Babylon Tours Logo

Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History Tour

Group Size Icon

Group Size

Max 8

Tour Duration Icon

Tour Duration

2.5 Hours

Satisfaction Guaranteed Icon

100% Satisfaction Guaranteed

Free Cancellation Icon

Free Cancellation up to 24 hrs

Highlights of the tour

Highlights generally include (as long the exhibit is not on loan or being restored): 

• The Nation's T. Rex — stand face-to-face with a fully assembled Tyrannosaurus rex, one of the most complete specimens ever discovered. 

• The Hope Diamond & Star of Asia Sapphire — marvel at the world's most famous blue diamond, a 45.52-carat gemstone with a fascinating history of mystery and intrigue. Nearby, admire the Star of Asia Sapphire, a deep blue jewel renowned for its size and flawless beauty. 

• Henry the Elephant — meet the museum's beloved African elephant, a life-sized icon that has greeted visitors for over 60 years, offering a striking introduction to the wonders of the natural world. 

• The Egyptian Mummies — discover the collection of real Egyptian mummies and cutting-edge forensic reconstructions. 

• The Arctic Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea — encounter the elusive narwhal, one of the Arctic's most mysterious creatures. Learn how its spiraled tusk - a tooth that can grow up to ten feet long - helps it navigate icy waters and communicate with its pod.


Details

Travel through time at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, home to one of the world's most extensive collections of natural wonders.

 From towering dinosaurs and priceless gemstones to ancient mummies and deep-sea explorers, this museum offers an unparalleled journey through the history of life on Earth. On this 2.5-hour private tour your expert guide will lead you through the museum's most awe-inspiring exhibits. Stand before the Nation's T. rex, one of the most complete Tyrannosaurus rex skeletons ever discovered. Marvel at the 46-carat Hope Diamond and the luminescent Dom Pedro Aquamarine, the largest gem of its kind. Come face-to-face with the preserved giants of the animal kingdom, including giraffes, elephants, polar bears, and a life-sized model of Phoenix, a 45-ton whale still being tracked through the ocean. You'll even meet Alvin, the deep-sea submersible that helped uncover the wreck of the Titanic. With 126.5 million artifacts in the museum's collection, your guide will ensure you make the most of your visit, navigating you through the highlights that bring natural history to life. Whether you're a first-time visitor or a returning explorer, this 2.5-hour tour will leave you with a deeper appreciation for the wonders of our planet and beyond.


Itinerary

  • A 2.5-hour tour of the Smithsonian Natural History Museum. 
  • Start: At the large stairs at the Madison Drive NW entrance of the Museum of Natural History, facing the lawn of the National Mall. *Please indicate to your driver to drop you off on the mall side*
  • Address: 1010 Madison Dr NW, Washington, DC 20004, USA

Inclusion

• PRIVATE MUSEUM TOUR 

• PROFESSIONAL TOUR GUIDE

• DURATION 2.5 HOURS

• ALL ENTRANCE FEES


Semi-Private Tour

Enjoy an intimate small-group experience
Book Now

Upgrade! Book as Private Tour

Have your guide exclusively for your group
Book Now

Family Friendly Tour

Private tour designed with families in mind
Book Now

What Our Customers Say

Best way to see the museums with young families
Matt W 3 contributions

Best way to see the museums with young families

Our family had an amazing time touring the Natural History Museum with Leigh. She was super knowledgeable and, just as importantly, kept our kids engaged throughout the entire tour (a very difficult task with 4 kids under 11). All of our kids said afterward that they loved the tour and asked if we could do another Tour with Leigh the next day!

24 July 2025

Professional and Thoughtful Guidance for Our Family
Cruiser21456540662 1 contributions

Professional and Thoughtful Guidance for Our Family

We visited the Natural History Museum, the Air and Space Museum, and the National Gallery with our 5-year-old son. Rebecca F guided us for three days, and she was incredibly professional at every museum. She was patient and understanding even when our child was distracted, and she kindly engaged with him at his level and interests. We were so glad to have had Rebecca as our guide. Please pass along our sincere thanks once again.?

