Best museums in Gerona

Girona, whose origins date back to the Roman Empire, is a very interesting city from a historical and cultural point of view. That's why one of the best things to do in Girona is to visit its museums, which include some of the most interesting in Catalonia.

In Girona's museums you can see ancient works of art, important film collections, the wonderful works of Salvador Dalí, ancient archaeological remains, and collections of toys, among others. Here is a list of the most important museums in Girona, so that you can visit your favourites, or all of them, during your visit to the city.

The Cinema Museum was inaugurated in 1998 and is located in an old 19th century building. This museum stands out for the famous collection of the photographer and collector Tomás Mallol, which was acquired by the City Council of Girona in 1994 and includes an important number of cinematographic objects.

It isone of the most important film museums in Europe, where you can take a journey through the history of the moving image, see visual projections and take part in different interactive activities. Here you will see how the first moving images were transmitted on a screen and how this art evolved.

The enormous structure of the building covers 2,500 square metres and has 3 floors and a mezzanine. It contains more than 20,000 objects from the Mallol collection that were created between the 18th and 20th centuries. You will be able to see photographs, drawings, paintings, posters, engravings and a library with more than 700 books and magazines.

Useful information

• Admission fee: around 6€, children under 14 free. The first Sunday of every month is free for everyone.
• Opening hours: Monday to Saturday from 10 am to 7 pm. Sundays from 10 am to 2 pm. From June to September it opens on Mondays from 10 am to 2 pm.
• Location: Carrer de la Sèquia, 1, 17001 Girona, Spain.
• How to get there: by car or bus with lines 152, 207, 41, 42, 5, E2 or E4.

The D'Art Museum was founded in 1976 and is located in the old Episcopal Palace built around the 10th century, where there was also a prison and the Ecclesiastical Court that condemned the clergy for their crimes and sins. It exhibits works from the Bishopric and Girona from the Romanesque period to the 20th century, and highlights Catalan art.

Inside the building there are special rooms dedicated to ceramics, glass and liturgical art, such as the Martirologo de Usuardo, a book from the 15th century. There are also beautiful Renaissance and Baroque works and many works by painters such as Urgell, Vayreda, Rusiñol and Berga, among others.

I recommend you visit the prison in the former Episcopal Palace, where prisoners left writings on the walls. It is located on the fourth floor of the main tower and has a beautiful view of the city. These prisons were not dungeons, they were comfortable and even had a fireplace to keep the prisoners warm. I also recommend you to visit the charming garden.

In the Museum you will also see the spaces of the old hospital of Santa Caterina and a 17th century pharmacy. There you will be able to see the old chapel, the magnolia courtyard, the wainscot hall and a collection of some 300 white glazed ceramic jars. Don't miss a visit to the medieval medical library.

Useful information

• Admission fee: about €6, children under 16 free. Admission is free on the first Sunday of every month.
• Opening hours: Tuesdays to Saturdays from 10am to 6pm and Sundays from 10am to 2pm. Closed on Mondays.
• Location: Pujada de la Catedral, 12, 17004 Girona, Spain.
• How to get there: by car, by train R11 or by bus on lines 152, 41, 663, E2 and L6.

The Girona History Museum was inaugurated in 1960 and is housed in an old building that was a convent of the Capuchin friars of San Antonio in the 18th century. The museum presents a journey through the history of the city from Roman times to the present day.

The building is located in the Old Quarter of the city and is interesting for its architecture, as it preserves some spaces from the old convent such as the Capuchin desiccator cemetery, which contains 18 niches where the deceased were placed seated on benches for desiccation. In addition, in the museum you will also be able to see the most characteristic works of Baroque art in the city of Girona.

The museum also has a space dedicated to the French wars of the second half of the 17th century, in which the battalion of military women who made up the Santa Bárbara companies, who defended the city in 1809 and wore a red scarf tied around their arms, stood out.

