Long Night of Museums Berlin

Berlin Invents the Museum Night

The Long Night of Museums format was invented in Berlin in 1997 — by Kulturprojekte Berlin GmbH (commissioned by the Berlin Senate Department for Culture). Comparable formats now exist in over 120 cities worldwide, from Paris to São Paulo, from Vienna to Madrid. However, the Berlin original of all museum nights remains in a league of its own — 75 museums, 750 individual events, one continuous ticket covering everything.

How the Format Works

With one ticket, you get access to all 75 participating museums from 6 PM to 2 AM. Shuttle buses on four routes run between the institutions:

• Red Line: West Berlin, from 7 PM
• Yellow Line: North, from 5 PM
• Green Line: East, from 6 PM
• Blue Line: Southeast, from 6 PM

The city center museums around Museum Island are within walking distance.

Which Museums Participate

The spectrum of participating museums is one of the special features of Berlin's Long Night — it ranges from the UNESCO World Heritage Site Museum Island to small private collections:

• Museum Island: Altes Museum, Neues Museum, Bode-Museum, Pergamon Museum (limited during renovation), Alte Nationalgalerie
• Kulturforum: Neue Nationalgalerie, Gemäldegalerie, Kunstgewerbemuseum
• History Museums: Deutsches Historisches Museum, Jewish Museum Berlin, Stasi Museum (in the former MfS headquarters in Normannenstraße)
• Specialty Museums: German Museum of Technology, Natural History Museum, Museum for Communication, Bauhaus Archive
• Curious Private Museums: Trabi Museum, Samurai Art Museum, Hemp Museum, Computerspielemuseum, Currywurst Museum (closed, but predecessor interesting)
• Memorial Sites: Topography of Terror, Anne Frank Center
• Planetariums: Zeiss-Großplanetarium

Program Beyond the Exhibition

Unlike normal opening hours, the institutions offer their own special program during the Long Night:

• Express Tours (15–30 min., focused on highlights)
• Workshops (for adults and children)
• Concerts (Classical, Jazz, Crossover)
• Readings
• Artist Talks
• Performances
• DJ Sets in some venues, often in foyers or sculpture gardens

A Berlin Tradition

Around 50,000 visitors attend the Long Night of Museums annually. Most combine 3–5 museums per night, often along a thematic route (e.g., 'Museum Island Complete', 'Charlottenburg District Museums', 'History Tour Mitte'). Families with children under 12 travel free (adult ticket allows free accompanying children).