National Geographic Museum of Exploration

About

The National Geographic Museum of Exploration opened on June 26, 2026, on the National Geographic Society's headquarters campus in downtown Washington. The renovation, with a budget of more than $300 million, remade the nearly 130-year-old campus and added over 100,000 square feet of public space. You enter through the new Pavilion at 1600 M Street NW. Three of the older buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and the new structure was built around them.

The galleries follow the work of National Geographic Explorers in the field. Photo Ark: Animals of Earth fills the first-floor Exhibition Gallery with Joel Sartore's animal portraits, and the Photography Gallery holds Red, White & Blue: Photographs of the United States, the museum's America 250 exhibition. Geoverse is a theater with rotating shows about landscapes and wildlife around the world. All exhibit text appears in English and Spanish.

The renovated Grosvenor Auditorium reopened on October 13, 2026. The nearly 400-seat theater opened with Boundless, a 16-minute film featuring Explorers including Tara Roberts, Babak Tafreshi and Anand Varma, and the film is included with general admission. The auditorium also hosts National Geographic Live talks and live podcast recordings. In the evening, Wonders of Our World: Ocean turns the courtyard into an outdoor projection show from 6:45 to 7:30 p.m., for a $10 add-on ticket. Explorers Eatery is an international food hall, and a 60-minute highlights tour runs daily as a paid add-on.

Admission is by timed ticket, and the museum recommends booking online. You get a 15-minute arrival window and can stay as long as you like, but there is no re-entry. From October 13 through November 30, 2026, the museum is open daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., with last entry at 5 p.m. Seniors, youth ages 5 to 17 and active-duty military pay discounted rates, and children 4 and under are free with a reserved ticket. Families enrolled in SNAP or WIC pay $3 per ticket through Museums for All. Everyone passes through a metal detector, bags must be 16 by 16 by 8 inches or smaller, and coat check is free.

The nearest Metro stations are Farragut North on the Red Line and Farragut West on the Blue, Orange and Silver lines. The D60 and D6X buses stop at 16th Street and M Street NW.

Accessibility

Yes. The National Geographic Museum of Exploration says all of its entrances, exhibits and facilities are wheelchair accessible, and elevators or wheelchair lifts reach each level.

The museum has no on-site parking. It suggests booking a nearby space through a parking app and says there will be a drop-off zone on M Street. The closest Metro stations are Farragut North (Red Line) and Farragut West (Blue, Orange and Silver lines). Check Metro's elevator status before you go. Enter through the Pavilion at 1600 M Street NW. Security uses a metal detector, and visitors who cannot walk through it are screened with a hand-held wand instead.

Wheelchairs and cane stools can be borrowed at the Welcome Desk or Coat Check. All restrooms are accessible, and an all-gender restroom in the Pavilion has an adult-size changing table mounted on the wall. The museum also has wellness spaces for nursing and rest.

For deaf and hard of hearing visitors, all videos with dialogue include American Sign Language interpretation and closed captions, with captions in English and Spanish. The Grosvenor Auditorium has an induction loop that sends sound straight to compatible hearing aids, and its assistive listening devices are free. The museum does not describe wheelchair seating in the auditorium, so if you need a wheelchair space, ask the museum before your visit.

For blind and low vision visitors, instructional text and wayfinding signs are in Braille in English and Spanish. Most media includes audio description in both languages. Large presentations play a synchronized description, and touchscreens have keypads and headphone jacks. Scanning an exhibit's QR code brings up screen-reader-friendly text and visual descriptions. In the auditorium, audio description devices are free.

Two quiet rooms with adjustable lighting and sound-dampening panels offer a private place to take a break. Free sensory bags with noise-cancelling headphones and fidgets are available to borrow, and the museum's sensory maps mark the loud and brightly lit areas. Trained service animals are welcome, but pets and emotional support animals are not. For other accommodations, email [email protected] or call (202) 857-7700.

Checked by Accessible America, October 2026. Report a change

More accessible places in Washington, DC

• Smithsonian's National Zoo (Washington)
• National Air and Space Museum (Washington)
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• Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial (Washington)
• Washington Monument (Washington)