[2026 Latest] 10 Selected Virtual Museums! In-depth Guide to Museums and Art Galleries to Enjoy via VR and Audio Guides

I want to know about recommended virtual museums!

Virtual museums allow you to enjoy museums and art galleries through VR spaces and audio guides.

Virtual museums that can be enjoyed from a PC browser or experienced by wearing VR goggles are appearing one after another.

With virtual museums, it is possible to appeal to the charm of these institutions even to those living far away or abroad who find it difficult to visit museums and art galleries in person.

Because valuable works and cultural properties that are difficult to exhibit for long periods can be viewed anytime and anywhere through visual displays in virtual spaces and audio guides, the archivability is also outstanding.

In this article, we will explain the benefits and points of virtual museums, as well as recommended virtual museums.

Why not take advantage of the unique benefits of virtual museums to widely promote valuable cultural properties and artworks in the metaverse (VRSNS) such as VRChat and Cluster?

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Multilingual support is very important for virtual museums visited by people from all over the world.

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Why not use Ondoku for your virtual museum's audio guide?

What is a Virtual Museum?

Virtual museums are being increasingly adopted by museums and art galleries around the world.

First, let's briefly explain virtual museums.

A New Form of Museums and Art Galleries: Virtual Museums

A virtual museum refers to a museum or art gallery that utilizes 360-degree cameras, photogrammetry, virtual spaces (VR spaces), and the metaverse.

Using virtual spaces reproduced in 3D and audio guides for exhibits, it is possible to view them anytime and anywhere.

Virtual museums are being introduced by various domestic and international museums.

Location-independent virtual museums are perfect for promoting museums and art galleries to many people, including inbound tourists.

It is also possible to reproduce valuable works or cultural properties that have already been lost in a virtual space for many people to view.

Types of Virtual Museums

There are several types of virtual museums.

Virtual Museums that Reproduce Real Museums and Art Galleries

These are virtual museums that reproduce actual museum and art gallery exhibits using technologies such as 360-degree cameras, photogrammetry, and audio guides.

Since visitors can check the exhibit content before visiting, it is suitable for appealing to distant visitors and archiving exhibit content.

Virtual Museums Exclusive to Virtual Spaces

These are virtual museums created exclusively for virtual spaces, without reproducing real museum or art gallery exhibition rooms.

Free-form exhibits are possible, unbound by the size of museum/art gallery exhibition rooms or artworks.

How to View a Virtual Museum? 【PC, Smartphone, VR Goggles】

There are two main ways to view a virtual museum.

View in a PC Browser (Windows, Mac, Linux)

This is a method of displaying the 3D space of a virtual museum in a PC browser.

Although the sense of presence is lower because it is viewed through a PC screen, it is suitable for getting more people to visit the virtual museum because it can be easily viewed as long as they have a PC.

It is also possible to support viewing on smartphones.

View with a Smartphone App (iPhone, Android)

Preparing a dedicated smartphone app is also a recommended method.

It allows visitors to move through the virtual museum more conveniently than displaying it in a smartphone browser.

VRSNS mentioned next, such as VRChat and Cluster, also have smartphone app versions (iPhone and Android versions).

View in VRSNS (Metaverse) (VRChat, Cluster)

This is a method of publishing a virtual museum in a VRSNS (metaverse) such as VRChat or Cluster.

By having visitors wear VR goggles, they can view works in full size and experience exhibits that are impossible in the real world.

*VRSNS (metaverse) can also be used from a PC screen, so those who do not have VR goggles can also view virtual museums.

Benefits of Virtual Museums

Virtual museums are packed with benefits that real museums and art galleries do not have.

Can Promote Exhibits to Many People

With virtual museums, you can promote museums and art galleries to people living far away domestically or abroad.

By promoting works and exhibits in a virtual museum, it is also possible to increase the number of visitors, such as inbound tourists.

Exhibit Content Can Be Preserved Exactly As Is Indefinitely

Works and cultural properties in museums and art galleries are kept in storage after a special exhibition ends or permanent exhibition displays are changed.

However, exhibition scenery, captions, and large-scale installation works cannot be preserved exactly as they were.

By creating a virtual museum with a 360-degree camera or photogrammetry, it is possible to archive the space exactly as it is.

Valuable Works and Cultural Properties Can Be Exhibited Anytime

If the deterioration of an artwork or cultural property is significant, it is necessary to shorten the exhibition period or dim the exhibition room's lighting.

