© KölnTourismus GmbH

Arts & Culture

Visiting museums

Small and select — or big and famous: more than 100 museums in Cologne are waiting for your visit. And they’re well worth visiting even if it’s not a rainy day. Let the Fragrance Museum enchant you, the Sports Museum warm you up, the world of chocolate stimulate all of your senses, and learn much more about the cultures of our world in these and other museums. If you’re interested in art and culture, Cologne offers you all this and much more. In addition, numerous art galleries look forward to having you drop in. There’s lots of art and culture in Cologne — for a day trip or a tour lasting several days. Just come to Cologne again and again — we’ll keep you up to date on our museums, exhibitions and events.

Top 4 Cologne museums

Museum Ludwig

Important art museum

© KölnTourismus, Foto: Christoph Seelbach

Kolumba

Art museum of the archdiocese

© KölnTourismus, Foto: Christoph Seelbach

Chocolate Museum

The whole world of chocolate

© KölnTourismus, Foto: Christoph Seelbach

MAKK

Museum of Applied Arts

© KölnTourismus, Foto: Jens Korte

Exhibitions

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  • Open detail page 'Uncertain terrain'
    Abstract violet painting with swirling light shapes and colorful fragments
    © Künstlerin Katrin Laade
    Uncertain terrain19/08/2026
    08:00
    Exhibition
    Rooms of the Kölner Haus- und Grundbesitzerverein, Hohenzollernring 71-73, 50672 Köln
  • Open detail page 'Stefanie Pluta: Scenario for a Crystal'
    Glacier areas under spread-out protective tarpaulins with folds and partially open areas
    © Stefanie Pluta
    Stefanie Pluta: Scenario for a Crystal19/08/2026
    09:00
    Exhibition
    Italian Cultural Institute, Universitätsstraße 81, 50931 Köln
  • Open detail page 'WE … TOGETHER'
    A modern exhibition space with interactive panels and lighting in a vaulted arch.
    © NS-DOK / Jörn Neumann
    WE … TOGETHER19/08/2026
    from €4.50 p. p.
    10:00
    Exhibition
    NS-Documentation Center, Appellhofplatz 23-25, 50667 Köln
  • Open detail page 'WE ARE WHAT WE ARE NOT'
    A round flatbread covering a partially exposed decorated sherd.
    © RJM I Yohannes Mulat Mekonnen
    WE ARE WHAT WE ARE NOT19/08/2026
    10:00
    Exhibition
    Rautenstrauch-Joest-Museum: Cultures of the world, Cäcilienstraße 29-33, 50667 Köln
  • Open detail page 'OLGA OPPENHEIMER'
    Woodcut with three women working in the fields in front of yellow textured fields.
    © Familienbesitz
    OLGA OPPENHEIMER19/08/2026
    10:00
    Exhibition
    Cologne City Museum, Minoritenstraße 13, 50667 Köln
  • Open detail page 'Fabric of the nation'
    White soccer jersey with black, red and gold pattern and DFB emblem with four stars
    © picture alliance / M.i.S. | Bernd Feil
    Fabric of the nation19/08/2026
    from €10.50 p. p.
    10:00
    Exhibition
    German Sports & Olympics Museum, Im Zollhafen 1, 50678 Köln
  • Open detail page 'O.M. Ungers – Architecture as Idea'
    Bright room with black windows and six round wooden armchairs arranged symmetrically
    © Eduard Hueber/archphoto
    O.M. Ungers – Architecture as Idea19/08/2026
    10:00
    Exhibition
    Museum of Applied Arts, An der Rechtschule 7, 50667 Köln
  • Open detail page 'The Fascination of Jewellery'
    Colorful brooch made of geometric elements arranged in a star shape on a grey background.
    © DetlefSchumacher.com
    The Fascination of Jewellery19/08/2026
    10:00
    Exhibition
    Museum of Applied Arts, An der Rechtschule 7, 50667 Köln

Museum landscape

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    Gallery scene

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      Sights

      Cologne is home to about one million people — and about six million visitors come to this metropolis on the Rhine every year to explore the city and its tourist attractions. Of course the most outstanding highlights are Cologne Cathedral and the city’s 12 famous Romanesque churches. One good thing about Cologne is that you can combine visits to many highlights, monuments, hotspots and museums by simply walking around — for example, from the Cathedral through the Altstadt (Old Town) to the Rheinauhafen (Rheinau Harbour) district and back along the Rhine. Or you can visit the Zoo and the Flora botanical garden, cross the Rhine in a cable car and walk back along the right bank, crossing the Rhine again to the Cathedral via the Hohenzollernbrücke with its load of “love locks” weighing many tonnes. Cologne is a green metropolis with many attractive parks and gardens that offer pleasant opportunities to relax after gathering so many new impressions.

      Romanesque churches

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        Roman Cologne

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          Parks & Gardens

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            Fountains

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              Public Art & Monuments 

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                Discover More

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                • Open detail page 'Kölnischer Kunstverein'
                  The Kölnischer Kunstverein: Modern concrete architecture in front of a church tower background, framed by trees.
                  KölnTourismus, Foto: Jesse v. Laufenberg | CC-BY-SA
                  Tip Kölnischer Kunstverein
                  Museum/Exhibition
                  Hahnenstraße 6, 50667 Köln
                • Open detail page 'Cologne City Museum'
                  Depiction of a historic automobile next to a metal horse sculpture in the Cologne City Museum.
                  KölnTourismus, Foto: Christoph Seelbach | CC-BY-SA
                  Tip Cologne City Museum
                  Museum/Exhibition
                  Minoritenstraße 13, 50667 Köln
                • Open detail page 'Historic City Hall'
                  View of the historic town hall in the old town from below, showing the Gothic architectural style with detailed statues.
                  www.badurina.de, KölnTourismus GmbH | CC-BY-SA
                  Tip Historic City Hall
                  historical building
                  Rathausplatz 2, 50667 Köln
                • Open detail page 'Cologne Central Mosque'
                  Hall columns and domed roofs characterize the striking façade of Cologne's modern central mosque.
                  Tip Cologne Central Mosque
                  mosque
                  Venloer Straße 160, 50823 Köln
                • Open detail page 'Gürzenich'
                  The façade of the historic Gürzenich Köln with high windows and towers, under a clear sky.
                  KölnTourismus, Foto: Jesse von Laufenberg | CC-BY-SA
                  Tip Gürzenich
                  historical building
                  Martinstraße 29-37, 50667 Köln
                • Open detail page 'Tünnes and Schäl statues'
                  The bronze figure group shows the Cologne originals "Tünnes and Schäl" in the historic center of Cologne. Both figures are designed to be lifelike.
                  KölnTourismus, Foto: Christoph Seelbach | CC-BY-SA
                  Tip Tünnes and Schäl statues
                  Monument
                  Lintgasse 9, 50667 Köln
                • Open detail page 'Melaten Cemetry'
                  The majestic statue of an angel with wide-open wings rises majestically against a backdrop of blossoming spring foliage and a clear sky.
                  © KölnerFoto
                  Tip Melaten Cemetry
                  Cemetery
                  Aachener Straße 204, 50931 Köln
                • Open detail page 'Old St Alban'
                  The ruins of the side wall of Old St. Alban's, with Gothic windows and statues. The street is visible below.
                  KölnTourismus, Foto: Jesse von Laufenberg | CC-BY-SA
                  Tip Old St Alban
                  Church
                  Quatermarkt 4, 50667 Köln