When in Wales, you have to visit the biggest museum in Wales!

The National Museum Cardiff

The collection is comprised of a mixture of whatever people have donated over the years. This includes a lot of ceramics and paintings. The ground floor of the museum is devoted to natural history and science while the first floor is crafts, art and fine art.

Naturally, there are galleries devoted to images of Wales! Another to the faces of Wales – featuring a rotating selection of portraits in the collection. It’s a smart way to show off paintings in the collection while bringing more visitors in.

They have a magnificent selection of Impressionist French art! It’s all because of two local heiresses – the Davies Sisters! They have a great story. I love this Rodin piece they collected.

They also have contemporary art on display (which you can’t photograph). I really enjoyed the pieces. One was a video/picture with beanbags to sit on. Always a win in my book.

I really loved this interactive. It allows you to compare marble that has been touched by thousands of visitors versus pristine marble. Its a nice way to highlight conservation. Also it’s fun!

I met Bertie the Bison! Cute, eh? The natural history gallery was fun and even had a dinosaur section.

I always adore the mineral galleries. I love the giant piece of pyrite. They look so cool in their cube formation. It’s an amazing natural phenomenon.

Rating: 5/5

Pros: Comprehensive collection, great interpretation, great for all ages, so wide ranging – everyone will find something of interest, nice cafe, excellent shop, everything in the museum is connected back to Wales which makes if feel cohesive although the collections are disparate.

Cons: It is very large – hard to see everything!