Prepare to have your mind blown at the country’s wackiest homages to, well, whatever really.
Dinosaur bones, sculptures, ancient relics – who needs them? When we visit a museum, we’re ready to be shocked and awed by something truly out of the ordinary.
It’s why we’ve grown obsessed with Australia’s weirdest museums, scattered right across the country to shine a light on the far less explored. From a globally acclaimed poo machine and actual human specimens to Ned Kelly’s kitchen and submerged sculptures, our round-up of the oddest museums is guaranteed to entertain.
1. Museum of Old and New Art (MONA), Tas
It’s plenty wonderful but the home of Tassie’s famed poo machine is categorically weird.
The Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) is one of the Apple Isle’s most iconic attractions and while the exhibits are reliably thought-provoking and genius, nobody can argue that Cloaca Professional, which very genuinely replicates the gastroenterological food journey, is quite like anything else.
Other onsite curiosities include the car space reserved for ‘God’ where MONA creator David Walsh parks and a wall of sculptured vulvas.
Address: 655 Main Road, Berriedale, Tasmania
Admission price: $38 per adult.
2. Cyril Callister Museum, Vic
Putting a rose in every cheek, the Cyril Callister Museum in regional Victoria is an ode to the creator of Vegemite within a converted petrol station.
Opened by the Cyril Callister Foundation to share the story behind their condiment saviour, the museum charts his upbringing and achievements, so expect to see fascinating memorabilia and a stack of Vegemite merch (which, let’s be real, is why people visit).
T-shirts, glassware, books and sweet corduroy caps provide plenty of opportunities to pay tribute to the Aussie legend beyond this weird museum.
Address: 23 Neill Street, Beaufort, Victoria
Admission price: Free but donations are welcome.
3. Museum of Underwater Art, Qld
Forget everything you know about museums. This one’s from another world – an underwater world. The Museum of Underwater Art is weird in the most serene, soul-stirring way, encompassing a series of underwater sculptures that are mainly accessible via scuba diving or snorkelling.
Dozens of works including the standout Coral Greenhouse, which broke the Guinness World Record for the largest underwater art structure, dazzle from just beyond your mask.
Address: John Brewer Reef, Great Barrier Reef, Queensland
Admission price: Free to view however if you’d like to visit via vessel, multiple tour options are available.
4. Mad Max 2 Museum, NSW
Can’t get enough of the Mad Max franchise? Fang it to Silverton, a tiny mining town near Broken Hill in outback NSW, where a Mad Max 2 Museum has set up shop.
Paying homage to ‘Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior’, which was filmed in town, the museum gathers awesome photography, never-before-seen footage, original and replica vehicles and frighteningly realistic life-size characters in full costume.
The wackiest part is you’re surrounded by the red dirt backdrop made famous by the film, so it’s all just very surreal.
Address: 2 Stirling Street, Silverton, NSW
Admission price: $10 per adult.
5. The Big Camera Museum of Photography, WA
How very meta you’ll feel snapping a selfie out the front of this enormous SLR 35mm camera-shaped façade, but no visit to The Big Camera Museum of Photography is complete without it.
Located along the highway, it’s the perfect pitstop to explore more than 1500 fully operational cameras spanning the decades plus a bunch of projectors, slides, kaleidoscopes and more.
Address: Great Eastern Highway, Meckering, WA
Admission price: Free.
6. Museum of Human Disease, NSW
If COVID got your blood pumping in more ways than one, you’re probably exactly who the Museum of Human Disease is targeting.
Located within the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in Sydney, the weird museum invites the public to view its extensive human tissue specimen collection which catalogues extraordinary histories and pathologies. Think all the big guns like cancer, stroke, HIV/AIDS, heart attack, diabetes and the effects of drugs.
Address: Ground Floor, Samuels Building, UNSW Sydney, High Street, Kensington, NSW
Admission price: $10 per adult.
7. The Ned Kelly History Museum and Homestead, Vic
It’s not all that weird is it, memorialising the country’s most iconic outlaw? But wait until you see his homestead. At The Ned Kelly History Museum and Homestead located in Glenrowan, a small town in northeast Victoria, there’s a precise replica of Ned’s digs, filled with items that belonged to him and donated to the museum by his family.
Cosy up in the convicted police murderer’s single bed or sniff out the adorable marsupial cooked in a pie on the kitchen bench. Weirdness abounds every corner of this architectural feat.
Address: 35 Gladstone Street, Glenrowan, Victoria
Admission price: $12 per adult.