30 July 2025

Great Tour
josh j 1 contributions

Great Tour

Very informative and entertaining tour guide. He is clearly very educated and it seems his background of both history and biology is perfect for this exhibit.

13 August 2025

Way better than wandering around
Mike P 1 contributions

Way better than wandering around

Rebecca was great, informative, funny and well versed. I learned a lot and saw a lot during the tour, it was way better than just wandering around.

25 May 2025

Private tour of Smithsonian Museum with Babylon Tours
donna e 1 contributions

Private tour of Smithsonian Museum with Babylon Tours

We were able to get right in front of displays and take great photos. Our guide was very informative and knowledgable. Glad we did the private tour especially since we were timed limited and wanted to see the standout displays of the museum.

09 June 2025

The Natural History Museum Tour You Need to Take
Tex 3 contributions

The Natural History Museum Tour You Need to Take

Rebecca did a fabulous job of walking us through the Natural History Museum. You could wander the place for days to see and absorb everything there, so it was awesome to have someone to hit all the highlights. She was extremely knowledgeable on the artifacts and made the tour of the NHM efficient and enjoyable. Without her there would have been far less context on many of the exhibits. I recommend this tour and Rebecca 100%.

10 June 2025

Ryan the great!
Stephen M 1 contributions

Ryan the great!

Ryan was spectacular. Highly recommend. I would absolutely do this tour again. Very informative. A++++++++++++++++

11 June 2025

Highlight of our trip!
Ana R 8 contributions

Highlight of our trip!

Ryan was super informative on our tour. A lot of specific details! Knowledgeable about fossils, gems, etc. it was the highlight of our trip. Very patient in waiting fir us

11 June 2025

Let Maureen Guide You
kimdmk 5 contributions

Let Maureen Guide You

Our guide Maureen was AMAZING! We had her for both of our tours today Natural History and American History and we couldn't have made it through without her! She hit all the best spots in both places and was SO knowledgeable!

06 July 2025

Must do tour
Sarah L 3 contributions

Must do tour

Amazing- Christopher was funny and so informative - definitely info that you can’t get on your own- felt very lucky to be on this tour

16 July 2025

Awesome!
Gretchen M 1 contributions

Awesome!

Amanda was awesome! Very informative! Kept us moving at a comfortable clip. Definitely recommend the guided tour. The small group was perfect!

17 July 2025

Great tour with Rebecca
Bailey568 2 contributions

Great tour with Rebecca

We had a tour with Rebecca of the natural history museum, and she was incredibly professional, funny and the whole time and was very knowledgeable on every single subject area in the museum.!!

18 July 2025

Washington DC tour
BearGuy86 2 contributions

Washington DC tour

Anne-Marie was our tour guide and she was simply wonderful. We look forward to our next tour coming up later this week. See you then!

30 July 2025

Excellent guided tour
Ruby P 1 contributions

Excellent guided tour

Maureen was an excellent guide. She was knowledgeable, friendly and made our tour of the museum enjoyable! We opted for a guided tour as the museum seemed overwhelming. To our pleasant surprise, Maureen took us to various special areas in the museum and had amazing commentary that we wouldn’t have had otherwise. Our family of 6 really enjoyed the tour!

04 June 2025

Go with Rebecca!
Michelle G 6 contributions

Go with Rebecca!

One of the best museums I’ve been to…mostly because of our tour guide Rebecca! Funny, beyond knowledgeable, and super easy to follow!

12 June 2025

Smithsonian Tour
Dave D 111 contributions

Smithsonian Tour

Brenda, our guide, was very accommodating in showing us the areas we wanted to see. She was very informed and gave us amazing information we were not aware of.

14 June 2025

I’ll take a tour with Christopher again
Andrea B 9 contributions

I’ll take a tour with Christopher again

Christopher was knowledgeable, entertaining, and moved things along well. I would take another tour with him again (I believe he leads tours elsewhere as well).

