How a Sarawak museum surged to the top of an online ranking
Borneo Cultures Museum in Kuching has climbed to number one on the public voting leaderboard of the Museum World Ranking website, overtaking the Louvre in Paris. At a Tuesday morning snapshot, the site showed 49,467 votes for Borneo Cultures Museum and 4,059 for the Louvre. The tally updates continuously as people vote, and the margin expanded rapidly over several days. Beyond the headline moment, the surge reflects how digital communities rally behind institutions that resonate with local pride and international curiosity.
- How a Sarawak museum surged to the top of an online ranking
- What is Museum World Ranking and how does voting work
- Why Borneo Cultures Museum resonates with visitors
- A closer look at the museum campus and green credentials
- Tourism impact for Sarawak and Malaysia
- Who else features near the top of the voting board
- How online polls differ from expert rankings
- What visitors can expect at the museum
- The bigger picture for culture and connectivity
- What to Know
Located in the Sarawak capital, the museum highlights Borneo’s cultural diversity through immersive galleries and interactive displays. The venue opened in March 2022 and, by mid 2025, had welcomed more than 1.35 million visitors from over 150 countries. The leap to the top of the online voting chart has become a point of pride for Malaysians and a timely spotlight for Sarawak as it seeks stronger recognition among global travelers.
What is Museum World Ranking and how does voting work
Museum World Ranking (MWR) is a public portal that lists hundreds of museums across continents and features a leaderboard driven by visitor votes in a category labeled “By Voting.” Anyone can cast a vote online. That makes the chart a real time snapshot of public engagement, not a score issued by curators or academics. There is also a general table on the site where the Vatican Museums occupy the top position and the Louvre appears just behind. These two views, a public voting board and a general listing, serve different purposes.
Borneo Cultures Museum first appeared on MWR in October at position 305 out of 413 museums, a data point separate from the live vote tally. BCM is one of three Malaysian museums listed on the platform, alongside the National Museum and the National Textile Museum in Kuala Lumpur. Live voting results can be viewed directly on the MWR leaderboard at museumworldranking.net, where positions can change throughout the day.
Why Borneo Cultures Museum resonates with visitors
BCM is the largest museum in Malaysia and among the largest in Southeast Asia. The five storey building houses climate controlled permanent and temporary galleries, a Children Gallery, a function room, an auditorium, a restaurant and a souvenir shop. An Arts and Crafts Gallery includes activity labs and a dance studio. Exhibitions use audio visual storytelling, digital interactives and hands on experiences to bring objects and oral histories to life.
Visitors encounter themes that span indigenous arts and crafts, customary practices, regional trading networks and the natural world. The layout favors active learning and immersion. It gives families, students and researchers spaces to engage with stories that are rooted in Sarawak while connected to Borneo’s wider history. The blend of heritage artifacts and modern presentation techniques makes the experience approachable for first timers and rewarding for repeat visitors.
A closer look at the museum campus and green credentials
The museum is the centerpiece of the Sarawak Museum Campus, a multi site initiative delivered under the Eleventh Malaysia Plan to upgrade the state’s cultural infrastructure. It represents the largest development in the history of the Sarawak Museum since 1891 and opened to the public in 2022.
BCM is also Malaysia’s first museum certified as a Green Building under the Green Building Index (GBI). That status reflects climate control, energy efficient systems and sustainable design choices. The building organizes content across themed floors that make wayfinding simple, while the behind the scenes environment meets conservation standards for fragile objects.
Tourism impact for Sarawak and Malaysia
Sarawak’s leadership has positioned museums as anchor attractions for the state. Premier Abang Johari Tun Openg has described a vision for modern and interactive museums that can appeal to local communities and international travelers alike. Voter enthusiasm for BCM aligns with wider efforts to lift arrivals and raise global awareness ahead of Visit Malaysia 2026.
A compelling museum is only part of the equation. Connectivity and itinerary depth shape how long visitors stay and how much they spend. Sarawak’s parks and caves, including Bako National Park and Gunung Mulu National Park, give travelers reasons to pair a city visit with nature. The state has discussed a new carrier, AirBorneo, to strengthen links to key markets, an initiative that could support growth if more long haul itineraries include Kuching.