8. The Museum of Fire, NSW
Setting western Sydney ablaze with fire-related memorabilia, The Museum of Fire is one helluva hot ticket.
A playground for little ones intrigued by firefighters and fire trucks, as well anybody who appreciates the heroic work our community defenders perform daily, it’s filled with historical relics that span horse-drawn steamers and ancient switchboards, kid-specific interactive areas where they can live out their dreams and so much more.
Address: 1 Museum Drive, Penrith, NSW
Admission price: $17 per adult and $8.50 per child.
9. Qantas Guinea Airways Hangar, NT
The colourful town of Parap in the Northern Territory is coming into its own and you can thank the Qantas Guinea Airways Hangar for playing its part in propelling things. The fascinating museum is in fact a giant hangar, built in 1934 for Qantas and utilised by the first Australia-England air service operated by the airline.
Nowadays, it charts the state’s automotive history, so you’ll spy classic cars, an old fire engine, locomotives, steam and traction engines and delivery vehicles throughout this one-stop shop.
Address: 22 Macdonald Street, Parap, Darwin, NT
Admission price: Free but donations are welcome.
10. The Academy of Taxidermy, WA
It will feel rather normal strolling through the Museum of Natural History in Guildford, Western Australia. That is until you seek out its Academy of Taxidermy .
Home to more than 2000 brilliantly stuffed items, including endangered fauna which is surprisingly moving, the weird museum is utterly jaw-dropping. Scan the cabinets and floors to find far-too-lifelike animal trophies, dinos, marine life, birds and other critters, all lovingly preserved by Master Taxidermist Michael Buzza.
Address: 131 James Street, Guildford, WA
Admission price: Free but donations are welcome.
11. Sydney Bus Museum, NSW
Seen one bus, seen them all? Evidently not. At the Sydney Bus Museum in Sydney’s inner west, you’ll be astonished to learn just how far buses have come over time as a collection of vintage builds that date as far back as the Second World War, fill out a 100-year-old tram shed.
Want to see them go? Get a kick out of jumping onboard a vintage double-decker for a ride through the city.
Address: 25 Derbyshire Road, Leichhardt, NSW
Admission price: $20 per adult.
12. Faye’s Underground Home, SA
A weird museum like no other, Faye’s Underground Home in Coober Pedy is an authentic dugout built 40 years ago to escape the sweltering daylight climate and bone-cold desert nights.
Maintaining an average temperature of 23 to 25 degrees no matter how high or low the mercury fluctuates outside, these dugouts are extraordinary, and this museum allows you to inspect every nook and cranny. Built using picks and shovels, the home is an astonishing portal into the town’s rich history.
Address: Old Water Tank Road, Coober Pedy, SA
Admission price: $20 per person.
13. Victoria Police Museum, Vic
Can’t get enough of true crime? Deep dive into the culture capital’s captivating crime history at the Victoria Police Museum in the heart of Melbourne. More than 300 pieces fill the space, spanning police and forensic equipment, legitimate evidence and accounts from some of the city’s weirdest and most shocking crimes.
And if you’re a Ned Kelly nut, they’ve also gathered the country’s largest collection of his armour, so you’re sorted for a full day of fun.
Address: 313 Spencer Street, Docklands, Melbourne, Victoria
Admission price: Free.
14. Bega Cheese Heritage Centre, NSW
Weird in the most delicious of ways, the Bega Cheese Heritage Centre speaks to us on a spiritual level and collates everything a museum should.
Seize the opportunity to sample the fruits of the brand’s labour on NSW’s far south coast as you learn about the history of dairy farming and the brand’s road to fame. The museum itself is also impressive, made to replicate the original ‘creamery’ built in 1899.
Address: 11-13 Lagoon Street, Bega, NSW
Admission price: Free.
15. Australian Pinball Museum, Vic
Gamers, brace yourselves. The country’s largest collection of pinball machines can be found at the Australian Pinball Museum and you’ll count more than 60 lining the walls.
And when your eyes aren’t lit up over the flashing lights, scanning the vacant wall space between the machines will also provide fascinating eye candy as vintage posters used for promotions proudly hang. Intriguing picks include 2012’s AC/DC Back in Black, 1931’s Baffle Ball and 1993’s Twilight Zone machines.
Address: 22 Dimboola Road, Nhill, Victoria
Admission price: Free and donations are welcome. Games can be played at $1 for older machines and $2 for modern machines.
