of rainy hours after the St David's Day parade, and it is close to the Castle which is a plus - but if you're after a uniquely Welsh museum that covers all grounds, I'd make the trip out to Sain Ffagan instead.
Written 1 March 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Charlom1
Cardiff, UK28 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Family
Beautiful building, evolution of Wales and natural history sections interesting but in need of updating with more scope for interactive exhibits. Cafe and Oriel restaurant both disappointing - no food in the Oriel restaurant just before 12 and no menu in the foyer restaurant with an odd display of sandwiches with no descriptions. There could also be better signposting as to what’s on near the main entrance.
Written 18 February 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Georgia
22 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Solo
Lovely walk round, lots of different things to see. Everything was well preserved. Staff were really friendly and chatty.
Written 15 February 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Penwythnosneis
Caernarfon16 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Friends
I understand from your staff that the restaurant has been closed for 4 years. Hearing how strapped for cash the museum is, we wanted to spend to support it and went down to what can loosely be described as a cafe.
Dirty tables we had to clear and clean ourselves. No coffee, according to a rough bit of A4 sellotaped to a coffee machine.
Pathetic. We left and spent money we could and would have done at the museum elsewhere.
Written 13 February 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

SnD2015
Somerset, UK17 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2024 • Couples
Enjoyed the exhibits, really interesting and informative. Particularly liked the dinosaurs and wooly mammoth displays.
Written 27 January 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Melanie
Cairns, Australia17 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2024 • Couples
Very interesting museum. Large with multiple rooms of interesting displays including history of Wales, dinosaur, multiple types of art
Written 9 January 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

BABANGIDA AVIOLA
Lagos, Nigeria15 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2023 • Friends
Amazing museum with so much to see than we expected,we had a lovely time with friends.very friendly staffs
Written 27 December 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

david n
Manchester, UK4,758 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2023 • Couples
We visit a fair amount of museums and, compared to many others, this was disappointing. True that we don't appreciate Natural History leaving only the upper art floors which were lacking in quality to be honest.
Written 23 December 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

keith m
Hyde, UK90 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2023 • Solo
This large museum and art gallery is in an amazing building, the museum has a vast collection of fossils from thousands of years ago and other exhibits as well it is well worth the visit and is free to enter.
Written 2 December 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Paul F
Chesterfield, UK2,543 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2023 • Couples
All round a fantastic museum with a world classic Arts gallery filled with local and international pieces from some of the world most renowned Artists.

The Musuems Architecture is grand, opulent and gives a real sense of space as you wonder around. The natural history, Geology and animal sections are very well put together and don't look tired.

Cafe in the central aatrium is lovely
Written 13 November 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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