In this article, we will look at the 15 Most Unique and Unusual Museums in the World.

Cultural Tourism

Museums are more than places where objects are exhibited and preserved, it is also one of the key drivers of cultural tourism. According to UNESCO, cultural tourism is not only one of the fastest-growing segments of the tourism industry but also accounts for approximately 40% of the global tourism revenue. Museums are at the heart of cultural tourism as they preserve the cultural heritage attracting tourists from around the globe. As per Business Research Insights, the global cultural tourism market was valued at $5.32 billion in 2022. The market is forecasted to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 14.4% to reach $11.9 billion by 2029. The pandemic seriously hampered the growth of tourism in general, during 2020, the international arrivals were reduced by 75% around the globe. However, with travel restrictions easing down the state of tourism is returning to pre-pandemic levels. The quest for genuine cultural experiences is driving growth in the cultural tourism market. If you want to read more about museums you can check out Top 20 Most Visited Museums in the US in 2023 and the 25 Most Visited Museums in the World.

Is Global Travel Back? State of Travel and Tourism in 2024

As we mentioned above, global travel fell by 75% in 2020 due to the pandemic, however, it is on track to attain full recovery by the end of 2024. Some of the key metrics witnessing growth include domestic travel, which is expected to grow 3% annually and hit 19 billion lodging nights per year by 2030. The international travel is also forecasted to grow similar to the domestic travel. Overall, the travel industry is expected to contribute $8.6 trillion to the global economy in 2024, making around 9% of the world’s GDP this year.

As per the State of Tourism and Hospitality Report 2024, by McKinsey & Company, three main themes have emerged regarding how the travel industry would perform this year. One of the main trends that travelers are expected to follow is that the bulk of travel during the year will be close to home. Domestic travel accounts for almost 75% of global travel spending. This segment of the market recovered the fastest from the pandemic as people felt more confident traveling within borders rather than abroad right after the travel restrictions were lifted. The United States of America remains one of the largest domestic travel markets with almost $1 trillion in travel spending each year.

The second emerging theme is regarding the shift in the source markets for travel and tourism. The United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, and China have been the top 5 source markets for global travel. In total these countries accounted for 38% of the international travel spending in 2023. Although these 5 countries are expected to hold their place for the next 5 years, however, new affluent travelers from the Middle East and Southeast Asia are projected to grow from contributing 23% to the global outbound travel spending to 30% spending by 2030.

Last but not least, new travel destinations apart from the United States, China, France, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia are gaining traction. The top 10 travel destinations of the world currently take home around 45% of all the international travel spending, however, other countries including Laos, Malaysia, Peru, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Rwanda are expected to benefit from their tourist-generating policies. For instance, Vietnam increased its tourism spending by 40% during the past 5 years before the pandemic and is now expected to reap the results of its spending, on the other hand, Rwanda is investing in infrastructure to become a major transit hub.

Companies Driving Global Tourism

Companies like Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) are easing the booking process for travelers worldwide. Platforms such as Booking.com and Priceline allow tourists and travelers to make hotel, flight, car rental, and other essential reservations beforehand. Booking Holdings (NASDAQ:BKNG) is one of the leading online travel and related services providers, the company has a local presence in more than 220 countries and operates through five customer-facing platforms including Booking.com, Priceline, Agoda, KAYAK, and OpenTable. The company experienced a 9% year over year increase in its room bookings and around 300 million rooms were booked across its platforms during the first quarter of 2024.

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) is leveraging technology and AI to enhance booking experience for its users across all platforms. In June 2023 Bookings.com launched its new AI trip planner. The AI trip planner is powered by the existing machine learning model of the company that recommends destinations and accommodations, in addition to this the trip planner also uses OpenAI’s APIs to further enhance chat conversation for users planning their trips. Users can ask the AI trip planner general travel-related questions or simply describe what they are looking for to get updated real-time recommendations in a conversational manner.

Now that we have discussed the state of global travel and tourism for the current year, let’s now talk about the 15 most unique and unusual museums in the world.

Our Methodology

To curate the list of the 15 most unique and unusual museums in the world, we relied on a consensus methodology. We sifted through more than 10 rankings on the internet and analyzed the sentiment of Reddit users to get a list of the unique and unusual museums in the world. We only selected those museums that appeared in at least half of our sources. Finally, we ranked these museums based on the year they were opened. Please note that the list is arranged from newest to oldest museums.

