Museum of the Weird
412 E. 6th St., Austin, TX, 78701
In the spirit of 19th-century dime museums, the Museum of the Weird in downtown Austin boasts a variety of unusual attractions, oddities, and movie props, such as monsters, mummies, shrunken heads, and Fiji mermaids—a common sideshow feature that is supposedly half mammal, half fish. It also features the Creature on Ice (aka the Minnesota Iceman), who lies in a temperature-controlled refrigerated sarcophagus.
The basics
Taking the city’s slogan—Keep Austin Weird—to heart, the Museum of the Weird is a small museum with an impressive collection of strange things, including paranormal subject matter like ghosts, UFOs, and Bigfoot. Boasting everything from movie memorabilia to otherworldly oddities, the museum makes for an easy stop during a day of sightseeing. You can also combine it with a haunted history tour of the city, or it’s one of the stops along Austin’s hop-on hop-off bus route.
Things to know before you go
- Keep in mind that the museum spans two stories and has narrow corridors; it’s not ideal for those with mobility issues.
- The museum may not be suitable for young kids.
- Tickets to the museum can be purchased in the gift shop.
How to get there
The Museum of the Weird is centrally located in the historic 6th Street entertainment district in downtown Austin, inside Lucky Lizard Curios & Gifts. Parking on 6th Street can be hard to find, but metered spaces are free downtown on Sundays. Alternatively, the CapMetro Rail system stops a few blocks from the museum, or you can visit it on one of Austin’s hop-on hop-off bus tours.
When to get there
The museum is open from 10am to 7pm Monday-Thursday and 10am-9pm Friday-Sunday. It’s usually closed on Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. The museum recommends visiting on a weekday, as it’s easier to browse then; the weekends can get crowded. Since Austin’s summers are typically hot and humid, the spring and fall seasons are the best time to visit the city.
Other weird things to do in Austin
If you’re looking for more weird stuff to do and see in addition to the Museum of the Weird, head to Curia Arcanum’s House of Curiosities to browse the collection and pick up a souvenir or get a tarot card reading. At the Cathedral of Junk, visitors are able to explore three stories of, well, junk (by appointment only). And the Museum of Natural and Artificial Ephemerata houses a wide-ranging collection of objects, including a bit of hair from Elvis Presley’s head.
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