Tonga National Museum — Attraction in Tongatapu

An excellent place to learn about the history of this small country. The museum is air conditioned too! It's about a 10 minute, flat walk from the cruise ship dock, and easy to find. It's just past the Royal Tombs park. One small drawback is it is on the second story and their is no elevator. However, I was able to carry a mobility scooter for a friend up and down the wide, split staircase. The quality of exhibits is amazing. The lady who operates the museum walked with us through the exhibits and answered all our questions. She gave great detail about the country's history. She was a great docent. We highly recommend this museum to all foreigners who visit Tonga. It is a small museum that you can walk through in an hour, but you will have a great understanding of the country after seeing this place. Great for cruise ship passengers touring in a group or by themselves. Lastly, the price for foreigners is 5 Tongan Pa'anga, which was just over $2 US when we visited. A great deal. US currency is...

CLOSED DURING WORKING HOURS. Very disappointed. The museum is supposed to be open from 9-3pm Mon-Fr. However, I came on a Fri at 1pm and the lady working there was long gone (2h before their advertised time). The security guard tried to call the boss and two more people several times but none picked the phone. Very embarrassing and disrespectful for tourists that do care to learn more about the country and its history. I recommend tourists to NOT BOTHER COMING - they are unreliable and unprofessional....

The museum is located upstairs and cost 5 pa 'anga per adult to visit. All the exhibits are in one large room, displayed on the walls, with some items in some centre display cabinets. The exhibits concentrate on the history of Tonga and on the rich tradition of flax craft and tapa cloth. Unfortunately most of the exhibit items do not have any labels saying what they are, nor what they are for. Particularly impressive is the...