🏛️ Strange museums of the planet: 10 places where you won't be bored

Most museums start to wear you out within ten minutes. You walk past display cases, read tiny labels, and catch yourself thinking about coffee. But some museums are built exactly the opposite way: they surprise you, unsettle you, and make you laugh.

We've rounded up ten museums around the world where, instead of silence and dust, you'll find an experiment: failed products, dishes from all over the globe, and sculptures on the seafloor. For each one, we've added the ticket price, opening hours, and the source where we verified them.

Half of these museums are open without advance booking, but some only let you in with a timed entry slot. Below you'll find a summary table with prices and get a sense of which museum is worth your time.

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Overview: tickets, hours, and addresses

💡 In short:

Tickets to most of these museums will cost you under thirty euros.
Sexmuseum Amsterdam is open daily, while the CupNoodles Museum is closed on Tuesdays.
Some museums only admit visitors with online booking: without a time slot, you risk not getting in.
Prices and opening hours: as of 09/2026, verified on the museum's website

Museum	Admission	Hours	Closed
Museum of Failure	venue and price vary	per exhibition schedule	no permanent venue
Disgusting Food Museum	230 kr for adults (as of 09/2026, prices and hours)	11:00-18:00	open daily
The Icelandic Phallological Museum	3900 ISK (as of 09/2026, prices and hours)	10:00-19:00	open daily
Sexmuseum Amsterdam	10 € (as of 09/2026, official website)	10:00-18:00	open daily
MUSA underwater museum	diving from 115 $ (as of 09/2026, diving prices)	per tour schedule	weather dependent
Color Factory	price depends on the day	by time slot	none
Museum of Bad Art	free	from 11:30	none
Corpus	by time slot, cheaper in the morning	by slot	none
CupNoodles Museum	500 ¥ for adults (as of 09/2026, prices and hours)	10:00-18:00	Tuesday
Museum of Enduring Beauty	nominal fee	daytime	none

1. Museum of Failure: a touring exhibition

Psychologist Samuel West opened this exhibition in June 2017 in Helsingborg, Sweden. The project's main idea: failure doesn't end the story, it points to what exactly needs to be redone. The collection includes more than 150 failed products and services, from the Apple Newton and Google Glass to Harley-Davidson cologne (as of 09/2026, official exhibition history).

Wall of stickers with visitors' failure stories

The museum has no permanent location: after Helsingborg, the exhibition was shown in Los Angeles, Shanghai, and Paris. So before you travel, you'll need to check the current city and dates. A separate display case is dedicated to Colgate Lasagna: the museum has a replica because the company declined to send the original (project description).

How to get there: the address changes with the venue, follow the announcements.
Who it's for: you're curious why strong companies release weak products.
Not for: those expecting a classic exhibition with a guided tour through the halls.

2. Disgusting food museum, Malmö

Producer Andreas Ahrens and psychologist Samuel West put together an exhibition in Malmö featuring 80 of the world's most controversial dishes. There are no props here: roughly half of the exhibits are replaced every two days, and visitors can smell and taste some of the items (as of 09/2026, official website).

In the galleries you'll find Swedish surströmming herring, Sardinian casu marzu cheese with live larvae, Icelandic hákarl, and Thai durian. Bags are handed out at the entrance in case of nausea, so the museum is honest about what's inside.

Entrance to the Disgusting Food Museum on a Malmö street

The creators believe that disgust lives only in the mind of the beholder. The museum is open every day from 11:00 to 18:00, with the last recommended entry at 17:00. An adult ticket costs 230 kronor, students and seniors pay 185 kronor, children aged 6 to 15 pay 80 kronor (as of 09/2026, prices and opening hours).

How to get there: Södra Förstadsgatan 2, near Malmö Triangeln station.
Who it's for: you enjoy trying unfamiliar things and you can handle it.
Not for: those who get nauseous from strong smells and unusual food.

3. The Icelandic phallological museum, Reykjavik

The world's only phallological museum operates in central Reykjavik. The collection includes more than 300 specimens from a hundred mammal species, and the largest one belonged to a blue whale: 170 cm (as of 09/2026, official website).

