Museums You Can Visit Online

Life in the time of COVID-19 means a pause on travel and a serious need for entertainment. With that in mind, several prestigious art institutions are currently offering free virtual tours. Now you can experience some of the best museums in the world—from Paris to New York—from the comfort of your own home.

One of the largest art museums in the world, the Louvre in Paris is offering free online tours of some of its most popular exhibits, including retrospectives of both Michelangelo’s and Leonardo da Vinci’s works.

Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam

The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam is dedicated to the works of the renowned post-impressionist artist. The museum contains the largest collection of Van Gogh’s paintings and drawings in the world, and the virtual tour allows you to view his pieces—from self-portraits to drawings—up close.

Vatican Museums, Vatican City

The Vatican Museums website offers virtual tours of seven popular museum sites, including the iconic Sistine Chapel, the Pio Clementino Museum, the Chiaramonti Museum, the New Wing, Raphael’s Rooms, the Niccoline Chapel, and the Room of the Chiaroscuri.

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Virtually stroll around New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art—the largest art museum in the US with works from all over the world spanning more than 5,000 years—and click on each exhibit featured to find out more about it. Some of the current shows include Coco Chanel: Modernism and The Art of Music through Time.

Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.’s National Museum of Natural History is offering a self-guided, online virtual tour that includes past exhibits (Last American Dinosaurs), current ones (Butterfly Pavilion), and a walk around the museum’s impressive building.

J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles

With more than 6,000 years of art in its collection, the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles features works ranging from the Middle Ages to the early 20th century. The museum is currently offering virtual tours of eight of its exhibits, including Japanese-American Photographs 1920-1940 and Eighteenth-Century Pastel Portraits, with more coming soon.