National Museum of Natural History

About

The National Museum of Natural History sits on the north side of the National Mall at 10th Street and Constitution Avenue. A mounted African bush elephant stands under the rotunda dome, just inside the Mall entrance.

The galleries cover life on Earth over billions of years. The David H. Koch Hall of Fossils, Deep Time, holds dinosaur skeletons, and the Sant Ocean Hall has a life-size model of a North Atlantic right whale hanging overhead. Other halls cover human origins and mammals, and live insects fill the O. Orkin Insect Zoo, where volunteers run tarantula feedings and let visitors touch some of the animals. The museum also has a Butterfly Pavilion. Q?rius, the hands-on learning space for teens, tweens and families, is temporarily closed.

Admission is free and no tickets are needed. The museum is open every day from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., including holidays, except December 25. You can enter from the Mall on Madison Drive or from Constitution Avenue, and everyone passes through security. Maps come in eight languages at the information desks, and the museum's online virtual tour lets you preview the halls room by room.

For a quieter visit, the museum suggests Monday through Wednesday, or any weekday in September or February. The closest Metro is Federal Triangle on the Blue, Orange and Silver lines, near the Constitution Avenue entrance. Archives/Navy Memorial serves the Green and Yellow lines, and Metro Center serves the Red Line. The Smithsonian does not provide parking, but the museum is within walking distance of the other Mall museums.

Accessibility

The National Museum of Natural History is wheelchair accessible. Every entrance and exit is stair-free, and all public floors can be reached by elevator.

The Smithsonian has no parking, though designated accessible spaces are around the National Mall; the Smithsonian publishes an accessibility map showing them. The closest Metro to the accessible Constitution Avenue entrance is Federal Triangle. Check Metro's accessibility page for elevator outages before you go.

All exhibitions, including the Butterfly Pavilion, can be reached by wheelchair. Food service areas have no steps or turnstiles, and all restrooms are accessible. Family and companion care restrooms are on the first floor off the Rotunda, through the Sant Ocean Hall. Free manual wheelchairs are loaned first come, first served at the Information Desk in the Evans Gallery on the ground floor, near the store. They must stay in the building, and the supply is small, so bring your own if you can. All theaters have wheelchair spaces and companion seats.

For deaf and hard of hearing visitors, videos in the exhibitions are open captioned. Induction loops are installed at the Rotunda information desk and the Worldwide Theater in the Hall of Human Origins, and listening devices are available for programs in Baird Auditorium. Sign language interpretation or CART for public programs needs two weeks' notice.

For blind and low vision visitors, tactile objects are placed throughout the museum, with a full list at the information desks in standard and large print. Verbally described tours can be booked two weeks ahead, audio or visual description tours cover eight exhibits, and the free Aira app works on the museum Wi-Fi. Service animals are welcome in all exhibits. Call (202) 633-3611 or email NMNHAccessibility@si.edu for access services.

Checked by Accessible America, September 2026. Report a change

More accessible places in Washington, DC

• Smithsonian's National Zoo (Washington)
• National Air and Space Museum (Washington)
• National Museum of African American History and Culture (Washington)
• Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial (Washington)
• Washington Monument (Washington)
• Lincoln Memorial (Washington)

Photo credits

• A mounted African bush elephant stands in the domed rotunda of the museum.: Another Believer, CC BY-SA 3.0 (source)
• The columned granite entrance of the National Museum of Natural History with exhibit banners.: Another Believer, CC BY-SA 3.0 (source)
• A life-size model of a North Atlantic right whale hangs in the skylit Sant Ocean Hall.: Another Believer, CC BY-SA 3.0 (source)