Belgium’s 17 Most Unusual & Fun Museums You Just Have to See

Kelsie Colclough | Live the World

July 4, 2022

Our favourite 17 fun museums you need to see in Belgium.

Museums are some of the best things to do in Belgium! We’ve gathered up the quirkiest places Brussels has to offer, plus Antwerp and nearby cities so you can find the most unique museum just for you to start planning your next trip. Whether you’re hiding out on a rainy day or just looking for the next hidden gem, Belgium is the place to be.

We find new quirky museums everyday! Sip a drink at the Jenever Museum or play games at the Pixel Museum. Whatever you’re looking for, Belgium has a cool place to go for you.

You can also find all of these museums and more on our map of Belgium!

1. Drink up at Jenever Museum

📍 Hasselt

Visit Flanders

Make a toast to your travels at the Jenever Museum in Hasselt. As far as museums go, maybe this isn’t what you’d expect. No looking through dusty exhibits for you! Nope. We’re here to learn all about Jenever. Forget about the busy streets of Brussels and head over to Hasselt for a taste of Belgian culture…

Gin drinkers and even whiskey enthusiasts will find their match with Jenever. It’s a special type of gin from Belgium and the Netherlands. Why go to a regular city museum when you can have a drink instead? It’s a museum these days, but this place started as a distillery. The spirit of spirits is still going.

Get all the details on what to see at the museum below. 👇

2. Enjoy Nostalgia at the Toy Museum

Layla Aerts | Visit Mechelen

Switch up your city trip to Antwerp with a dose of nostalgia at the Toy Museum. Look, we’ve all been to regular history museums and know what to expect. They kinda get boring after a while, you know?

If you want an unusual museum and unique take on history, this is it. Reminisce over the LEGO bricks of your childhood or explore the toys from whole other centuries and countries with the kids.

Three floors of nostalgia await you over in Mechelen. Get more info below. 👇

3. Indulge at Chocolate Nation

📍 Antwerp

Live the World

Chocolate Nation is one of the best museums in Antwerp. I mean, what other museum gives you an excuse to overdose on a sugar high?

Go to Chocolate Nation in Antwerp’s city centre to discover the history of chocolate and how it’s made. Get interactive; you even get to smell the history of chocolate here…. Is anyone else hungry?

Get all the details on the Belgian chocolate museum below. 👇

4. Level up at Pixel Museum

📍 Brussels

Live the World

Unlock the history of video games at this museum in Brussels. Try out tons of different consoles, games and even arcade games. This isn’t your regular run of the mill museum. This is some geeky stuff and we love it!

Whether you’re a retro collector or the biggest Tier 3 viewer on the planet, there’s going to be something for you at the video game museum. Go on an interactive journey to rediscover your fave childhood games and new stuff you’ve never heard of.

Double dash to our detailed guide to the museum below. 👇

5. Explore history In Flanders Fields Museum

📍 Ypres

Brussels might have a ton of museums, but you can’t forget about Flanders. Located in the historic city of Ypres, In Flanders Fields is one of the best museums to visit outside of Brussels.

Inside the museum, you’ll find interactive exhibits all about the tragic and important moments of World War II that happened around Ypres.

Check out our guide to the history museum below! 👇

Need more things to do around Ypres? In Flanders Fields is close to the fascinating Yorkshire Trench to continue your WWII history museum trip.

6. Feel creepy vibes at the Bruges Torture Museum

📍 Bruges

Bruges is known for its beautiful medieval sights and romantic atmosphere. But beneath all that lies Bruges’ hidden dark history… Delve deep into one of the weirdest museums in Belgium!

Located inside Oude Steen, one of Bruges’ city prisons, the museum contains over 100+ unique torture devices.

Get full details on the Torture Museum in our guide. 👇

7. Get inspired at the Musée Magritte Museum

📍 Brussels

Michael Costa | Flickr

Muse over the surrealist art of René Magritte! Musee Magritte is one of the best museums to visit in Brussels and is an absolute must-visit for art lovers. The museum is packed with three floors of art, with each floor covering a different part of Magritte’s life. Musee Magritte has some hidden gems of his artwork too, not just the well-known pieces.

Musee Magritte has some of the most unique art in the city. You’ll need about 2 hours to see everything and we recommend taking your time! Check out our full tips and tricks below 👇

8. Munch on strawberries at Musée de la Fraise de Wepion

📍 Namur

It doesn’t get more quirky than the Strawberry Museum of Dinant. This place is a hidden gem for now as it’s tucked away in Belgium’s gorgeous Wallonia region. Here’s why you need to go before the crowds pluck all of its strawberries!