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15 Most Unique and Unusual Museums in the World 

15. Cup Noodles Museum Yokohama

Year it was opened: 2011

The Cup Noodles Museum situated in Yokohama Japan ranks as the 15th most unique and unusual museum in the world. The museum is built in memory of Momofuku Ando, the father of instant Ramen. The museum attracts tourists and features a model chicken ramen factory, cup noodles factory, cup noodles park, instant noodles history cube, Momofuku Theater, and much more. It was opened in 2011.

14. Museum of Broken Relationships

Year it was opened: 2010

The Museum of Broken Relationships ranks as the 14th most unique and unusual museum in the world. It is situated in Zagreb, Croatia, and is dedicated to failed love relationships. The museum displays objects sourced from heartbroken lovers worldwide, along with descriptions telling the story of each item. The museum was opened in 2010.

13. Museum of Sex

Year it was opened: 2002

The Museum of Sex was opened in New York in 2002, with the mission to preserve the history and evolution of human sexuality. The Museum of Sex has curated more than 50 exhibitions that present the development of human sexuality. The management of the museum aims to create a judgment-free environment for open dialogues and discussions free from self-constraints to talk about topics related to human sexuality. It ranks as the 13th most unique and unusual museum in the world.

12. Museum of Miniature Books 

Year it was opened: 2002

The Museum of miniature books ranks as the 12th most unique and unusual museum in the world. It is situated in Baku and is the only museum of its kind that preserves and displays miniature books in the world. The museum started its operations in 2002 and was also awarded a certificate from the Guinness Book of Records for being the largest private museum of miniature books.

11. Salt and Pepper Shaker Museum

Year it was opened: 2002

The salt and pepper shaker museum is situated in Tennessee, it holds more than 20,000 pairs of salt and pepper shakers from all over the world. It ranks as the 11th most unique and unusual museum in the world and was opened in 2002. There is a sister museum in Spain that also depicts 20,000 pairs of salt and pepper shakers.

10. The Icelandic Phallological Museum

Year it was opened: 1997

The Icelandic Phallological Museum was opened in 1997 and ranks 10th on our list of the 15 most unique and unusual museums in the world. The museum holds a collection of more than 200 penises and penile parts of almost all Icelandic animals and mammals.

9. Burlingame Museum of Pez Memorabilia

Year it was opened: 1995

The Burlingame Museum of Pez Memorabilia is a museum dedicated to candies and plastic dispensers. The museum was opened in 1995 and has more than 500 dispensers and other Pez accessories including vending machines and advertisements. It ranks as the 9th most unique and unusual museum in the world.

8. Museum of Bad Art 

Year it was opened: 1993

The Museum of Bad Art is situated in Boston, Massachusetts, and ranks as the 8th most unique and unusual museum in the world. The purpose of the museum is to appreciate the labor of artists whose work has not been appreciated at any other forum. It is a privately owned museum which was opened in 1993.

7. Sulabh International Museum of Toilets 

Year it was opened: 1992

The Sulabh International Museum of Toilets is the 7th most unique and unusual museum in the world. It is situated in New Delhi, India, and is dedicated to the history of toilets and sanitation. The museum has exhibits from over 50 countries dating back to 3000 BC. The museum captures and displays the development of human toilets and sanitation techniques over time. It was opened in 1992.

6. Avanos Hair Museum

Year it was opened: 1979

Avanos Hair Museum is situated in Turkey and ranks as the 6th most unique and unusual museum in the world. It was opened in 1979 and has since been the memorial temple that has over 15 thousand women’s hair. The management of the museum does not allow people to take photos inside the museum. All the women who visit the museum leave a pinch of their hair with their name, phone number, and even photos so they can come back and find their hair.

5. The Dog Collar Museum

Year it was opened: 1977

The Dog Collar Museum is situated in Broomfield, England, and ranks as the 5th most unique and unusual museum in the world. The museum was opened in 1977 with a collection of 62 historic dog collars that were donated to the Leeds Castle Foundation by Gertrude Hunt. At present times the collection of dog collars has grown to over 130 exhibits and is indicative of the development of humans’ relationship with dogs.

Some of the oldest dog collars in the museum are fearsome with spikes around the neck to protect the dogs from wild bears and wolves.