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These are the 9 best museums in Germany

The Mercedes Benz Museum in Stuttgart also made it into the ranking
The Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart also made it into the rankings Photo: Getty Images

September 7, 2024, 3:32 pm | Read time: 6 minutes

Museum visits are booming. This is because instead of the often super-old works of art on bare walls, many museums are attracting visitors with their spectacular architecture and hands-on exhibits. The trending topics are technology, history, and art. The users have rated and Tripadvisor has just awarded the winner of the best museum in Germany.

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“Museums are not dusty fossils,” says Tripadvisor Press Officer Pia Schratzenstaller. On the contrary, cultural institutions are on trend, according to a study by the travel website. Based on this study, Tripadvisor has just presented the “Travelers’ Choice Award” for the best museums in Germany. Users of the website go on a “cultural tour” at least once a year.

The ranking was based on millions of experience reports and ratings submitted by users of the travel portal for their visits to museums throughout Germany. The more points and ratings a museum received, the higher it was in the ranking. A maximum of five could be awarded if the museum was at the top. Are you curious to find out who came out on top? We won’t keep you in suspense any longer. Here are the rankings:

1st place: Pergamon Museum, Berlin

The museum scored a whopping 4.5 out of five possible rating points in 6,803 reviews (as of September 23, 2014). These are the most and best reviews in the rankings, thus taking first place for the cultural center. It has been enthroned on the Museum Island in the capital since 1930 and houses the Collection of Classical Antiquities, the Museum of the Ancient Near East, and the Museum of Islamic Art. Among other things, the Pergamon Altar, the Market Gate of Miletus and the Ishtar Gate (photo above) made the museum famous worldwide. What’s more, the Pergamon Museum is the only German museum to make it into the top 25 museums in Europe this year. A tip from a Tripadvisor user: “However, we recommend booking tickets online or arriving one hour before the museum opens.”

However, if you want to see the Pergamon Museum in all its glory this year, you’ll have to hurry. From next Monday, a large part of the building will close for renovation work. The last day the Pergamon Altar Hall will be open is Sunday, September 28, 2014, but the south wing of the museum with the Ishtar Gate, the Processional Way, and the Market Gate of Miletus, as well as the Museum of Islamic Art, will remain open.

Das Pergamonmuseum in Berlin ist das beliebteste Museum in Deutschland
The Pergamon Museum in Berlin is the most popular museum in Germany. Photo: Tripadvisor

2nd place: Topography of Terror, Berlin

With more than 3,500 reviews and 4.5 out of five possible points, the documentation center on National Socialism is in second place. As impressive as the name is, the visitors seem to be just as moved. “Seeing how people had to suffer under systems of injustice and the methods used is very thought-provoking,” writes a Tripadvisor user about the exhibition. The exhibition is located next to the Martin-Gropius-Bau and is near Potsdamer Plat. It is on the exact spot where the most important headquarters of Nazi terror stood from 1933 to 1945.

Die Open-Air-Galerie der Topographie des Terrors in Berlin
The open-air gallery of the Topography of Terror in Berlin. Photo: TripAdvisor

3rd place: Mercedes-Benz Museum, Stuttgart

Sensational five rating points from TripAdvisor users, more than 1,700 testimonials, and thus the bronze medal for the automobile museum in southern Germany. Here, you can get hands-on with history and, above all, technology. Small models, big fast cars, speedsters and retro sleds are staged here.

Ausstellungsraum Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart
Mercedes-Benz Museum exhibition room in Stuttgart. Photo: TripAdvisor

4th place: Deutsches Museum, Munich

Some people need a whole day, some families even two days, to explore the museum. With more than 2,200 reviews and 4.5 out of five points, this exciting institution for families and various age and interest groups took its place right next to the podium. With around 28,000 objects, it is probably the largest science and technology museum in the world. And if you want to find out which celebrities are behind the abbreviations U1, Ju52 and MIPAS, there is no way around a visit to the Deutsches Museum.

Das Deutsche Museum im München – das wohl größte naturwissenschaftlich-technische Museum der Welt
The Deutsches Museum in Munich is probably the largest science and technology museum in the world. Photo: TripAdvisor

5th place: BMW Museum, Munich

Some find the hallowed automobile halls “a great journey through BMW history and BMW models” while others find them “a welcome change for Oktoberfest tourists”. Probably because of the successful mix of history, models, and the inclusion of Rolls-Royce, the BMW Museum made it into the top 10 in fifth place, crowned by almost 2000 testimonials and 4.5 out of five rating points.

Bunte Flitzer und Retro-Schlitten stehen im BMW Museum in München
Colorful speedsters and retro cars at the BMW Museum in Munich. Photo: TripAdvisor

6th place: German Historical Museum, Berlin

There is a lot of history to be seen here within one visit. “Highly interesting cross-section through two millennia of German history. Very high-quality exhibits with a contemporary presentation,” reports a Tripadvisor user who gave one of the 1,330 ratings and contributed to the 4.5 out of five points. Around 900,000 objects convey and discuss German history. Admission to the museum in the Mitte district is even free for those up to the age of 18.

Aufgeklappt und hergehört: Für alle unter 18 Jahre ist das Deutsche Historische Museum in Berlin gratis
Open up and listen up: the German Historical Museum in Berlin is free for anyone under the age of 18. Photo: TripAdvisor

7th place: The Pinakotheken, Munich

The plural name makes sense, as four different art museums are united under one roof. Almost 900 reviews and 4.5 out of five possible points led to seventh place in the Tripadvisor rankings of the best museums in Germany.

Beeindruckende Werke schmücken vier Ausstellungen unter einem Dach, dem der Pinakothek
Impressive works adorn four exhibitions under one roof, that of the Pinakothek. Photo: TripAdvisor

8th place: Documentation Center Nazi Party rally grounds, Nuremberg

Visitors are guided through the Second World War in words, sound, and moving images. Even today, gigantic ruins on the former Nazi Party Rally Grounds in the south of Nuremberg bear witness to the megalomania of the National Socialist regime, writes the center on its website. “It makes you shudder and think. Definitely worth a visit!” says one Tripadvisor user. The result in the rankings was 605 reviews and 4.5 out of five points.

Im Dokumentationszentrum Reichsparteitagsgelände in Nürnberg geht der Besucher auf eine Zeitreise durch den Zweiten Weltkrieg
At the Documentation Center Nazi Party Rally Grounds in Nuremberg, visitors embark on a journey through time during the Second World War. Photo: TripAdvisor
More on the topic

9th place: Neues Museum, Berlin

Nefertiti is “enthroned in a beautiful room, beautifully staged”, recalls a Tripadvisor user after his visit. He gave one of the 1,292 ratings. Overall, the museum, which still has bullet holes from the Second World War on its walls, received 4.5 out of five points. In addition to the famous female head, the museum also exhibits around 9,000 other objects. These come from Eurasian cultures dating from the Palaeolithic to the High Middle Ages.

Die Nofretete thront im Neuen Museum in Berlin – an den Außenmauern sieht man noch die Einschusslöcher aus Kriegszeiten
Nefertiti is enthroned in the Neues Museum in Berlin – the bullet holes from the war can still be seen on the outer walls. Photo: TripAdvisor

The original version of this article was published in 2014.

This article is a machine translation of the original German version of TRAVELBOOK and has been reviewed for accuracy and quality by a native speaker. For feedback, please contact us at info@petbook.de.

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