The Museum extends into other spaces such as the Jardí de la Infància air raid shelter, the provincial prison and the mass grave in the cemetery, which make up the Network of Democratic Memory Spaces. These spaces cannot be visited every day, so if you are particularly interested in them you should check their website.

Useful information

• Admission fee: around 4€, children under 16 free. Admission is free on the first Sunday of every month.
• Opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday from 10:30 am to 5:30 pm. From May to September from 10:30 am to 6:30 pm. Sundays from 10:30 am to 1:30 pm and closed on Mondays.
• Location: Carrer de la Força, 27, 17004 Girona, Spain.
• How to get there: by car or bus on lines L1, L2 L5, L6, L7, L11 and L12.

One of the best things to do in Girona is to visit the Dalí Theatre-Museum and the Dalí House -Museum in Port Lligat, especially if you like the painter's works. The best thing to do is to visit both the Museum and the House to get a more complete idea of his work.

The Dalí Theatre-Museum building is located in the former Municipal Theatre of Figueres, which was built between 1848 and 1850, and was founded in 1974. It is one of three museums in Girona dedicated to a single theme, in this case the marvellous works of the painter Salvador Dalí.

Some of the most outstanding works are the Self-Portrait with I'Humanité, the Spectre of Sex Appeal, the Portrait of Gala and Port Alguer, among many others.

As for the House Museum, it was a fisherman's home where Salvador Dalí lived from 1930 to 1982 and left his labyrinthine mark. This house was declared of cultural interest in 1997 and is a 40-minute drive from the Dali Theatre-Museum, or an hour and a half by bus. To visit it, you must book your ticket in advance on their website and look for it half an hour before the visit.

Useful information

• Entry fee: around 15€, this includes a visit to Dalí Jewels.
• Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday from 10:30am to 5:45pm. Closed on Mondays.
• Location of the Dali Theatre-Museum: Plaça Gala i Salvador Dalí, 5, 17600 Figueres, Girona, Spain.
• How to get there: by car or by bus with the MD, Regional and 602 lines.
• Location of the Dali House Museum: Platja de 17488 Port Lligat.
• How to get there: From Figueres train station, take bus line 12.

The Jewish History Museum was founded in 2000 and is located in the Bonastruc ça Porta centre, the site of the old synagogue in the 15th century in the Jewish quarter of Girona. This museum presents the history of the Jewish communities of Catalonia that settled in the region during the Middle Ages.

It has 11 rooms depicting the life of the Jews and their culture, from the origin of the community, the persecution they suffered during the Roman Empire to their daily life, and much more.

One of the main works you will see is the Arch of Titus, from the 1st century AD, Forum of Rome, which is a symbol of the Jewish Diaspora around the Mediterranean. It is a panel depicting the sacking following the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem by the Roman armies in 70 AD.

Useful information

• Admission fee: about €4, children under 14 free. Admission is free on the first Sunday of every month.
• Opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday from 10am to 6pm. Mondays and Sundays from 10am to 2pm.
• Location: Carrer de la Força, 8, 17004 Girona, Spain.
• How to get there: by car and bus on lines L1, L2 and L5.

The Archaeology Museum of Catalonia was founded in 1870 and is located in the old monastery of San Pedro de Galligans. The site contains archaeological artefacts from Palaeolithic to medieval times that tell the story of the communities that inhabited the Girona region.

Of the monastery, whose current construction began in the 12th century, only the church and cloister can be seen, although there are also remains of an earlier building. The museum contains many prehistoric objects from Girona, such as the collection of ceramic cinerary urns.

The earliest archaeological remains come from Ampurias. There is also a section on Iberian culture with examples of pottery, votive offerings and epigraphs. In the Natural Sciences section of the Museum you can also see an important collection of minerals and malacology (the science that studies molluscs), donated by the master Macau Teixidor.

Useful information

• Admission fee: around 6€, children under 16 free. Admission is free on the first Sunday of every month.
• Opening hours: Tuesdays to Saturdays from 10 am to 6 pm, Sundays from 10 am to 2 pm. Closed on Mondays.
• Location: Carrer de Santa Llúcia, 8, 17007 Girona, Spain.
• How to get there: by car, by bus on the Sarfa line, Barcelona - Girona. By train on the Renfe line, Barcelona - Girona - Portbou.

