Museums are for boring people? If you thought so, think again! These buildings carry with them lessons in history and evidence of times long forgotten. More like time-machines, these places can transport you to times you would have only dreamt of.

The Louvre Museum is perhaps the best and the most revered museums of our times. The spectacularly placed glass pyramid represents Paris on the world map of the best museums. Housing a collection of art pieces that date back to Venus de Milo, this museum offers art lovers the refuge unattainable anywhere else in this world. Second up is the Hermitage Museum which is located in Russia. Housing over 3 million artifacts, this building has taken up six more to accommodate its huge collection of memorabilia. Sheltering the finest works of Gaugin, Monet, Rodin, Renoir, Da Vinci, Rembrandt, Michelangelo and Rubens, this museum is a pure treat for the eyes.

Extensive architecture of the British Museum makes way for the incredible collection of the Chinese, Asian, Aztec and Classical art pieces. Letting people enter for free, this museum has relics from every civilization in the world. It gives you a lesson in history, a recap of a thousand years in a few hours! Where else would you drive such an easy bargain?

The MET, popularly known as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, is one of the most famous buildings in the city of New York and is synonymous with ancient and modern art. The museum is huge, so a careful planning is recommended when you visit it.

Uffizi Gallery which is located in Florence, Italy is a real treat. Masterpieces like The Birth of Venus and Primavera greet you upon your arrival. Not only does this museum come as a blast from the past, but the city paints a wonderful picture for tourists and residents alike. This one should be an important one on your list.

National Gallery of Art is strategically divided into two buildings that house different collections from different time periods. The west building houses exhibits from Europe that date before the 19th century and the East building is home to modern art and one can see Picasso, Warhol and Lichtenstein adorning the walls.

The museum of Modern Art in Manhattan, USA, is known to be one of the most influential and important museums dedicated to modern art in our times. An honor so prestigious, one has to see it to believe it. Contemporary art, fine art and new media are regular features there.

The fact is that many art museums in America also boast impressive collections of fine and treasured works of artistic expression. While the reputation that European museums enjoy is certainly justified, it should not eclipse the fact that there are many art collections featured in art museums across the US that are well worth the time to visit, especially if a trip “across the pond” is out of the question.

For the most part, the curator of an art museum in a US city is quite aware that they can’t compete with the grand museums of Europe. However, they do know that they can capitalize on the assets they do have, which means that in most cases they are more technologically advanced in terms of how the art they have acquired is presented to their visitors.

On top of that, there are many who claim that the best of the US collections are found in some of the finest museums to be found anywhere. Rather than relying on centuries of collected masterpieces that can almost crowd each other out, as seen at some of the European museums, a museum of art in the United States is able to create better displays with fewer, more carefully selected pieces, so that the viewer is not overwhelmed.

In addition to that, some experts say that people prefer to find new and interesting art exhibits each time they visit an art museum. The smaller US museums are more likely to rotate their gallery exhibitions, providing variety and encouraging people to return often to see the attractions that have been added. In many cases, the curators of the European art museums feel they must leave the well-known masterpieces so that those who cannot visit the museum frequently have an opportunity to see the “celebrity” works of art, such as the Mona Lisa.

American art museums also differ from the European art museums in terms of their commitment to being on the cutting edge of the global contemporary art community. While not always the case, the more traditional of the European art galleries and museums also tend to feature the more traditional, classic and well-known artists and are generally slower to reach out to acquire works of art that are outside of that traditional style and genre.

One aspect that often stands out to many visitors of art museum galleries around the United States is that in many cases the artwork they come to admire is also housed in edifices which are often stand-alone, architectural works of art too. In many cases, these buildings are known for their cutting edge design and architectural innovations, which add to the overall effectiveness of the gallery exhibitions and appreciation of art and architecture as well.