Best 6 Museums in Baltimore

When you think of Baltimore, the first that comes to mind is probably the gorgeous harbor. However, even if the sight of the city skyline reflected on the water is certainly one to behold, you don’t want to spend all of your time outdoors.

There are plenty of museums in Baltimore that are worth a visit— for art, history, and science alike. So, if you do find yourself in this seaside Maryland city, you won’t want to miss out on going inside, too. Make sure to get the full Baltimore experience.

There are a lot of museums on GiftYa’s website, too. With the app, you can use a virtual gift card to someone— or even to yourself —for a store or business that participates. 

The recipient of the card can set it up to their credit or debit card, and then when they make a purchase at the location they received the gift card for it’ll use that balance until it’s gone! Isn’t that easier than always trying to remember to bring your gift cards with you?

Here’s a list of six amazing museums that are worth seeing in Baltimore, all supported by GiftYa!

Baltimore Museum of Art

One of the many popular art museums in Baltimore, which also happens to be supported by GiftYa!

The exterior of the Baltimore Museum of Art looks like a work of art itself. In fact, it was designed by famous architect John Russell Pope. Image courtesy of Baltimore Museum of Art’s Instagram.

803 Cathedral St MD | Baltimore | artbma.org

The Baltimore Museum of Art’s ever changing exhibits feature a wide variety of classical as well as contemporary art, including famed painters like Degas as well and more recent works. It’s open Wednesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.

Admission is free— though parking is not —but you will need to make a reservation for a timed entry online or over the phone. If you’re going to be spending some time in Baltimore, this is a great place to look at some beautiful art for the day at no cost to you!

“Overall, I was much more engaged by the art here than I am by most museums, and have already started strongly recommending it to my friends and family. Check it out!” - Yelp Review

If you want to visit the museum yourself, or prompt a loved one to do so, consider buying a GiftYa for it! Even if the museum itself may be free, you can hardly leave without visiting the gift shop!

Maryland Science Center

If you want to admire some wonderful exhibits and learn something, too, visit the science center with GiftYa!

The Maryland Science Center offers a lot of hands-on exhibits that are great for kids! Image courtesy of the Maryland Science Center’s Instagram.

601 Light St MD | Baltimore | mdsci.org

If you’re looking to have an educational experience, the Maryland Science Center in Baltimore may be the perfect place to go. It’s open every day of the week except Monday from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. 

There are exhibits on dinosaurs, space, the human body, and the Earth. Plenty of different things to see and learn about!

It’s full of a lot of interactive activities, too, which makes it a very popular place for school field trips and families with children. If you have a childlike attention span, you might enjoy these types of exhibits as opposed to staring at paintings on the wall.

“A favorite of mine was the Wet Lab. My oldest son and I were able to do hands-on lab experiments, which I felt as though we were real scientists in an actual laboratory.” - Yelp Review

A GiftYa to this amazing museum would be the perfect gift for a kid’s birthday, or maybe even an adult who really loves science. The Maryland Science Center presents an opportunity for fun for all ages.

Reginald F. Lewis Museum

If you’d prefer a history museum GiftYa, this might be the perfect place for you!

The Reginald F. Lewis Museum in Baltimore focuses on black history. Image courtesy of Reginald F. Lewis Museum’s Instagram.

830 E Pratt St MD | Baltimore | lewismuseum.org

Named after Reginald F. Lewis, the first African American man to create a billion-dollar company, this museum focuses on African American history.

Especially in the current political climate, it’s important to be educated on this topic and to understand the struggles and level of systemic oppression that black people have faced in America.

Open from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays, and from 12 p.m. until 5 p.m. on Sundays, this museum is three floors, but the main collection is on the third. It’s recommended that you start from the top and work your way down to the gift shop on the first floor. Be sure to book ahead.

“Definitely the history that cannot be found anywhere in the history textbooks! I learned so much from my visit and it gives a more detailed look into the lives of slaves and African Americans from slavery times to the present.” - Yelp Review

If you want to make a visit to this museum while you’re in Baltimore, you can purchase a GiftYa to make it a little bit easier!

