The Staatliche Museen zu Berlin are mostly open Tuesday to Sunday, a few open on Monday, many stay open Thursday evenings and most museums open on public holidays.
The Staatliche Museen zu Berlin (national museums and galleries) are generally open Tuesday to Sunday from around 10 am to 6 pm. Some of the major museums and galleries are open until 8 pm on Thursday evenings. Only the Pergamon Museum (including Panorama Exhibition) and Neues Museum require time-slot ticket reservations (free and the only sensible way to see these top museums) and are open on regular Mondays as well.
The Berlin State Museums are open on most public holidays (including on holiday Mondays) – using Sunday opening hours. The museums are usually closed on December 24 and 31 (what isn’t in Germany?) but open on Christmas Day itself and opening around noon on January 1.
Berlin Museums Closed in 2020
The following Berlin State Museums are closed in 2020 (and, unfortunately, mostly beyond):
- Neue National Gallerie / New National Gallery (closed for several years for renovation)
- The Pergamon Museum is being renovated and some halls may closed while most of the museum remains open. The hall with the Pergamon Altar will only be fully accessible around 2025/26 but glimpses of the temple may be possible before then and some statues may be seen in the special Pergamonmuseum. Das Panorama exhibition.
Berlin Museums Opening in 2020
The following museums will open / re-open during 2020:
- The opening of the Humboldt Forum in the rebuilt Berlin Schloss on Museum Island has been postponed from 2019 to mid-2020. The two major museums opening here are the Etnologisches Museum / Ethnological Museum and the Museum für Asiatische Kunst / Museum for Asian Art.
- Friedrichwerdersche Kirche will re-open in spring 2020 as a sculpture exhibition area for the Alte National Gallery.
Opening Hours on Museum Island Berlin
All museums on Museumsinsel Berlin (Alte Nationalgalerie, Altes Museum, Bode Museum, Neues Museum, and Pergamon Museum) are open Tuesday to Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm, closing at 8 pm on Thursday.
The Pergamonmuseum, the Panorama Exhibition and Neues Museum are also open on Monday from 10 am to 6 pm. Admission to these two museum are by time-slot tickets – worth reserving in advance also for free admission and passes (up to around two months in advance possible).
The James Simon Gallery is open half an hour earlier / later than the Pergamon Museum.
Tickets may be bought online from SMB but buying from Tiqets or GetYourGuide is a lot simpler and cost the same as the official museum website.
Opening Hours of Kulturforum / Cultural Forum Museums in Berlin
The museums in the Kulturforum area are open Tuesday to Sunday from 10 am on weekdays (11 am on weekends) and closing at 6 pm.
The Musical Instruments Museum opens and closes an hour earlier and is often closed on holidays – it is not really an SMB museum but included in the Kulturforum ticket.
The Gemäldegalerie, Musical Instruments Museum, and Kunstbibliothek are open on Thursday nights until 8 pm. Temporary exhibitions in the other museums often have late hours on Thursdays as well.
(The Neue Nationalgalerie will be closed for several years from 2015.)
Opening Hours of Museums in Dahlem
The Museum of European Cultures (Europäischer Kulturen) in Berlin-Dahlem is open Tuesday to Friday from 10 am to 5 pm and weekends from 11 am to 6 pm.
The Ethnological and Asian Art museums have closed here and will reopen in the Humboldt Forum in the Berlin Schloss on Museum Island during 2020.
Opening Hours of Museums in Charlottenburg
The Berggruen Museum and Sammlung Scharf-Gerstenberg are open Tuesday to Friday from 10 am to 6 pm and on weekends from 11 am to 6 pm.
The Museum für Fotographie near Zoologischer Bahnhof station is open Tuesday to Sunday from 11 am to 7 pm, closing 8 pm on Thursday.
Opening Hours of the Hamburger Bahnhof
The Hamburger Bahnhof – Museum für Gegenwart – Berlin Museum of Contemporary Art is open Tuesday to Friday from 10 am to 6 pm and weekends from 11 am to 6 pm.
The Hamburger Bahnhof is open on Thursday evening until 8 pm.
Opening Hours for Schloss Köpenick
Schloss Köpenick is open Thursday to Sunday from 11 am to 5 pm.
More on the Berlin State Museum (Staatliche Museen zu Berlin)
For more general information on the Berlin State Museums:
- Top National Museum and Galleries in Berlin (brief overview)
- Berlin State Museum What Is Seen Where? (a short description of the collections in the different museums)
- Berlin State Museums Opening Hours (9 to 5 was always going to be too simple)
- Ticket Prices for Berlin State Museums (prices for museums, temporary exhibitions, combination tickets, online time-slot reservations). Buying online from Tiqets or GetYourGuide is a lot simpler and cost the same as the official museum website.
- Save with the Berlin Museum Pass – 30 museums in three days for €29 – a fantastic savings deal.
- The Welcome Berlin Card All-Inclusive is pricy but includes admission to all museums and top sights.
- Staatliche Museen zu Berlin (official website in German & English)
News & Temporary Exhibitions:
- Top Special Exhibitions in 2020: Highlights, in Kulturforum, on Museum Island, in the Hamburger Bahnhof, and smaller museums.
- For special contemporary art exhibitions in 2019 in Berlin see the Hamburger Bahnhof – Museum für Gegenwart and
- Top Temporary Art Exhibition in Berlin for other major special exhibitions in 2019.
- The Humboldt Forum in the Berlin Schloss should open during 2020.
- The Friederichswerdersche Kirche will reopen spring 2020, as an exhibition space for sculptures of the Alte Nationalgalerie.
- The James Simon Gallery opened in summer 2019 and is an additional entrance to the Pergamon and Neues Museum.
- The Neue Nationalgalerie with twentieth-century art (up to 1970) remains closed for renovations.
More Museums Reviews and Museum Specific Information:
- Pergamon Museum with Ishtar Gate.
- Pergamon Museum Panorama Exhibition with Asisi panoramic painting.
- Neues Museum with bust of Nefertiti.
- Alte Nationalgalerie with Caspar David Friedrich paintings.
- Musical Instruments Museum near the Berliner Philharmonie.