The Girona Cathedral Treasure Museum, also known as the Chapterhouse Museum, houses numerous works of religious art from the 10th century onwards, preserved by the Diocese of Girona.

In this museum you can see beautiful works such as the 10th century Beatus codex and the 12th century Tapestry of the Creation, which measures 4.15 by 3.65 metres. There is also the 17th century Renaissance altarpiece of Saint Helena.

Other important works include the Arabic chest of Hixem II, which is a box with very beautiful goldsmith's art and the Beatus or Book of the Apocalypse, by Beato de Liébana. In addition, the site has many works of sculpture, painting, Gothic, liturgical and textile goldsmithery.

Useful information

• Entry fee: around 7€, free for children under 7 years of age.
• Opening hours: Monday to Saturday from 10 am to 6 pm and Sundays from 12 pm to 6 pm.
• Location: Carrer del Bisbe Josep Cartañà, 3, 17004 Girona, Spain.
• How to get there: by car or bus on line L1.

The Exile Memorial Museum was founded in 2008 and is located in the municipality of La Jonquera. It was built in memory of the exile caused by the Spanish Civil War in 1936 and is located in the same border area where this exile took place.

The museum is a tribute to the victims and tells various stories of the Republican exile in Catalonia, which was a huge tragedy for the city. In the museum you can see permanent exhibitions and, in addition, you can visit the routes that the exiles had to take.

Among the activities offered by the museum, you can learn many individual stories of the exiles in 1939, those who resisted for their freedom and others who were sent to Nazi concentration camps.

Useful information

• Admission fee: about 4€, under 17s free.
• Opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday from 10 am to 7 pm. Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and closed on Mondays.
• Location: Carrer Major, 43, 47, 17700 La Jonquera, Girona, Spain.
• How to get there: by car via Avenida del Presidente Josep Tarradellas and AP7.

The Empúries Ruins Museum is a set of ruins belonging to an ancient city founded by the Greeks in the 6th century BC. The city was occupied by the Romans and, during the 3rd century AD, disappeared after the invasion of the Franks. It is the most important archaeological site in Catalonia and one of the best tours you can take in Girona.

What remains of this city, such as the remains of small houses, squares and temples, can be seen in this museum. Highlights include the white marble mosaic paving, the foundations of the square, the temples of Aesculapius and Zeus Serapis, and the Roman cisterns.

Several excavations were also carried out in this area, thanks to which it was possible to recover examples of bronze, pottery and Greek sculptures. I recommend a guided tour of the ruins to learn more about their history and significance.

Useful information

• Entry fee: around €6, children under 16 free.
• Opening hours: every day from 10 am to 6 pm.
• Location: C/ Puig i Cadafalch, s/n, 17130 L'Escala, Girona, Spain.
• How to get there: by car via Avinguda President Josep Tarradellas i Joan, AP 7 and GI623. By bus with line 11.

The Toy History Museum was founded in 2000 and is located in the municipality of Sant Feliu de Guíxols, on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. There are documents that date the building's construction to 1810.

The museum houses a collection of toys belonging to the collector Tomás Pla, an amateur who started building a model of an electric train in 1982. Currently, the collection has more than 10,000 toys that were manufactured between 1870 and 1985, of which around 2,000 are on display.

Among the most outstanding toys are the tin can from the Spanish firms of Payá and Rico de Ibi, the board games from the house of Borrás, the wooden toys and pepas from the post-war period, and many interesting plastic toys made in 1952.

Useful information

• Location: La Rbla, 50, 17220 Sant Feliu de Guíxols, Girona, Spain.
• Entry fee: around 6€, children under 9 years free.
• Opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday from 10am to 1pm and from 4pm to 7pm. Sundays from 11am to 2pm and closed on Mondays.
• How to get there: by car on the C A65 and by bus on line 59.