18 June 2025

Great tour ! Ryan awesome
Daps023 43 contributions

Great tour ! Ryan awesome

Ryan awesome !!! Very informative Had so much detail . His knowledge was outstanding. Narrowed down the key areas from such a large exhibition - could not imagine doing this by ourselves. Sent a WA message with a link to the exact meeting point which was helpful. Try and ask for Ryan if you book this tourHighly recommended ??

23 June 2025

A piece of history that comes alive
Mary H 5 contributions

A piece of history that comes alive

Even with portions of the Air and flight museum being closed, the amount of information can be overwhelming. Leigh, our guide, introduced herself as our “storyteller “ which was a very accurate description of our experience. There were so many small tidbits which held such significance we would have missed/overlooked. I would recommend taking the tour in the am and then plan to spend the afternoon going back through. You can get a bite to eat in their cafe.

28 July 2025

A walk through time!
Constance M 10 contributions

A walk through time!

Our guide, Brenda, was awesome! Our tour with this knowledgeable woman was like a walk through, well, our natural history.

31 July 2025

DC trip to Smithsonian
Jennifer 1 contributions

DC trip to Smithsonian

Rebecca was amazing! She was funny, knowledgeable and entertaining at every turn! First time to DC with my mom and she made the experience so much better! Thank you!

02 August 2025

Guided tour
Nicola H 2 contributions

Guided tour

Ryan was a very knowledgeable Guide with a great sense of humor! Thanks for this great tour. Would definitely do it again!

29 August 2025

Brenda was top notch!
Coastal60448779621 1 contributions

Brenda was top notch!

Brenda was great, just a walking wealth of information. She is very knowledgeable and keeps everything moving at a good pace. She was very intuitive about what we were interested in & what we could skip. Highly recommend her!

07 September 2025

FAQ's

Please arrive 10 minutes before the scheduled start time.

Yes! All tickets for the permanent collection are included and organized by Babylon Tours.

Your guide will reach out to you the morning of the tour by text and email. Please ensure you have provided your correct telephone number (including country code) and email beforehand. Please be sure to check your SPAM folder if you don't see the email in your inbox.

No, Viator is a booking platform and Online Travel Agent. They sell our tours, but we are Babylon Tours, a Tour Operator currently offering tours in 12 major cities worldwide!

Yes! You can reschedule free of charge if you notify us at least 24 hours before the scheduled start time. For rescheduling within 24 hours, a fee applies to cover guide payments, unused tickets, and company costs (no profit is made on this fee). If you booked through a booking platform like Viator or GetYourGuide, you must reschedule directly with them.

Please inform your guide as soon as possible. As this is a semi-private tour, it must start on time. If your tour is ticketed, the guide will reply to your message with the tickets so you can enter the museum or monument on your own and try to join the guide inside if possible. Please note that once the tour begins, the guide will not be able to regularly check their phone.

Please let us know immediately by email to babylontoursinfo@gmail.com or by texting or calling +1 917 999 0380. Our refund policy does not cover medical issues that arise within 24 hours of the tour's start. In such cases, please contact your travel insurance provider. We can provide a document confirming you were unable to attend.

Please let us know immediately by email to babylontoursinfo@gmail.com or by texting or calling +1 917 999 0380 . Our refund policy does not cover transportation issues within 24 hours of the tour's start. In such cases, please contact your travel insurance provider. We can provide a document confirming you were unable to attend.

Yes, you are welcome to stay in the museum until it closes.

No, as the museum is large, locating the guide inside is challenging. The guide will meet you at the designated meeting point and accompany the group inside. However, you are welcome to stay in the museum after the tour ends!

Your guide will have your tickets. As long as you bring proof of ID, the guide's name and number, and arrive at the meeting point on time, the guide will assist you with entry.

Yes, our tours run rain or shine. Please check the forecast and dress appropriately. Tours will only be canceled in the event of a dangerous weather alert from local authorities.n

Your guide will be wearing a Babylon badge on a Babylon lanyard. They will also reach out to you on the morning of the tour to confirm the meeting point.

Other tours you might be interested in