The Museum of Interesting Things (advance appt only) — Attraction in New York

Now this was something truly unique. My wife came across this opportunity, and I’m so glad she did—this experience was an absolute gem for our whole family.

We had the pleasure of meeting Denny, an energetic, kind, and incredibly knowledgeable man who brings history to life with heart and humor. His passion for what he does is infectious—it’s clear he lives for sharing the stories behind these incredible artifacts.

The museum itself is unlike anything you’ll find in your average guidebook. It’s a traveling, hands-on experience where we literally got to hold pieces of history in our hands. From vintage technology to rare cultural items, every piece tells a story. My personal favorite? The old punch cards, analog computer gear, and a vintage floppy disk game of The Hobbit—pure nostalgia for a tech fan like me.

What makes it all shine is Denny. His knowledge, energy, and genuine joy make the experience unforgettable. He deserves a much bigger space to showcase these treasures, and I truly hope he gets the official museum space he’s dreaming of.

Important Tip: Don’t just show up based on the Google listing. Contact Denny directly via the number listed—he’ll follow up with exact instructions through email and text. Once that’s set, it’s a smooth ride.

This is hands-down a must-see experience in NYC if you’re even remotely curious about the past, inventions, or just want a break from the usual tourist circuit.

And hey—he even let me film him sharing one of his one-of-a-kind items. That’s the kind of personal touch you don’t forget.

Hugo’s Take: 🟢 Not a one-and-done. A rare, inspiring experience I’ll always recommend.

Vibe: 10/10 Value:...

Visiting Denny and his collection was an interesting, unique experience, and while I enjoyed it quite a lot, it's not for everyone. This is not a traditional museum or exhibited collection; if you are expecting a large space with items on display that you can examine at your own pace, you will be disappointed.

The "museum" is actually the curator's home, an ordinary apartment stuffed to overflowing with an extraordinary collection of things from a bygone era. Over the course of a couple of hours, we stood in Denny's entryway as he would repeatedly pick an object from his enormous collection, bring it to us, and regale us with its stories. In many cases he would invite us to hold or even operate these artifacts that were often over a hundred years old. For each, he would tell us its history and how it came to be part of his collection.

In the two hours we were there, we saw perhaps a dozen or so things, many of which were centered around the theme of photography: an old stereoscope, a "magic lantern" projector, old chemical camera flashes, an old-time flip-book "movie" viewer showing the instantly recognizable "Le voyage dans la lune", an old Camera Obscura, the first edition of a book written by Arthur Conan Doyle of Sherlock Holmes fame arguing for the existence of spirit photography; a first edition book by Harry Houdini refuting Doyle's book.

For someone who has spent enough time in New York that the traditional tourist attractions are now old hat, this was a fun and offbeat way to spend a...

What a small little gem. This is basically a private person's personal collection of old, vintage things covering music, photography and videography. You have to book in advance for a private showing of his stuff in his own private apartment. I went here with my 5 and 7 year old kids and both them and myself had a really great time.

Denny, the owner, is an animated man, telling the backstory and background of all the items he showed with lots of humor and energy. He interacted a lot with the kids and made them laugh - I can imagine his tours being popular at schools. We saw an early Edison cylinder phonograph (got to hear it as well), various apparatuses to capture photos or view photos, a old camera obscura, old projectors, flip-book like private movie watching devices, musical instruments, just really fascinating stuff. We all got to try these items ourselves and the roughly one hour tour ended with us even unboxing other things he recently ordered (a photograph/postcard of an old, giant calculator).

Truly fun experience. I have to come back without the kids to ask many more questions or come to the Sunday public speakeasy...