With a virtual museum, valuable works and cultural properties can be exhibited at all times in an easy-to-see state.

If digitized in high resolution, they can be viewed by magnifying details.

Exhibits Impossible in Reality Can Be Made

A unique feature of virtual museums is the ability to create exhibits that are impossible in real museums and art galleries.

In a natural science museum, you can experience space or the deep sea, or even go inside the human body.

In an art gallery, it is possible to step inside a painting or view lost artworks and architectural pieces in full size.

It is also recommended to collaborate with real special or permanent exhibitions to hold unique virtual museum exhibits.

Introducing Audio Guides is Recommended When Creating a Virtual Museum (Museum/Art Gallery)

When producing a virtual museum, it is recommended to utilize audio guides in addition to visual exhibits such as 360-degree cameras, photogrammetry, and 3D models.

Displaying exhibition captions as they are in a virtual museum is inconvenient because you need to move close to read them.

On the other hand, if text is displayed on a separate screen, you have to look back and forth between the work and the text.

By introducing an audio guide, it is possible to concentrate on viewing the work or cultural property.

Since it is difficult to hold gallery talks in a virtual museum, audio guides are also recommended for that reason.

Unlike real museums and art galleries, another point is that audio guide devices such as players and earphones are not required.

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Create Audio Guides Easily with AI Text-to-Speech Services!

For producing audio guides, we recommend using text-to-speech services that utilize the latest AI.

AI text-to-speech services can read out audio guide content in easy-to-hear voices like those of professional narrators or voice actors.

Since you can also produce foreign language audio guides, it is perfect for virtual museums visited by people from all over the world.

Easily Create Audio Guides with the Recommended AI Text-to-Speech Service Ondoku

Ondoku is a recommended AI text-to-speech service for producing virtual museum audio guides.

Using the latest AI, it can read out audio guides in easy-to-hear, realistic voices.

It supports over 48 languages, including Japanese and English.

[Ondoku] Preview Voice Types and Sample Audio for Supported Languages | Text-to-Speech Software Ondoku

Here, we introduce the supported languages and sample audio for Ondoku.

Moreover, Ondoku can be used for free!

Since you can read up to 5,000 characters for free, you can easily produce an audio guide for a virtual museum right away.

Of course, commercial use is also OK!

You can use it with peace of mind in public museums and art galleries or company-operated museums.

For more details on commercial use, please see this article.

What You Can Do with Ondoku: About Commercial Use (Business Use) and Prohibited Matters | Text-to-Speech Software Ondoku

Commercial use (business use) is possible with Ondoku. Regardless of whether you are an individual or a corporation, use for the purpose of obtaining direct or indirect financial profit constitutes commercial use. However, please note that Ondoku has established prohibited acts. This time, we will introduce what you can and cannot do with Ondoku.

Why not use Ondoku when producing your virtual museum?

10 Recommended Virtual Museums and Art Galleries

I want to go to a virtual museum!

From virtual museums published by museums and art galleries around the world to those that can be experienced in VRSNS (metaverse), here are 10 recommended virtual museums!

1. National Museum of Nature and Science
2. Ohara Museum of Art
3. Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
4. Vatican Museums
5. Prado Museum
6. Louvre Museum
7. National Palace Museum
8. VR Space Museum COSMORIA
9. Media Art Exhibition "1% Virtual"
10. Chinese Meme Museum (Japanese Version)

1. National Museum of Nature and Science | Particularly extensive virtual museum among Japanese museums

Among Japanese museums and art galleries, the National Museum of Nature and Science in Ueno, Tokyo, has a particularly extensive virtual museum.

In the virtual museum "Experience at Home! Kahaku VR," you can enjoy exhibits through a 3D view captured by 360-degree cameras and a VR space created by photogrammetry.

This is a very high-quality exhibit recommended for those who want to know what a virtual museum is like, those who want to experience one for the first time, and also for museum and art gallery staff who are looking to introduce a virtual museum.

2. Ohara Museum of Art | Viewing masterpieces of Western painting in a virtual museum

The Ohara Museum of Art in Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture, also has an extremely comprehensive virtual museum.

This too allows you to view one of Japan's leading art collections through a 360-degree camera virtual tour and a VR space created by photogrammetry.

You can experience a high-quality exhibition unique to the Ohara Museum of Art, which boasts one of the longest histories among private art museums in Japan.

