German Emigration Center Tickets Bremerhaven

The museum on the emigrants' harbour

The German Emigration Center opened in 2005 on the New Harbour in Bremerhaven, the exact place from which millions of people boarded ships for America, South America and Australia between the 1830s and the 1970s. Two years after opening it was named European Museum of the Year, and in 2012 it was extended with a second permanent exhibition on immigration to Germany, making it Europe's largest museum devoted to migration.

The building is part of the Havenwelten (Harbour Worlds), Bremerhaven's waterfront of museums and promenades, and from its windows you look out over the same basin the emigrants saw before departure. If you are wondering whether the German Emigration Center is worth visiting, the answer from most visitors is yes: it is moving, beautifully staged and relevant to anyone whose family has ever moved country.

From the quay to the New World

Your journey begins with a personal boarding card that carries the biography of a real emigrant, which you activate at audio stations along the way. You step onto a dimly lit harbour quay of the 1880s, crowded with figures, luggage and goodbyes, beside the towering black hull of a steamship. Then you go on board: reconstructed decks show conditions in the crowded steerage of a 19th-century sailing ship, a steamship of the late 1800s and an ocean liner of 1929.

On arrival you face the immigration inspection on Ellis Island, answering the same questions immigrants once did, and continue to a recreation of Grand Central Station in New York, where exhibits follow how emigrants built new lives in the New World. The scenes are lifelike and detailed, and the personal story on your card makes the experience feel surprisingly close.

Immigration to Germany and family research

The second part of the museum turns the story around. It follows people who came to Germany over three centuries, from religious refugees to post-war workers and recent arrivals, with recreated everyday settings, personal objects and interviews. It shows that migration has always shaped the country and invites visitors to compare the stories with their own.

At the end of the visit the family research room offers free help in searching for emigrant ancestors. Trained staff and computer databases of passenger lists and emigration records help you find the first traces of your family history. If you know a name and an approximate date of departure, bring them along; even a short search can turn up surprising results.

Planning your visit and the surroundings

The museum is open daily, and you should arrive at least two hours before closing time to see everything at a relaxed pace; most visitors spend two to three hours. Backpacks, food and drinks are not allowed in the exhibition, and pets are not permitted except assistance dogs. The museum is wheelchair accessible. Guided visits are not included in the ticket.

The museum stands in the Havenwelten, a short walk from the German Maritime Museum, the Climate House and the harbour promenade, so it combines easily with other things to do in Bremerhaven. Arriving by train, it is a short bus ride from Bremerhaven's central station to the Harbour Worlds.