Interior of the Icelandic Phallological Museum with display cases and lamps

The smallest specimen came from a hamster and weighs only about 2 mm, so you'll need a magnifying glass to examine it. It all started as a private collection belonging to founder Sigurður Hjartarson, and today it's an independent family-run museum with a bar and gift shop. Open every day from 10:00 to 19:00, tickets cost 3900 Icelandic króna (as of 09/2026, prices and opening hours).

How to get there: Hafnartorg, Reykjastræti 4, in central Reykjavik.
Who it's for: you're interested in anything related to anatomy and folklore.
Not for: if the subject makes you uncomfortable, this museum isn't for you.

4. Sexmuseum Amsterdam

This is the world's oldest sex museum: it opened its first hall, "Venustempel," in Amsterdam in 1985. The museum is open daily from 10:00 to 18:00, tickets cost 10 €, and entry is only allowed from age 16 (as of 09/2026, official website).

Mannequins in the museum against an old photograph

The exhibition spans several floors of a 17th-century house on Damrak and shows how attitudes toward the subject have changed over the centuries. You'll wind your way up a maze-like staircase between halls and see porcelain figurines, engravings, magazines, and the museum's own "red light street."

How to get there: Damrak 18, next to Central Station.
Who it's for: you're interested in the history of everyday culture without moralizing.
Not for: visitors under 16 are not admitted.

5. MUSA, the underwater museum near Cancun

This museum lies on the bottom of the Caribbean Sea near Cancun. Hundreds of life-size sculptures stand in three underwater galleries at depths of 3 to 6 meters. The exhibition was created by artist Jason deCaires Taylor, and its purpose is to protect coral reefs (as of 09/2026, official website).

Volkswagen sculpture overgrown with coral on the seafloor

Over time, the figures become covered in coral, so they look increasingly eerie and at the same time more captivating. A dive for certified divers costs 115 $, beginners pay 132 $ for a single dive, and a glass-bottom boat costs 58 $ (as of 09/2026, diving prices).

If diving scares you, take a glass-bottom boat tour. From the boat you'll only see some of the sculptures.

How to get there: tours depart from Cancun hotels and from Isla Mujeres.
Who it's for: certified divers and those willing to dive with an instructor.
Not for: those who don't want to get wet will only see the upper part of the sculptures.

6. Color Factory, New York, Chicago, Houston

Color Factory doesn't operate like a classic museum but as an interactive exhibition about color. You step into a ball pit room, a room with multicolored ribbons, and a dance floor under bright lights. The exhibition's goal is simple: to lift your mood (as of 09/2026, official website).

Visitor at a colorful wall in Color Factory

Locations are open in New York, Chicago, and Houston. Each room has built-in cameras that visitors activate using a QR code from their ticket, and the photos are sent to your email. The service is included in the ticket price, but nothing stops you from shooting on your own smartphone (as of 09/2026, schedule and tickets).

How to get there: Color Factory NYC, Spring Street, SoHo.
Who it's for: you like photo spots, installations, and lots of color.
Not for: those looking for a quiet exhibition with classic labels.

7. Museum of bad art, Boston

MOBA collects works that no serious museum would take. The first painting, "Lucy in the Field with Flowers," was found by founder Scott Wilson in the trash. Today the collection has hundreds of canvases, and all the artists sincerely tried (as of 09/2026, official website).

The gallery operates at the Dorchester Brewing Co brewery in Boston, admission is free. Doors open at 11:30, and closing time depends on the day: Sundays and Mondays at 9:00 PM, Tuesday through Thursday at 10:00 PM, Friday and Saturday at 11:00 PM (as of 09/2026, prices and hours).

How to get there: Dorchester Brewing Co, Boston, Massachusetts.
Who it's for: you want to laugh and look at art without pretension.
The catch: on Friday and Saturday after 6:00 PM, only adults are admitted.

8. Corpus, Leiden

Corpus is instantly recognizable: near Leiden sits a huge orange human figure about 35 meters tall. You enter through a "wound" in the leg, riding an escalator up to the knee. From there the route goes through the internal organs, like a theme park ride (as of 09/2026, official website).

