Fork in the road, half-timbered houses on the right

For tour operators

Welcome to the past

The journey through time in the LVR open-air museum in Kommern in the Eifel takes you 500 years into the past. One of the largest museums of its kind in all of Europe transports visitors right into the world of our ancestors. In 77 historic buildings, including farms, workshops, windmills and watermills, you can experience up close how people in the Rhineland once lived and worked. It's as if time has stood still. The smell of freshly baked bread fills your nostrils. Geese and chickens run excitedly over the cobblestones. Mousetrap peddler Regine "Jien" Braconnier loudly touts her wares. The loud banging of the hammer on the anvil comes from the forge. Welcome to the past. Welcome to the open-air museum in Kommern.

Smoke houses and half-timbered buildings

Throughout the year, visitors can gain an insight into village life in the former Prussian Rhine Province. Various projects and action days offer the opportunity to take part yourself. A total of 77 historic houses and stables were dismantled in the Rhineland and rebuilt on the 100-hectare museum site. Simple smokehouses without a smoke outlet, as was typical in the Westerwald in the 16th century. Half-timbered buildings from the northern Eifel. But also courtyards and stables where people on the Lower Rhine and in the Bergisch region lived under one roof with pigs, horses and chickens. Strolling through the villages and hamlets, fields and orchards, visitors also encounter "real" people from the past, such as for example the nun Clara Fey, who once looked after poor children who were left behind, or the farmer Anna Ippendorf. At regular events such as "After the Harvest", "Krautwischtag" or "Advent for all the Senses", she vividly reports on cooking on an open fire, spinning on the spinning wheel and tedious gardening. It is only a few steps away from everyday village life until the recent past. On the narrow streets of the small town of Rhenania, visitors stroll through time from the French occupation through the German Empire to the post-war period. From here you can get to the Rhineland market square, which brings the 1950s to 1990s back to life. Some visitors will still remember it. For example the prefabricated house from the Quelle catalogue, the first bungalows and the emergency telephone, also known as the "Iron Policeman". But also an old air raid shelter, Nissen huts, which served as accommodation for numerous families who had been bombed out, and a temporary home for refugees, a container from 1991, can be visited. A special highlight is the "Zeitblende", which brings back the feeling of 50 years ago in front of a suitable backdrop. Visitors are invited to immerse themselves in their own personal memories and to let their own past come to life.

impressions

An exciting journey into the past

  • In the northwest of the Eifel is Kommern, a district of the town of Mechernich.
  • In one of the largest open-air museums in Europe, you can experience village life in historic courtyards, stables, barns and shops on an area of around 100 hectares. As if time had stopped, you roam through the villages, gardens and fields like the people of 500 years ago and don't be surprised if you suddenly come across a pig or a couple of chickens on the way.
  • Memories of one's own childhood are awakened at the Rhineland marketplace, where the 1950s to 1990s come to life again.
  • And new buildings and exhibitions are constantly being added, including an emergency church by the Bauhaus architect Otto Bartning.
  • The Watteler restaurant, which invites you to have lunch, exudes the charm of the 1970s. Or you can enjoy typical dishes from the Eifel, Westerwald, Bergisches Land and Lower Rhine region in the “Zur Post” inn.
  • Excursion tip: embark on a journey of discovery on the Eifel tracks , particularly staged circular hiking trails for young and old through the North Eifel.
Overnight tip: Boutique Hotel Marielle , Bad Münstereifel

Accommodations in the region

An overview of all accommodations in the North Eifel with booking function can be found on the page of the Nordeifel Tourismus GmbH .

Accommodation in the surroundings

Gemünder Ferienpark Salzberg

Located just 15 km from the open-air museum, this vacation park offers comfortable apartments with free Wi-Fi. All apartments have a modern design, a fully equipped kitchen with a coffee machine, and a bathroom with a hairdryer.

To the vacation park

Boutique Hotel Marielle

Boutique Hotel Marielle is located in the middle of the historic old town of Bad Münstereifel, 15 km from the open-air museum.

to the Hotel Marielle

Contact for tour operators

We would be happy to arrange a collaborative partnership to give your groups a highlight on their trip.
If you are interested, we will be happy to send you our offers.
Your contact person:
Andrea Nowotny
Booking of group tickets, guided tours and projects culture info rhineland

The sponsors of LVR-open air museum Kommern: