The Most Memorable Museums of 2025
The Ringling's courtyard | The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art
For Wildsam's inaugural Road Trip Awards we asked a panel of seven expert judges for the places that will make your next voyage through America unforgettable. Here, we're taking a look at Memorable Museums, art havens in tune with place that pack special insight and deep collections. Bonus points for grid-worthy Insta posts.
Walter Anderson Museum of Art
“Walter Anderson, born in 1903 and died in 1965, was an artist—and I would say a botanist, explorer and adventurer. He had a small boat, almost like a dinghy, that he would row into the Gulf of Mexico and explore the islands. The curator of the museum told us a wild story about his survival on a small island when Hurricane Betsy came through. I’m in awe of his work. Being there made me feel connected to my own creativity. This idea of empowering lifelong curiosity and connection to the natural world is how I feel. I want to have created joy and curiosity and connection to nature.”
— Natalie Chanin, fashion designer, Project Threadways
The Ringling
Yes, legacy of the circus dynasty—and yes, you learn a lot about the big top here. But thoughtful exhibitions in a sprawling complex venture to classic and contemporary art, architecture and beyond.
Georgia O’Keeffe Museum
Not so much a museum as a portal into one artist’s world, exploring the painter’s work and cultural legacy from many angles—and stewarding her Abiquiu home and studio, too.
The Gund
Kenyon College’s snug and stunning contemporary art hub jolts mind and eye. Exhibitions often showcase individual artists; classes and films spur creativity.
Mauna Kea Observatories
Okay, we’re sneaking this one in—”museum” may not be the precise term for an extraordinary group of 10 institutions studying the skies and cosmos at 14,000 feet above sea level. Study up on the logistics and explore.
Stax Museum of American Soul Music
Dedicated to the unlikely rise and tumultuous story of Stax Records, the label that gave the world Otis Redding, Booker T. & the M.G.s and Isaac Hayes.
National Museum of Wildlife Art
An international collection reveals many facets of humanity’s oldest artistic subject. A current printmaking show runs from Goya to Warhol. Powerful stuff.
Farnsworth Art Museum
Three painterly generations of Wyeths provide a core for this smart exploration of Maine’s place in art.
Mercer Museum
A literal castle houses “everyday objects”: rooms dedicated to butter and cheese, kitchen utensils, threshing, hatmaking, tobacco, bathtubs …
FIRST AMERICANS MUSEUM
Oklahoma is home to 39 distinct Indigenous nations—most of them transplanted there by U.S. government action. This Oklahoma City institution aims to weave all those unfathomable stories into a dynamic cultural tapestry, with exhibitions both macro (amplifying stories of all 39 tribes) and micro (e.g., going in-depth on Kiowa headboards). Check out 39 Restaurant’s take on Native cuisine and, if you time it right, the hotly contested New Year’s stickball tourney.
The Road Trips Awards
We scoured the map. We asked our smartest, most well-traveled friends. The results are in.
