The RICKMER RICKMERS, a historic windjammer built in 1896, is a floating museum and landmark in Hamburg’s harbor since 1983. Open daily (except Mondays), it offers insights into sailors’ lives, maritime exhibitions, and an onboard restaurant. Visitors can explore the ship’s adventurous history, learn about propulsion methods from wind to diesel, and climb the 35-meter-high rigs for stunning views. Interactive activities and exhibitions make this iconic vessel a must-visit for maritime enthusiasts.
The International Maritime Museum Hamburg, located in the historic Kaispeicher B in the Speicherstadt, houses the world’s largest private collection of maritime treasures spanning 3,000 years of naval history. Spread across 10 floors and 11,000 square meters, the museum showcases 26,000 ship models, rare artifacts, nautical devices, and art, including a LEGO model of the Queen Mary 2 and the skull of pirate Klaus Störtebeker. Opened in 2007, it’s a must-visit for maritime enthusiasts, offering something for all ages – from deep-sea mysteries to panoramic sea paintings – in Hamburg’s oldest surviving warehouse.
The Cap San Diego, known as the “White Swan of the South Atlantic,” is a 1961 cargo ship turned museum with a permanent berth at Hamburg’s Überseebrücke. Part of the city’s iconic harbor panorama, the world’s largest navigable cargo ship departs several times a year for special voyages. Open daily for tours, it also hosts exhibitions like “A Suitcase Full of Hope,” detailing emigrants’ stories from 1850 to 1930. Visitors can even stay overnight in original passenger cabins. The ship serves also as a venue for events and cultural programs.
Universum Bremen turns science into an adventure! 250 hands-on exhibits in the Science Centre on the topics of man, earth and cosmos, a fantastic special exhibition, exciting science shows and the interactive discovery park await those thirsty for knowledge. If you want to stop real lightning bolts, defy gravity and outwit your own senses, Universum Bremen is the place for you!
The Multimar Wattforum, the largest information centre for the Schleswig-Holstein Wadden Sea National Park, is located directly on the Eider Bridge in the cosy harbour town of Tönning. In the interactive exhibition, visitors can discover impressive and exciting stories from the habitats between rivers, salt marshes, mudflats and the North Sea.
Between 1834 and 1972, seven million people emigrated all over the world via Bremerhaven – rarely driven by a thirst for adventure, but often by pure hardship and desperation. Their fate is documented in the German Emigration Centre, which was built right next to the harbour basin where the emigrants waited for the next ship. It is not a museum in the usual sense, but an adventure that gets under your skin at every stage and attracts visitors from as far away as the USA to Bremerhaven.
A swift ferry ride takes you to the Priwall peninsula. Follow the promenade and marina on your way to the fine sandy beaches of the Priwall peninsula. With a view of the anchored sailing ships and a refreshing cocktail in hand, you can enjoy the sunset in a prime location. Browse the market hall and unique shops for quality souvenirs and local produce. One of the most beautiful tall ships in the North is the storm-tested four-masted barque Passat, which has retired to Priwall harbour after 50 years of service as a cargo ship. The proud sailor was once part of the famous “Flying P-Liner” fleet, which sailed at speeds of up to 18 knots in good winds. Today the 115 metre long four-masted barque is Travemünde’s landmark. On board there is an interesting exhibition about the life and daily routine of sailors on long voyages.
The everyday life of people in the Hanseatic era and the close trading relationships between merchants and cities are brought to life in six impressive room installations in the European Hansemuseum. The eventful 800-year history of the Hanseatic League united the people of Europe and still characterises many cities today. Innovative museum technology allows visitors to witness everyday moments: colourful cloth trade in Bruges, fragrant spices from Venice, stockfish from Bergen.
Among Lübeck’s most famous sons are the Nobel Prize winner Thomas Mann and his brother Heinrich Mann, author of the novel “Der Untertan”. The Buddenbrook House is dedicated to their life and work and Thomas Mann’s world-famous novel “Buddenbrooks”. In the former home of the Mann brothers’ grandparents, two permanent exhibitions with historical furniture, film sequences, audio stations, original documents and first editions showcase the work of the family of writers. Three rooms from the ‘Buddenbrooks’ – “Landscape Room”, “Dining Room” and “Hall of Columns” – bring the world of the Hanseatic merchants to life. The Buddenbrook House is reopening in 2031 after extensive renovation and extension work. In the meantime, the interim exhibition “The Mann Brothers” is on display at the Behnhaus Drägerhaus Museum.
The OZEANEUM at Stralsund harbour – Europe’s Museum of the Year 2010 – is both an aquarium and a museum. Forty aquariums, some of them huge, invite visitors on a unique underwater journey. It begins in the harbour basin right on the doorstep and leads through the habitats of the Baltic Sea and North Sea to the North Atlantic and the cold Arctic Ocean. An impressive school of mackerel swims in the largest aquarium with a capacity of 2.6 million litres. The “1:1 Giants of the Seas” exhibition is huge. Here, full-size replicas of whales float above your head.
Discover the nature of the Jasmund National Park on 2,000 square metres – the origins in the chalk sea, life underground and the life cycles of various inhabitants of the national park. You will be accompanied by an audio guide system, with a choice of three themed tours (also with English translation). Outside the museum, you can enjoy a unique view of the Baltic Sea from the viewing platform on the famous Königsstuhl from the 118 metre high world-famous chalk cliff.
Visitors to the Klimahaus in Bremerhaven travel through almost every climate zone in the world along the eighth degree of longitude. From rockfall in Switzerland to a dried-up riverbed in Niger and the Antarctic cold of a polar station. Switzerland, Italy, Niger, Cameroon, Antarctica, Samoa, Alaska, Hallig Langeness and Bremerhaven are the stations where the climate is experienced up close with all the senses and from often unusual perspectives.
Lübeck’s Old Town is surrounded by the rivers Trave and Wakenitz. Wherever you turn, you are never far away from the water. It shapes the face of the city. The Hanseatic city is best explored by boat, canoe or – for the more adventurous – by stand-up paddleboard. You can sail past the colourful painters’ corner or the historic ships in the museum harbour at your own pace and enjoy a unique view of the 7 towers. The Drehbrückenplatz is a wonderful place to linger with a fish roll in hand. Excursion boats take guests all the way to the seaside resort Travemünde – Lübeck’s gateway to the world. Stroll along the promenade or walk up to “Nordermole” – the best spot on the quayside. Feel the fresh Baltic Sea breeze while you watch the big ships pass by within touching distance.
The Valentin Bunker Memorial has been open to the public since November 2015 and provides extensive information about the history of the bunker through the information centre, the circular route and the exhibition. A place that harbours memories of the war, warns of the crimes of the Nazi regime and gives you goosebumps every time you visit.