Skyscraper Museum

Occupying the ground-floor space of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, this wonderful ode to skyscrapers the world over features two serene, high-gloss galleries. One focuses on rotating exhibits, environmentally sustainable skyscrapers, Hong Kong’s verticality versus that of New York’s and the creations of Frank Lloyd Wright. The other half of the museum is dedicated to a permanent study of high-rise history, including a size chart of the world’s biggest buildings (Dubai’s Burj Dubai is currently in the lead – it’s a whopping 2683ft high!), as well as exhibits on the construction of the Empire State Building and an overview of downtown architecture. The museum is also home to the cutting-edge technology known as VIVA – the Visual Index to the Virtual Archive, a visually based interface that uses a 3D computer model of Manhattan as a clickable map, allowing users to see the city’s past and present, and to explore the museum’s collections through an online database (which you can access via the museum’s website).