Museums

Aruban cultural heritage is studied, documented and preserved by the archaeological, historical and Numismatic museums. The Aruban museums invite you to a visit and to learn about our history and culture.

Fort Zoutman or Historical Museum

The Aruba Historical Museum is located in the Fort Zoutman Willem III Tower and was established in 1983. It contains a large collection of artifacts and paintings from Aruba's earliest through those reminiscent of colonial times up to the present day.

Archaeological Museum

The oldest part of Aruba's cultural heritage is exhibited in the archaeological museum.The permanent collection gives the visitor a taste of early periods in the history and the pre-history of the island. Ceramic artifacts, shell and stone tools and ornaments are on display for all those who would like to know about Aruba's first cultures. The cultures present on our island before the arrival of Europeans left their distinct mark on our landscape, language and conscience. Read

Aruba Model Train Museum

En route to Baby Beach, you may want to stop at the Aruba Model Train Museum. This museum is dedicated to the history of Aruban trains and exists of a large collection of trains, airplanes, automobiles and buses. Director J. de Vries built a wooden Surinam style house on stilts and instead of using the ground space as a garage, he decided to enclose it and house his miniature train collection in it. De Vries recalls he bought his first vintage toy train in Scotland on vacation. The first one whetted his appetite and since then he has been collecting Dutch, German, English and American trains, each has its own story.

The Aruba Aloe Museum & Factory

When you pass by the Aruba Aloe fields and its modern factory at Hato, it's hard to imagine that these same fields were already in use 160 year ago. Take the Aruba Aloe Museum and Factory tour and get an inside look into the production process of the Aruba Aloe products and learn all about the 160-year old history of Aloe on Aruba.

Museum of Antiquities

The Louis XV Antiques & Curiosities is housed in the beautiful Rococo Plaza building at Tanki Leendert and is partial established with building material from the 17th century. The antiques museum houses more than 20 different showrooms with an incredible collection of European Antiques and Curiosities. From rich hand carved wooden furniture, to fine porcelain, jewelry, paintings, oriental rugs, bronzes and wooden statues and various collections. Every last Sunday of the month locals sell their goods at a flea market at the parking lot of the Rococo Plaza building.

San Nicolas Community Museum

The collection at this museum is remarkable and spans millennia. Ancient fossils stand next to tableaus of an authentically recreated colonial kitchen and bedroom and 19th century barbershop, just to name a few of the examples of old time Aruba that have been preserved. Read more