Visitors at the War Remnants Museum. Nine museums under the HCM City Department of Culture and Sports welcomed more than 2.7 million visitors in the first nine months of 2026. —VNS Photo Xuân Đăng

HCM CITY — Nine museums under the HCM City Department of Culture and Sports welcomed more than 2.7 million visitors in the first nine months of 2026, up 5 per cent compared with the same period last year.

According to a report from the department, the museums received 2,760,274 visitors during the period, including 1,881,069 domestic visitors, up 0.9 per cent year-on-year, and 879,205 international visitors.

Non-public museums in the city also recorded more than 45,000 visitors during the first nine months, an increase of 5 per cent compared with the same period in 2025.

HCM City currently has 25 museums, comprising 14 public museums and 11 non-public museums. Nine of the public museums are managed by the Department of Culture and Sports, while the other five are managed by central ministries and agencies.

The nine museums under the department include the Museum of HCM City, HCM City Museum of Fine Arts, HCM City Museum of History, War Remnants Museum, Southern Women's Museum, Hồ Chí Minh Museum – HCM City Branch, Tôn Đức Thắng Museum, Bình Dương Museum and Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu Museum-Library.

The five museums managed by central ministries and agencies include the Museum of the Armed Forces of the Southeast Region, Southern Air Force Museum, Hồ Chí Minh Campaign Museum, HCM City Geological Museum and Army Corps 4 Museum.

Museums across HCM City currently preserve about 692,600 objects and documents, including more than 296,000 original artefacts.

The city has 25 national treasures, of which 22 are preserved at public museums and three are held by non-public museums and private collections.

Seven of the nine museums managed by the Department of Culture and Sports are classified as Grade I museums and are members of the International Council of Museums (ICOM). They include the HCM City Museum of History, HCM City Museum, Southern Women's Museum, Ho Chi Minh Museum – HCM City Branch, Tôn Đức Thắng Museum, War Remnants Museum and HCM City Museum of Fine Arts.

Bình Dương Museum and Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu Museum-Library are classified as Grade II museums.

The visitor figures highlight the continued role of museums as important cultural institutions and public attractions in HCM City. Alongside the public museum network, non-public museums are helping diversify spaces for preserving and showcasing artefacts and bringing cultural heritage closer to residents and visitors. — VNS