© 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 'Wa! Germany'
    A visitor in front of an interactive exhibition featuring round wooden modules and plants
    © facts and fiction / Stefan Schilling Fotografie
    Wa! Germany08/09/2026
    08:00
    Exhibition
    Spanischer Bau, Rathausplatz, 50667 Köln
  • Open detail page 'Light in Dark Times'
    Miracle of Pentecost, Southern Netherlands/Flanders, 1540, stained glass, Kyiv, Khanenko Museum, 301 БР МХ, photo: Rhei-nisches Bildarchiv Köln / Marion Mennicken
    © Foto: Rheinisches Bildarchiv Köln / Marion Menniken
    Light in Dark Times08/09/2026
    10:00
    Exhibition
    Museum Schnütgen, Cäcilienstraße 29-33, 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 Jewellery08/09/2026
    10:00
    Exhibition
    Museum of Applied Arts, An der Rechtschule 7, 50667 Köln
  • Open detail page 'Michael Schumacher Private Collection'
    Red formula car in glazed exhibition hall with large-format photos of Michael Schuhmacher in the background
    KölnTourismus, Foto: Christoph Seelbach | CC-BY-SA
    Michael Schumacher Private Collection08/09/2026
    10:00
    Exhibition
    MOTORWORLD Cologne Rhineland, Butzweilerstraße 35-39, 50829 Köln
  • Open detail page 'Charlotte Zander '
    Exhibition room with two illustrated wall panels and a pedestal with bag.
    © ZADIK - Helena Sommer
    Charlotte Zander 08/09/2026
    10:00
    Exhibition
    Universität zu Köln - ZADIK | Zentralarchiv für deutsche und internationale Kunstmarktforschung, Im Mediapark 7, 50670 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 Idea08/09/2026
    10:00
    Exhibition
    Museum of Applied Arts, An der Rechtschule 7, 50667 Köln
  • Open detail page 'OLGA OPPENHEIMER'
    Woodcut with three women working in the fields in front of yellow textured fields.
    © Familienbesitz
    OLGA OPPENHEIMER08/09/2026
    10:00
    Exhibition
    Cologne City Museum, Minoritenstraße 13, 50667 Köln
  • Open detail page 'Adalbert Trillhaas '
    A charcoal drawing of a woman sitting on a leather sofa, her hands folded in her lap
    © Adalbert Trillhaase, Dame auf Ledersofa (Felicitas Trillhaase), 1923. Courtesy Sammlung Zander. Foto: Alistair Overbruck
    Adalbert Trillhaas 08/09/2026
    10:00
    Exhibition
    Sammlung Zander, Jülicher Straße 24A, 50674 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 '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
                • Open detail page 'Römergrab Weiden'
                  An impressive Roman burial chamber with a stone ceiling, sculptures and stone benches.
                  © Förderverein Römergrab Weiden e.V., Foto: A. Thünker DGPh, Bonn
                  Tip Römergrab Weiden
                  Archaeological site
                  Aachener Straße 1328, 50859 Köln
                • Open detail page 'Ubier Monument'
                  The picture shows historical masonry from the ancient Ubiermonument in Cologne. In the foreground is a cylinder, behind it brightly lit stone walls that emphasize the archaeological atmosphere.
                  © Römisch-Germanisches Museum der Stadt Köln / RBA / A. Wegner
                  Tip Ubier Monument
                  Archaeological site
                  An der Malzmühle 1, 50676 Köln
                • Open detail page 'Synagogue'
                  Romanesque façade of the synagogue made of sandstone with large, round windows and pointed towers.
                  © Herbert Sachs
                  Tip Synagogue
                  synagogue
                  Roonstraße 50, 50674 Köln