Qingdao Museums and Art Galleries

(Qingdao, Shandong, China)

Qingdao Municipal Museum takes the spotlight as the most impressive museum in the city, covering important artefacts from the city's past. The ancient items on display at this popular museum will give you a good insight into the history of Qingdao, giving you a better understanding of the heritage of China as a whole.

Altogether different attractions, both the Marine Products Museum and similar Underwater World allow you get up close to China's many fascinating creatures of the deep. Qingdao's main museums are shown below.

Qingdao Museum

Address: Daxue Road, Qingdao, China, CN
Tel: +86 0532 8977 708
Situated on Daxue Road in the Qingdao Bay area, the Qingdao Museum was constructed in the early 1930s and was originally used as a welfare institute. Nowadays, the museum is home to a varied collection of artefacts, including paintings originating from the period spanning the Yuan Dynasty through to the Qing Dynasty. An archaeological section located in the museum's courtyard features four large Buddha statues, which date back to the 6th century AD. The heads of these statues are unfortunately missing, having been removed in 1928 by the Japanese and taken back to Japan. Other displays in the museum include those of ancient craftworks and porcelain, and works of calligraphy from the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. A total of 50,000 cultural relics are housed at the facility.
Open hours: Tuesday to Sunday - 08:00 to 17:00
Admission: charge

Navy Museum

Address: 8 Laiyang Road, Qingdao, 266071, China, CN
Tel: +86 0532 287 4786
Those who are interested in Qingdao's naval history will enjoy a visit to this museum, which is situated near Little Qinqdao Island. The city's military history can be traced here, allowing visitors to experience the cramped living areas of sailors on submarines and destroyers, uniforms, weapons and warships. Ranking as the largest naval museum in the country, this attraction houses literally thousands of artefacts and provides an interesting background into China's naval might.
Open hours: daily - 08:00 to 18:00
Admission: charge

Marine Products Museum

Address: 4 Lai Yang Road, Qingdao, 266071, China, CN
Tel: +86 0532 8287 8218
Contrary to what the name suggests, this 'museum' is in fact an aquarium housing hundreds of sea creatures. Sixty tanks showcase marine creatures such as jellyfish, octopus, coral and even dolphins. Ranking as one of the largest aquariums in the country, visitors who have been to other international aquariums may not be overly impressed, but it makes for a pleasant daytrip for all ages.
Open hours: daily - 08:30 to 17:00
Admission: charge

Underwater World

Address: 1 Lai Yang Lu, Qingdao, China, CN
Tel: +86 0532 8287 8218
Not really a museum as such, Qingdao's Underwater World has many exhibits aimed at introducing visitors to the diversity of undersea life. This impressive aquarium facility offers a variety of large tanks, where an enormous selection of fish and sea creatures reside. Visitors can watch staff members don underwater gear and get into the tanks to give demonstrations about the creatures within.
Open hours: daily - 09:00 to 17:00
Admission: charge