Over 400 years of Swedish shipping is reviewed in this excellent museum, which also has a ship simulator, playroom and aquarium.
Be a captain for a day, see models of merchant and naval ships, read sailors’ accounts of adventurous travels, see how Gothenburg’s port shaped the city and browse relics of historic ships. After you have explored the Maritime Museum, visit its aquarium to see local marine species up close.
The Sjöfartsmuseet Akvariet (Maritime Museum) opened in 1913 and has educated people about Gothenburg’s significant maritime history ever since. Permanent exhibits trace Gothenburg’s development as a maritime city, including the trades of the East India Company and migration aboard the Swedish America Line. Its aquarium is one of the world’s oldest non-tropical aquariums.
Now that you have your bearings, enter the museum and try to steer a ship into port in the ship simulator. Learn about life on the seven seas in the large Memorial Hall, with sailors’ diaries and relics used on historic vessels. An example is precious porcelain salvaged from the sunken “Gothenburg.” Admire the collection of figureheads, crafted to resemble people or mythical creatures. You also can’t miss the huge East Indiaman Finland scale model.
In the T/S Supertube, children can load containers onto a ship and watch a maritime film. Let the younger ones clamber through the Knattegatt, a ship-like playroom. They’ll also love the aquarium with eel, sea wolf, cod and lobster among the North Sea residents on display.
The complex is southwest of the city center in the “Old Shipyard Park." Take the tram to Stigbergstorget or drive and pay to park at Fiskhamnen or nearby streets. Use the landmark Mariner’s tower, with its bronze statue of a mourning woman on top, as a guide. You can climb the 193 steps or ride the elevator to stand atop this World War I monument.
The Maritime Museum and its onsite café and shop are closed Mondays and public holidays. The museum stays open until early evening on Wednesdays. Visitors 25 years or older pay for admission. Tickets include access to the adjacent tower and are valid for a year. Book ahead for a guided tour of the museum or aquarium.
