Free museums in Kuching
Quick answer
2 museums in Kuching offer always-free standard admission, including Chinese History Museum, Sarawak Islamic Heritage Museum. 3 offer free or reduced entry under conditions. Check each museum's rules and official website before visiting.
Visitor information last reviewed 25 September 2026. Check the official museum site for current details.
Always free (2)
Chinese History Museum
The Chinese History Museum occupies the 1912 Chinese court building on the Kuching Waterfront, opposite the Tua Pek Kong Temple. Run free of charge by the Sarawak Museum Department, it traces how Sarawak's Chinese dialect groups arrived, settled, traded and organised, with ceramics, jade, musical instruments and old photographs.
✓ Free admission for all visitors
Always freeSarawak Islamic Heritage Museum
The Sarawak Islamic Heritage Museum fills the 1930 Madrasah Melayu, a former Malay teacher-training college on Jalan P. Ramlee in central Kuching. Free to enter, its seven galleries around a courtyard garden cover the coming of Islam to the Malay Archipelago, architecture, science, costume, weapons, decorative arts and the Quran.
✓ Free admission for all visitors
Free or reduced entry with conditions (3)
Rules may depend on the day, visitor age, or residency. Check the official website before visiting.
Borneo Cultures Museum
Malaysian children 12 and under free · Registered persons with disabilities free (all nationalities) · Seniors 61+ RM5 Sarawakian, RM10 other Malaysian, RM25 foreign · Ages 13–17 and students RM5 Malaysian, RM25 foreign
RM10 for Sarawakian adults; RM20 for other Malaysian adults; RM50 for foreign adults
Conditions applyBrooke Gallery at Fort Margherita
Children under 7 free · Concession tickets RM5 (eligible groups not published online) · Explorer Pass covering the Ranee Museum: RM15 local, RM30 international
RM10 for local visitors; RM20 for international visitors (Explorer Pass with the Ranee Museum: RM15 local, RM30 international)
Conditions applyRanee Museum
Children under 7 free · Concession tickets RM5 (eligible groups not published online) · Explorer Pass covering the Brooke Gallery: RM15 local, RM30 international
RM10 for local visitors; RM20 for international visitors (Explorer Pass with the Brooke Gallery: RM15 local, RM30 international)
Which museums are free in Kuching?
Chinese History Museum, Sarawak Islamic Heritage Museum — 2 museums in Kuching with always-free standard admission. Special exhibitions may charge separately.
Which Kuching museums offer conditional free or reduced entry?
Borneo Cultures Museum: Malaysian children 12 and under free · Registered persons with disabilities free (all nationalities) · Seniors 61+ RM5 Sarawakian, RM10 other Malaysian, RM25 foreign · Ages 13–17 and students RM5 Malaysian, RM25 foreign · Brooke Gallery at Fort Margherita: Children under 7 free · Concession tickets RM5 (eligible groups not published online) · Explorer Pass covering the Ranee Museum: RM15 local, RM30 international · Ranee Museum: Children under 7 free · Concession tickets RM5 (eligible groups not published online) · Explorer Pass covering the Brooke Gallery: RM15 local, RM30 international
Are special exhibitions also free at Kuching's free museums?
Usually not — always-free admission covers the permanent collection, while blockbuster temporary exhibitions typically require paid, often timed, tickets. Check the official site linked from each guide.