B & O Railroad Museum

This is another great option for a Baltimore history museum, but it’ll be really enjoyable for those who are more mechanically minded.

Baltimore is a city rich with history, and the B & O Railroad Museum showcases the history exactly what the name would suggest! Image courtesy of the B & O Railroad Museum Instagram.

901 W Pratt St MD | Baltimore | borail.org

The Boston and Ohio Railroad was a major supply line for the Union during the Civil War, and this museum in Baltimore has many trains from that time on display. The museum is open from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and on Sundays it opens at 11 a.m. instead. 

While the trains are incredibly interesting to look at both because of how far technology has advanced since then and their significance in history, this museum also has some kid-friendly events and also offers train rides at specific times during the year.

“As a train enthusiast I really like the B&O Railroad Museum. This is one of those places that I have to use self-control to not excitedly skip from the car to the entry.” - Yelp Review

And if you’re a train enthusiast like Courtney, then you might love visiting the B & O Railroad Museum. Why not purchase a GiftYa for the occasion?

The Walters Art Museum

There are many museums that showcase beautiful art in Baltimore, so it’s definitely worth visiting more than one!

From paintings to sculptures, the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore has a little bit of everything on display. Image courtesy of the Walters Art Museum’s Instagram

600 N Charles St MD | Baltimore | thewalters.org

The Walters Art Museum is open Wednesday through Sunday with hours from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. with the exception of Thursday, when the museum doesn’t open until 1 p.m.

The museum is enormous and has a wide, diverse collection in its five buildings. It’s also got free admission, and it also offers virtual tours on its website to make it even further accessible to the public— that way people who don’t live in Baltimore and can’t make the physical visit can still look at all the beautiful art!

Nothing beats the real thing, however, and if you do want to stop by The Walters Museum in person, group tours and wheelchair lifts are available to make it accessible that way, too!

“I love this museum! You can tour the collection in a day and see everything in this gem. Magnificent variety of works and mediums, a little of everything.” - Yelp Review

Taking your loved one on a visit to this beautiful museum would be a great gift so that the two of you can spend some time together, and you can purchase a GiftYa for the Walters Art Museum, too, so that they can pick themselves out something from the gift shop, too!

Baltimore Museum of Industry

A great museum to go to if you want to learn about Baltimore itself.

Museums are constantly switching up their exhibits and getting new ones, which makes them worth visiting more than once! Image courtesy of the Baltimore Museum of Industry’s Instagram.

1415 Key Hwy MD | Baltimore | thebmi.org

The Baltimore Museum of Industry is all about innovation and progress, and so it allows you to look at how work has evolved in Baltimore over time. It’s a great way to learn about the history of the city.

It’s currently open by appointment for groups of up to ten people on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Imagine that! A whole museum reserved for you and your friends. It sounds like an opportunity you may want to take advantage of to see all of the cool exhibits this museum has to offer.

“One aspect I really liked about the museum were the blacksmiths who were there and actually forging something! I was mesmerized watching as one of them banged away on the anvil. When I asked he said he was making a candle holder.” - Yelp Review

The Baltimore Museum of Industry is also supported by GiftYa, so you can purchase a virtual gift card to use there today!

There are plenty more museums in Baltimore that would be worth visiting, whether you live in the area and you want to have a day out on the town with your friends or you’re visiting the city from far away. Whatever the case may be, these are just a few of them.

In fact, these aren’t even all of the Baltimore museums that are supported by GiftYa. So, if you like the idea of purchasing a virtual gift card for a loved one to send them to a museum, you should feel encouraged to look into the options yourself to see if there’s anything that you think they specifically might be interested in.

Or, buy a GiftYa for yourself! Why not?

If you weren’t sure where to stop on a trip to Baltimore, however, hopefully this has given you some ideas, and hopefully that you’ll consider using GiftYa to help pay for the experience.