Best Museums around Tokyo and Surroundings Spot List

The Meguro Parasitological Museum exhibits 300 specimens of tapeworms and related material from inside and outside Japan. This is a research facility and museum devoted to parasites.

This is a grand-scale building that stands on a corner of the land where the Sakura Castle used to be. The museum's exhibition is presented so that visitors can easily understand Japanese history.

The museum exhibits precious fossils of prehistoric life and a large diorama replicated the forests of Saitama. It is a museum where you can learn the 300 million years of the natural history of the prefecture.

The National Film Center is the only national institution devoted to cinematography. It keeps movie films as well as many valuable materials related to movies. They are shown on the screens or displayed in the exhibition hall.

It is an art museum in Marunouchi that holds Japanese contemporary art oriented exhibitions.

You can experience the world of Mitsuo Aida, a poet and calligrapher who emphasized the preciousness of life with his own phrases and unique styles of calligraphy.

This museum displays the works of leading Japanese modern sculptor Fumio Asakura: the site is registered nationally as a Place of Scenic Beauty and the structure itself as a Tangible Cultural Property.

Japan's first national art museum located next to the Imperial palace, and it houses more than 12,500 artworks.

The museum houses 900 drums, including Japanese drums and others from all over the world. Visitors can touch and play the drums.

The Philatelic Museum in Tokyo is one of the rare museums in Japan, and visitors can discover the fun and charm of postal stamps from all over the world.

This art museum houses many pieces of artwork, mainly paintings, woodblock prints, sculptures, and others that were created by the hands of artists who have a tie with Kawagoe.

An open-air museum where historical buildings having high cultural value are restored and displayed on a large site.

Lalique Museum, Hakone exhibits about 230 pieces of French artist, René Lalique (1860-1945) who created precious jewelry in Art Nouveau style, and beautiful objects in glass during Art Deco period.

Museum to appreciate the works of painter and poet Yumeji Takehisa.

It is a toy museum designed to attract people of all ages, from babies to the elderly. Visitors can see, touch, play, and learn while having fun.

The Railway Museum displays 37 real railway cars and lets you try out rail car operations yourself.

A museum inside the building of Tokyo University of the Arts, the best out of all the art universities in Japan. It stores approximately 29,000 items of mainly Japanese modern arts.

A museum specializing in Japanese swords. Some 190 items including swords, mountings and fittings, armor, and information on metalwork.

A museum located in Ueno Park. Visitors can enjoy a variety of artworks including ones designated as Important Cultural Properties.

This museum owns over 38,000 artifacts relating to the culture and history of tobacco and salt both from Japan and overseas.