When travelling, you obviously want to tick off some of the spots listed on those ‘must visit’ lists, and those often include museums.

It’s the best way to get a sense of the history of a place, after all.

The Independent reports that TripAdvisor has released the results of their Traveller’s Choice awards for museums around the world. The review and booking platform calculated the winners based on the quality and quantity of the reviews and ratings over a period of 12 months.

Your parents are always saying you could use a little culture in your life, so why not go ahead and see if you can tick a few of these off during your travels.

10. War Remnants Museum – Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

The Vietnam War is examined at this powerful museum in Ho Chi Minh City, through often disturbing images and objects including a guillotine, brought to Vietnam by the French.

9. National Museum of Anthropology – Mexico City, Mexico

A national museum of Mexico, the National Museum of Anthropology includes significant archaeological and anthropological artifacts from Mexico’s pre-Columbian heritage, such as the Stone of the Sun (or the Aztec calendar stone) and the Aztec Xochipilli statue.

8. The National WWII Museum – New Orleans, Louisiana

The American experience of the Second World War is explored in this glass and concrete museum in New Orleans. Exhibits include a 4D film, war aircraft and permanent galleries examining the US contribution to the war.

7. Louvre Museum – Paris, France

It would take years to see everything in the Louvre, Paris’ most well-known art museum. Its most famous painting is probably Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, although there’s an impressive selection of Italian Renaissance art too.

Bonus – you can take that picture of the Mona Lisa that everyone takes, upload it to Facebook, and win a special prize for being the 10 000th person to do so.

6. Acropolis Museum – Athens, Greece

This archaeological museum in Greece is focused on the findings from the Acropolis, which includes artifacts from the Greek Bronze Age to Roman and Byzantine Greece.

5. Prado National Museum – Madrid, Spain

Madrid’s premier art gallery houses work from some of Spain’s best painters such as Goya and Velasquez as well as a number of other masterpieces.

4. The British Museum – London, United Kingdom

The UK’s best museum was founded in 1753, the first public museum in the world. It houses a number of antiquities, books, manuscripts and ethnographic material, including some high-profile pieces like the Rosetta Stone. Today it welcomes more than six million visitors.

3. The Metropolitan Museum of Art – New York City, New York

This landmark art gallery on New York’s Museum Mile has more than 5,000 years of art from across the world in its location on Fifth Avenue.

2. The National 9/11 Museum and Memorial –  New York City, New York

This powerful museum in downtown New York commemorates the people who died in the 9/11 terror attacks. The museum, on the site of the former World Trade Center, tells the story of the attacks through displays, archives and artifacts. The memorial pool outside, inscribed with the names of everybody who died in the attack, is free; but the museum itself requires a ticket (and likely advance booking as there are long queues).

And finally, taking the top spot:

1. Musée d’Orsay –  Paris, France

This Parisian art gallery is housed in the former Orsay railway station, which was built for the Universal Exhibition of 1900. It’s well-known for its collection of impressionist art and Old Masters, including those of Paul Cézanne, Claude Monet and Auguste Renoir.

Definitely worth keeping in mind next time you plan a trip overseas.

Look at you go, all cultured and stuff.

[source:independent]