Just over an hour away by car from Brussels, this unique museum is definitely worth a visit. Start your trip with a peek into the exhibits. The museum might be small, but nowhere else in Belgium will tell you this much about all things strawberry related.

The best part of this quirky place is the strawberry tasty stuff at the end. Buy some local food and dig in. Locals say Wepion strawberries are the best in the country and we have to agree!

Belgium’s quirky Strawberry Museum is located in the gorgeous city of Dinant. Dinant has tons of fun things to do!

9. Interact with science at Le Pass

📍 Frameries, Hainaut

Antonio Ponte | Flickr

Less than a 2 hour drive away from Brussels is one of the most underrated science museums in Belgium! Totally interactive, the museum is super popular with families to teach the kids all about the different parts of science. But, with all the interactive exhibits adults can totally have fun at the museum here too.

Get our top tips on the science museum below! 👇

10. Get Surreal in the Museum Gallery Xpo Salvador Dali

📍 Bruges

Live the World

Like the Magritte Museum of Brussels, the Xpo Salvador Dali museum is a unique and surreal place to go. Delve into the world of Dali at one of the biggest art collections in the world all about Salvador Dali. You’ll see work by this famous artist you’ve never seen before… A quirky gem of Bruges, the museum gallery is definitely worth a visit in the city centre.

Get all the details on the art museum below! 👇

11. See Modern Design at Design Museum Brussels

📍 Brussels

© visit.brussels | Jean-Paul Remy

Only a quick walk away from the Atomium, the Design Museum is a totally underrated museum to visit in Brussels. The best part of the unique museum is its plastic collection. Look, nowhere else in Brussels is going to give you the full journey on how we use plastic in everything from furniture to art. The Design Museum is one of the most unique places to go in the capital!

Check out all our top tips for the design museum below! 👇

12. See modern art at the Wiels Museum

📍 Brussels

Live the World

Do you love contemporary art? The Wiels Museum is THE place to go for you in Brussels. Located outside the city centre, this artsy hidden gem has some of the most quirky and unique contemporary art exhibits around. There are three floors to explore! The temporary exhibits can get ever weirder with absurdist and surreal art so keep your eyes peeled.

Get our top tips on the museum below! 👇

13. Sip a beer at the MIMA Museum

📍 Brussels

Live the World

Only a short walk from Brussels city centre is one of the most unique art museums in the capital. Located beside the canal, the Millennium Iconolast Museum of Art (aka MIMA) has lots of unique and modern visual art to see. There’s an awesome restaurant and bar here too. This building used to be a brewery! MIMA has some of the coolest vibes in Brussels - don’t miss it!

Get our top tips on the museum below. 👇

14. Explore the Rubens House

📍 Antwerp

Heeyon Kim

Calling all art lovers! Rubens House (Rubenshuis) is one of the most visited museums in Antwerp, but it is one of the most unique too. Where else can you visit a home designed by the artist who once lived there? Peter Paul Rubens was one of the best painters of Flanders in the 16th century and is one of the most well-known artists to this day from Belgium. You can even visit his art studio at the museum.

Find out more details below. 👇

15. Visit the unique Museum of Original Figurines

📍 Brussels

Ravi Sarma

Did you know that TinTin and the Smurfs come from Belgium? Brussels is the best place to go to explore the unique comic history of Belgium. The Museum of Original Figurines (aka Moof Museum) is home to thousands of classic comic book figurines.

The museum is definitely unique and not as well-known compared to other places in the capital. Plus Moof is right next door to the beautiful and famous Monts des Arts. Don’t miss the comic part of Brussels’ culture!

16. Get the details on Tintin at Musée Hergé

📍 Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve, Walloon-Brabant

Peripatetic

Take a quick drive from Brussels to find one of the most unique museums in Belgium! This place is all about Tintin and Georges Remi, his creator. If you love comic books or visiting unique places, this museum is a must.

Get more details on all the exhibits below! 👇

17. Napoleon’s Last Headquarters

📍 Genappe, Walloon-Brabant

Everyone knows the Waterloo song. Waterloo was the sight of Napoleon’s final battle and defeat. While most go to see the famous Lion’s Mound, you get a bit more insight to what actually happened during the battle at Napoleon’s Last Headquarters. Travel back in time to 1815 when Napoleon is planning out the battle.

Get all the info on the history museum below! 👇

That's it for our unique museum guide to Belgium. Psst! Looking for even more unique things to do in Belgium? Check out our Brussels city guide and 2 day itinerary!

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