rovostays·

Museums & Galleries · New Delhi

Best museums in New Delhi

New Delhi's museums and galleries — the cultural side, edited

New Delhi's museum scene goes well beyond the headline two. The list below covers the heritage rooms — antiquities, miniatures, the old colonial collections — alongside the contemporary art galleries and the smaller specialist museums that almost no visitor finds without a tip.

Top 10 museums in New Delhi

Ratings & reviews via Google

  1. National Museum, New Delhi01

    1. National Museum, New Delhi

    4.6· 20,705 reviews

    Janpath Rd, Rajpath Area, Central Secretariat, New Delhi, Delhi 110011, India

  2. National Gallery of Modern Art02

    2. National Gallery of Modern Art

    4.5· 9,404 reviews

    Jaipur House, Shershah Rd, near India Gate, Delhi High Court, India Gate, New Delhi, Delhi 110003, India

  3. National Science Centre03

    3. National Science Centre

    4.4· 27,950 reviews

    Gate No.1, near Bhairon Marg, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, Delhi 110001, India

  4. Museum of Illusions04

    4. Museum of Illusions

    4.6· 44,395 reviews

    A 30-33 1st Floor, A Block, Inner Cir, Block A, Connaught Place, New Delhi, Delhi 110001, India

  5. National Crafts Museum & Hastkala Academy05

    5. National Crafts Museum & Hastkala Academy

    4.6· 8,487 reviews

    Bhairon Marg, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, Delhi 110001, India

  6. National Rail Museum06

    6. National Rail Museum

    4.4· 27,409 reviews

    Service Rd, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi, Delhi 110021, India

  7. National War Memorial07

    7. National War Memorial

    4.8· 15,551 reviews

    C - Hexagon, India Gate, New Delhi, Delhi 110001, India

  8. Indira Gandhi Memorial Museum08

    8. Indira Gandhi Memorial Museum

    4.5· 16,075 reviews

    1, Safdarjung Rd, Safdarjung Lane Area, Delhi Gymkhana Club, New Delhi, Delhi 110011, India

  9. National Gandhi Museum09

    9. National Gandhi Museum

    4.4· 866 reviews

    J6QW+H97, Jawaharlal Nehru Marg, opp. Raj Ghat Memorial New Delhi, Vikram Nagar, New Delhi, Delhi, 110002, India

  10. Rashtrapati Bhavan Museum10

    10. Rashtrapati Bhavan Museum

    4.7· 3,940 reviews

    Talkatora Road, J59W+GMV, Presidents Estate Quarters, President's Estate, New Delhi, Delhi 110004, India

How to plan a museum day in New Delhi

Two museums per day is a healthy maximum — beyond that, attention fades and you stop seeing things. Plan a long lunch break between them; most premium museums in New Delhi have decent cafés that make the break easy. Weekdays are markedly quieter than weekends.

Guides and audio

Audio guides are reliable at the heritage museums (often included; sometimes a small extra). Private guides cost roughly ₹3000–₹6000 for a 2-hour walk-through and are worth it for the layered collections — they know what's worth lingering on and what to skip. The concierge can arrange a guide pre-arrival.

Photography and access

Most museums in New Delhi allow photography (no flash); a few of the heritage rooms restrict it entirely. Bag check is standard; expect to leave water bottles too. Wheelchair access is good at the modern museums, uneven at heritage sites — call ahead if relevant.

Explore more

Other ways to spend a day in New Delhi

Stay nearby

Other cities Rovostays serves

Travelling onward, or comparing locations? These are the cities closest to New Delhi where Rovostays has live inventory.