Who else features near the top of the voting board
The upper tier of the public voting leaderboard includes some of the most visited and most discussed museums in the world. Recent snapshots of the board have included:
- Borneo Cultures Museum (Malaysia)
- Louvre Museum (France)
- National Museum of Anthropology (Mexico)
- National Palace Museum (Chinese Taipei)
- Guggenheim Museum Bilbao (Spain)
- Getty Center (United States)
- Art Institute of Chicago (United States)
- Houston Museum of Natural Science (United States)
- Uffizi Galleries (Italy)
- Royal Ontario Museum (Canada)
Positions on the public voting board can shift as votes come in, so the exact order changes over time.
How online polls differ from expert rankings
Public voting highlights enthusiasm and community support. It does not weigh conservation laboratories, scholarship, acquisitions or the breadth of collections in the same way that academic or industry evaluations do. Vote tallies reflect outreach, visibility and the ability of staff, fans and local communities to mobilize attention online.
On MWR, the Vatican Museums hold the top place in the general table, while BCM jumped to number one on the live “By Voting” board. These are different lenses on the museum world. One captures engagement from voters in real time. The other reflects a more stable listing.
The energy around BCM’s rise still matters. It signals that a museum in Borneo can capture attention across borders and it helps readers discover institutions they might not have considered before. For Sarawak, the spotlight can translate into inquiries, coverage and, over time, trips that feed into the broader visitor economy.
What visitors can expect at the museum
Expect galleries that invite you to listen, touch and move. Digital installations sit next to traditional textiles, carvings and ceremonial objects. Storylines explain how communities live with rivers and forests, how trade shaped towns and how traditions adapt in a changing world. Labels and media are designed for clarity, with an emphasis on narrative and context rather than technical jargon.
Families will find the Children Gallery a strong draw. The museum programs workshops in the Arts and Crafts Gallery and uses activity labs to introduce skills. Performances and demonstrations appear on select days, while the auditorium hosts talks and film sessions. Restaurants and a shop make it easy to extend a visit into the afternoon.
BCM sits in central Kuching, close to the historic Sarawak Museum building. Visitors often pair a museum day with a stroll along the waterfront, a walk through the old quarter and a bowl of Sarawak laksa. The setting makes it simple to combine culture with food and river views in a single outing.
The bigger picture for culture and connectivity
BCM’s visibility feeds into a broader plan for Sarawak’s cultural infrastructure. Across the street, the Natural History Museum is being upgraded. Exhibitions will cover the theories of evolution by Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace and the Sarawak Law that links to Wallace’s time in the region. Biodiversity displays will showcase the state’s wildlife and ecosystems, offering an additional draw for students and eco minded travelers.
Improved air access would give these venues a wider audience. The state is exploring new routes and the prospect of AirBorneo to connect Kuching with more regional and intercontinental gateways. Tour operators can shape itineraries that link culture, caves and rainforest, giving first time visitors a clear path through Sarawak and repeat visitors fresh reasons to return.
The online voting win does not guarantee higher attendance on its own. It does create a spotlight that local partners can use in marketing, partnerships and event planning. With attention on Kuching, the museum sector has an opportunity to turn clicks into footfall by sustaining programming, outreach and service quality.
What to Know
- Borneo Cultures Museum topped the Museum World Ranking public voting leaderboard, overtaking the Louvre.
- At a Tuesday morning snapshot, the site showed 49,467 votes for BCM and 4,059 for the Louvre. Counts are dynamic and change in real time.
- BCM opened in March 2022, is the largest museum in Malaysia and is among the largest in Southeast Asia.
- The museum recorded more than 1.35 million visitors by mid 2025, with guests from over 150 countries.
- BCM is certified as a Green Building under the Green Building Index and features climate controlled galleries.
- Facilities include a Children Gallery, auditorium, function room, restaurant, shop and an Arts and Crafts Gallery with activity labs and a dance studio.
- BCM first appeared on MWR in October at position 305 out of 413 museums, a listing separate from the live voting board.
- The voting leaderboard has also featured the National Museum of Anthropology, National Palace Museum, Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, Getty Center, Art Institute of Chicago, Houston Museum of Natural Science, Uffizi Galleries and Royal Ontario Museum.
- MWR’s general table lists the Vatican Museums at number one and the Louvre second, showing a different view from the public voting board.
- Sarawak is upgrading the Natural History Museum and exploring improved air links, including the prospect of AirBorneo, to support tourism growth ahead of Visit Malaysia 2026.