Visitors inside the body exhibit at the Corpus museum

Tickets are sold by time slot, and it's better to book in advance: without a reservation you may not get a convenient time. Reduced prices apply in the morning and afternoon, and check the exact cost when booking. The museum is designed for children aged 6 and up and adults (as of 09/2026, schedule and tickets).

How to get there: a bus runs from Leiden Centraal station, the trip takes about ten minutes.
Who it's for: children aged 6 and up and adults who are curious about their own bodies.
Not for: those expecting a quiet exhibition, there's a lot of sound and movement here.

9. CupNoodles Museum, Yokohama

Instant noodles are called Japan's greatest invention of the 20th century, and a museum in Yokohama is dedicated to them. It tells the story of Momofuku Ando, who invented the first Chicken Ramen noodles in 1958 (as of 09/2026, official website).

Night view of the CupNoodles Museum building in Yokohama

Across four floors you'll find an exhibition of 3,000 noodle packages from around the world, a reconstruction of the inventor's workshop, and a theater with the brand's history. A separate My CUPNOODLES factory lets you assemble your own cup of soup with four toppings (as of 09/2026, exhibits and factory).

An adult ticket costs 500 yen, schoolchildren and children get in free. The museum is open from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM, last entry at 5:00 PM, and it's closed on Tuesdays (as of 09/2026, prices and hours).

How to get there: see the address and directions on the museum's official website.
The catch: closed on Tuesdays.
Who it's for: families with children and anyone who loves food as a story.

10. Museum of enduring beauty, Malacca

The museum in Malacca shows the beauty standards people followed in different cultures. The exhibition is unpleasant in places: foot binding, neck rings, teeth filing, and skull deformation. Many of these practices still occur in certain regions today.

Red museum building in Malacca with flags

The creators don't judge, they show that the concept of beauty has always depended on place and time. The ticket costs a symbolic amount, and the exhibition itself is compact.

How to get there: Malacca, check the exact address before visiting.
Who it's for: you're interested in how beauty standards have changed.
Not for: the sensitive will find it hard to look at the medical details.

Tours and tickets

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⁉️🤔 Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to visit all ten museums?

It's hard to calculate an exact total: some museums are traveling exhibitions, and the price depends on the day of the week and the time slot. Budget for an adult ticket in the range of a few dozen euros, plus a separate fee for the dive at MUSA. Corpus and the CupNoodles Museum are cheaper during off-peak hours.

Where should I go with kids?

The CupNoodles Museum in Yokohama and Corpus near Leiden are the best options: you can touch, taste, and move around there. Color Factory in New York is also family-friendly, but no amount of money will get a child into the Sexmuseum. MOBA has an additional age restriction on weekend evenings.

Which museums require a timed entry?

Online booking is required for Corpus near Leiden. At MUSA, the time slot effectively determines the tour schedule: without a reservation, you may miss the next available dive. The Sexmuseum and the Disgusting Food Museum usually let you in without a prior booking.

Which museum should I choose if I don't dive?

MUSA has an alternative: a glass-bottom boat that passes over the Punta Nizuc gallery. It's cheaper than diving, but it only shows part of the sculptures. If you don't want to get in the water at all, consider Corpus: there you travel through the human body without getting wet.

Are any of these museums free?

Only one is completely free: the Museum of Bad Art in Boston, which operates at the Dorchester Brewing Co. brewery. Some exhibitions are technically inexpensive: admission to the Museum of Enduring Beauty in Malacca costs a token amount. The rest of the museums charge admission, but many offer discounts for children and students.

In short: what's worth booking

If you're going to Amsterdam, start with the Sexmuseum and a walk through the city center. If you're traveling with kids, choose the CupNoodles Museum and Corpus: everything there is hands-on. And if you want to see something that exists nowhere else, book the dive at MUSA in Cancun.

It's best to get tickets and time slots in advance: find a tour on GetYourGuide or check museum tickets on Tiqets.

10 Strange museums in the world: how much a ticket costs and what to see