Opening Hours, Admission Prices, Free Entry, Cheap Passes
Berlin’s excellent State Museums have amongst the best collections in the world. Opening hours are long, ticket admission prices low (free for under-16s & savings with museum passes) and sometimes free.
The 17 State Museums in Berlin (Staatliche Museen zu Berlin) have wide-ranging, excellent-quality cultural collections and art galleries. Opening hours are long while ticket prices remain relatively low (although no longer the absolute bargain they were a few years ago). Museum passes offer excellent value, while most permanent collections can be seen for free on the final four hours of opening hours on Thursdays.
Museen zu Berlin Admission Fees, Ticket Prices, and Savings Passes
Berlin’s main State Museums are generally grouped into four geographical areas with an area ticket giving admission to all museums in the region for a full day – visa and master cards accepted. Some museum can be seen individually without using an area ticket.
- Admission for under-16 year olds is always free; older students receive 50% discount.
- Some museums are open for free from 6 to 10 pm on Thursday – see list below. The free hours are sometimes suspended during major exhibitions.
- Temporary exhibitions usually require a surcharge to normal admission tickets and museum passes.
For most visitors, a museum pass is a very good deal and great way to save on individual ticket prices:
- The 3-Day Tickets (Drei-Tage-Karte Berliner Museen) cost only €19 and give admission to the permanent exhibitions of more than 50 museums in Berlin (including all State Museums) for three consecutive days.
- Non-transferable annual passes cost €40 for the permanent collections of all Berlin State Museums (€80 annual passes include temporary exhibitions as well).
Berlin State Museums Areas
- Museum Island in Berlin
The Museumsisland area ticket is €14 per day and includes the Old National Gallery (Collection of Classical Antiquities and Egyptian Museum), the Bode-Museum (Sculpture Collection, Museum of Byzantine Art, and Numismatic Collection) and the Pergamon Museum (Collection of Classical Antiquities, Museum of Near Eastern Heritage, and Museum of Islamic Art). Each of the three main museum buildings can also be seen individually for €8 per day. A special exhibition in the Pergamon will ups the price for most of 2009 to €10.
- Most museums on Museeninsel are open on Mondays.
Admission to the Friedrichswerder Church (19th century sculptures) is free.
- Museums in Charlottenburg, Berlin
The Charlottenburg area ticket is €8 per day and includes admission to the Museum for Pre- and Early History (€3), the Museum Berggruen, Scharf-Gerstenberg Collection, and the Museum of Photography.
Admission to the Gipsformerei (Replica Workshop) is free.
- Dahlem Museum Complex in Berlin
The Dahlem area ticket is €6 per day and includes admission to the Ethnological Museum, the Museum of Asian Art, and the Museum of European Cultures.
- Tiergarten – Kulturforum in Berlin
The Tiergarten/Köpenick area ticket is €8 per day and includes the Picture Gallery, the Art Library, the Museum of Decorative Arts in both Tiergarten and Köpenick (€4 if seen on its own), the Museum of Prints and Drawings, the New National Gallery, and the Museum of Musical Instruments (€4 if seen on its own).
- Hamburger Bahnhof Museum in Berlin
The Hamburger Bahnhof Museum of Contemporary Art is not included in any area ticket. Admission is €8.
Opening hours of Berlin State Museums
All museums are generally open Tuesday to Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm but with the following exceptions:
- The Altes, Pergamon, and Bode Museum are open Monday from 10 am to 6 pm.
- Hamburg Bahnhof, all museums in Dahlem and Tiergarten-Kulturforum only open at 11 am on weekends. (The Gemäldegallerie / Picture Gallery opens at 10 am.)
- The Gipsformerei (Replica Workshop) is open weekdays only from 9 am to 4 pm.
- The Museum for Pre- and Early History is open Tuesday to Sunday from 9 am (10 am on weekends) to 5 pm.
- Hamburg Bahnhof closes only at 8 pm on Saturday.
- The following museums are open on Thursday up to 10 pm (admission to permanent collections free after 6 pm): New National Gallery, Picture Gallery, Museum for Photography, Pergamon Museum, Altes Museum, Egyptian Museum, Old National Gallery, Bode Museum.
Berlin’s State Museums are easily reached on public transportation: the Kulturforum on bus 200, Museumsinsel on bus 100 or 200, Charlottenburg by S-Bahn train, and Dahlem by U-Bahn train.
