Best for
Curious families, science enthusiasts, anyone tired of standard museum formats
Time needed
45 minutes–1.5 hours
Worth it?
Yes — a genuinely original museum concept
Skip if
You're not pairing it with Artis and have very limited time in the Plantage area
About Micropia
Micropia opened in 2014 as a genuinely novel idea: a museum with no visible large animals or paintings, dedicated entirely to the microscopic organisms that vastly outnumber every other form of life on Earth. Developed with Amsterdam's Artis zoo and the University of Amsterdam's microbiology department, it treats bacteria, viruses, fungi and archaea as worthy of the same wonder-driven museum treatment usually reserved for lions or Rembrandts.
Live microscopes let visitors watch real bacteria, algae and tiny organisms moving in real time, magnified onto large screens — genuinely mesmerising rather than dryly educational. Exhibits cover the human microbiome (the museum has an infamous 'kissing booth' that measures how many bacteria you exchange with a partner), fermentation and food, disease and the immune system, and evolution's earliest chapters, all pitched to be accessible without being dumbed down.
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Because it sits inside the Artis zoo complex on Plantage Kerklaan, Micropia works as a genuinely different kind of add-on to a zoo day — a change of pace from watching animals to seeing the invisible organisms living on and in them (and you).
It's compact enough to see thoroughly in under an hour, making it an easy pairing with the neighbouring Verzetsmuseum, Hortus Botanicus or Artis itself for a full Plantage-quarter day.
What to See: Highlights
- 1The world's first museum dedicated entirely to microbes
- 2Live microscopes showing real organisms magnified in real time
- 3The human microbiome exhibit, including a bacteria-measuring 'kissing booth'
- 4Fermentation, food and disease exhibits pitched for all ages
- 5Compact, focused visit — under an hour if pressed for time
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Insider Tips
Combine with Artis Zoo — Micropia sits within the same complex
Great rainy-day option for curious kids aged roughly 8 and up
The live-microscope screens are the highlight — don't rush past them
Museumkaart and I amsterdam City Card holders get free entry
Budget 45–75 minutes
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Getting There
Plantage Kerklaan 38–40, 1018 CZ Amsterdam
Open in Google Maps →- 1Tram 14 to Artis, 5-minute walk. About 10 minutes on foot from Waterlooplein metro.
Where to stay
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Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know before you visit.
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Should You Visit?
Visit if...
- You're already visiting Artis Zoo and want a different kind of exhibit
- You or your kids are curious about biology and the invisible living world
- You want a compact, novel museum rather than another painting gallery
- You have 45 minutes to an hour free in the Plantage quarter
Skip if...
- You're not near Artis and don't want a separate cross-town trip for one small museum
- Biology and microbiology hold no interest for you or your group
Ready to Book Your Visit?
More to See in Amsterdam
Verzetsmuseum (Dutch Resistance Museum)
A vivid, object-driven account of how ordinary Dutch people resisted, collaborated with, or simply endured Nazi occupation — one of Amsterdam's most underrated WWII museums.
Artis Royal Zoo
The Netherlands' oldest zoo, open since 1838, with an aquarium and planetarium included in one ticket — home to over 700 species across leafy 19th-century grounds in the Plantage quarter.
Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam
One of the world's oldest botanical gardens, founded in 1638, with a three-climate greenhouse and a 300-year-old cycad plant that survived being smuggled out of colonial South Africa.