The Natural History Museum Rijeka located within the Nikola Host Park was the first regional museum in the Rijeka area, founded in 1876 when Doctor Joseph Roman Lorenz designed its concept in accordance with Vienna’s Naturhistoriches Museum. Initially the collection was an integral part of the City Museum, but since 1945 it has operated as an independent institution with rich holdings at its current location, within which there was a zoo and an aquarium until the 1960s. Today, the Museum is oriented towards marine research and has a specialised library in the field of biology, geology and palaeontology. Visitors can enjoy the rich collections and permanent exhibition representing the geological past of the Adriatic, oceanographic research, minerals, marine invertebrates, sharks and rays, the “Aquarium” multimedia centre and reptiles and amphibians from the Rijeka area.

In addition to the botanical garden, the museum has a multimedia centre with an aquarium containing species from the Adriatic Sea. Besides fish, sharks and sea rays, the museum also exhibits some species of insects, reptiles, birds and amphibians. Ideal entertainment for both children and adults.