The province of Yogyakarta offers plenty of entertainment that can be both beneficial and fun at the same time. One of the primary examples of such entertainment is the museums in Yogyakarta. There are plenty of museums that tell the story of Indonesia and general knowledge, such as plants and animals. Here are museums in Yogyakarta you can check out.

Affandi Museum

Affandi was one of the few Indonesian painters who received recognition outside his country. He has painted numerous masterpieces based on what he saw and experienced during his travel around the world with her daughter. There are at least 300 paintings he produced.

Located at Laksda Adisucipto Street, the museum showcases Affandi’s and his family members’ paintings. There are also paintings of Gajah Wong Studio students exhibited at the other part of the museum.

Besides painting, you can also take a look at Affandi family’s houses and Affandi’s grave. For more information about the museum, you can check out their website.

Sonobudoyo Museum

Javanese culture enthusiasts must stop by Museum Sonobudoyo. The museum, located in the middle of the city, stores many collections and artifacts related to Javanese culture. It has at least 43,000 Javanese-related collections, from philology artifacts to art pieces.

Besides Javanese artifacts, you can also look at the shadow puppet (wayang) show. The show is performed from Tuesday to Sunday, and it’s usually performed in the evening. To get more information regarding the museum’s schedule and tickets, you can visit their main website.

Wayang Kekayon Museum

If the shadow puppet performance cannot sate your curiosity regarding the traditional puppet, you ought to visit Museum Wayang Kekayon. True to its name, the museum exhibits wayang-related collections. The quarter-year-old museum exhibits all kinds of wayang from different times, even as far as wayang from the sixth century.

The museum also has its own flagship collections – Wayang Purwa Punakawan, Wayang Golek Menak Gaya Yogyakarta, and Wayang Purwa Karna Tandhing. Words cannot describe their superiority, of course. The best way to find about the flagship collection is by, of course, visiting the museum itself!

Gunung Merapi Museum

Merapi Mountain is one of the most sacred and respected volcanoes in the country. It is a precious treasure that is always the subject of many studies and exploration. Studying and exploring is all good if that’s your expertise, but what about us nonexperts?

This is where Museum Gunung Merapi (Mount Merapi Museum) comes into play. At the museum, you can find out everything related to the sacred mountain. To make it even better, the museum integrates technology into its collection. You can scan the barcodes and have the information on your cellphone instead of having to fight over with others to look at the exhibition.

Jogja Kembali Museum

The patriots of Indonesia fought a bloody war to gain the country’s independence. We can respect and reminiscence their effort by visiting Museum Jogja Kembali. You can take a look at the replicas and diorama of Indonesia’s Independence Day at your own pace. The Patriots’ shot biography, figures, models of the weapons – everything is in the museum.

If you finish your museum tour in the evening, you can stop by at their garden and enjoy the lampions displayed there.

TNI AU Dirgantara Mandala Museum

If military aircraft is one of your passions, then Museum TNI AU is a must-visit for you. TNI AU is abbreviation of the Indonesian Air Force. There are at least one thousand air force tools and equipment displayed, so you won’t run out of things to explore there.

In addition to aviation aircraft, you can also look at the prototype bombs designed by the Air Force. Don’t worry about safety, as they are disarmed practice explosives. They’re entirely safe to take a close-up look.  

Bahari Yogyakarta Museum

Being a country that consists of many islands, the sea has become a part of Indonesia that cannot be separated from the state.

Museum Bahari Yogyakarta is one of the many proofs of the relationship between the country and the sea. The museum started to operate in 2009, and it has gone through many modifications to give the best service for the visitors.

In Museum Bahari Yogyakarta, visitors can take a peek at the personal collections of Vice-Admiral Yosafat Didi Heru Purnomo, who is the founder of the museum. Some of the selections consist of ship rudders, cannon guns, and miniatures of the military’s ship. There are also film documentaries that tell the story of the country’s navy. When you finish exploring the museum, we are sure you will get many insights about the world of sea and navy.

Biologi UGM Museum

Museum Biologi UGM is an educational museum owned by UGM that focuses on the research and exhibition of biology-related subjects. The museum consists of eight sections that display animals and plant collections. There are at least 4000 collections in the museum, making it an excellent place for you to introduce plants and animals to children.

Just like Wayang Kekayon, Museum Biologi has its own flagship collection. Some of the flagship collections are rare species such as Mimi-mintuna, golden cat, and the skeleton of Javanese rhino. For more information, you can visit their website.

Exploring Yogyakarta through its Museum

There are many museums in Yogyakarta that offer knowledge of Indonesia and Javanese culture in general. By visiting the museums, we get to explore and understand Yogyakarta from a different perspective, which is through its past. Not only will you learn more about Yogyakarta, but you will also gain a better understanding of other things. So what are you waiting for? Find the nearest museum to that you’d like to visit!