Content such as videos and audio guides is also extensive, making it a great reference for information dissemination by museums and art galleries.

3. Smithsonian Museum | One of the world's leading virtual museums

The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in the United States is a highly recommended virtual museum for natural science.

As one of the most famous museums in the world, its virtual museum is also high quality.

In addition to enjoying virtual tours reproduced with high-resolution 360-degree camera images, it is also possible to switch to a VR goggles-compatible screen.

It is also mobile-friendly and can be viewed from a smartphone.

4. Vatican Museums | Viewing some of the greatest works in art history in a virtual museum

The Vatican Museums in Vatican City, the headquarters of the Catholic Church, also offer a very high-quality virtual museum.

Through virtual tours captured with high-quality 360-degree cameras, you can view the works of Renaissance artists that decorate the Sistine Chapel and the Apostolic Palace.

It allows you to clearly learn how religious paintings are used in architecture, something that cannot be understood through art books or web photos.

This is a virtual museum we highly recommend visiting for anyone interested in art history.

5. Prado Museum | Spain's pride in virtual museums

The Prado Museum in Madrid, Spain, also offers virtual tours captured with 360-degree cameras.

You can view masterpieces of Spanish art history, including Velázquez and Goya, with a great sense of presence.

You can truly feel the size and texture of the works, which is impossible to grasp from books or web photos.

This is a recommended virtual museum among European art galleries.

6. Louvre Museum | A virtual museum where you can view French masterpieces

The Louvre Museum in France, one of the most famous museums in the world, also has an extensive virtual museum.

Here too, you can enjoy virtual tours captured with 360-degree cameras on a PC screen.

It is packed with features to help you enjoy the various artistic treasures France is proud of, such as magnifying works for viewing and checking detailed explanations.

7. National Palace Museum | Viewing Chinese art in a virtual museum

The National Palace Museum in Taipei offers the virtual museum "720°VR Walk into the National Palace Museum," where you can experience permanent and special exhibitions.

The images for the virtual tours captured with 360-degree cameras are in ultra-high-quality 8k.

You can realistically experience precious artworks produced throughout China's long history.

Supported languages include English and Traditional Chinese.

This is a recommended virtual museum where you can discover the essence of Oriental art.

8. VR Space Museum COSMORIA | A world-class virtual museum utilizing VRChat

VR Space Museum COSMORIA is a virtual museum published on the VRSNS "VRChat."

It features exhibits and explanations with the massive volume unique to virtual spaces, covering the relationship between humanity and space, the history of space development, the utilization of space, space observation, explanations of celestial bodies and outer space, and even astrophysics.

If you visit wearing VR goggles, you can visit satellite orbits, actually experience lunar gravity, or even enter Super-Kamiokande, Japan's cosmic ray observation facility.

It is also full of points that will be helpful for those who operate museums and art galleries when they produce a virtual museum.

It is the highest-quality virtual museum among those published in VRSNS (metaverse).

9. Media Art Exhibition "1% Virtual" | A virtual museum leveraging the characteristics of VR

Media Art Exhibition "1% Virtual" is a media art exhibition held in 2018.

It is still open to the public as a virtual exhibition on the VRSNS "VRChat."

A characteristic of the "1% Virtual" media art exhibition is that it incorporates many expressions into the display that can only be realized in a virtual space.

You can experience exhibits unique to a virtual space that are "extremely close to reality, yet different from reality."

If you operate a museum or art gallery and are thinking of producing a virtual museum, we highly recommend visiting this once while wearing VR goggles.

It is an eternal masterpiece of virtual exhibitions, released during the early days of VRSNS (metaverse).

10. Chinese Meme Museum (Japanese Version) | A virtual museum of Chinese internet culture

The Chinese Meme Museum (Japanese Version) is also a virtual museum published on the VRSNS "VRChat."

Many internet memes exist in Japan.

Of course, in our neighboring country China, there are also many memes and cultures unique to the internet.

This virtual museum introduces internet culture from the early days of the Chinese internet to the 2020s with extremely high quality.

Audio guides in Chinese by staff and Japanese translation subtitles are also provided.

The spatial composition unique to a virtual museum is very helpful for those producing virtual museums for museums and art galleries.

It is a large-scale recommended virtual museum unique to the VRSNS (metaverse) where you can experience internet memes common to Japan and those unique to China.

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