Schokoladenmuseum Köln, Chocolate museum in Rheinauhafen district, Cologne, Germany
Schokoladenmuseum Köln is a glass and aluminum building in the Rheinauhafen district that offers around 4,000 square meters of exhibition space devoted to chocolate making. Inside are a glass-walled production facility, research rooms, and a tropical greenhouse where cocoa trees grow.
Hans Imhoff, majority owner of Stollwerck since January 1972, noticed the company's large collection of exhibits during its move to Cologne-Westhoven in December 1975 and conceived a chocolate museum. A 1989 anniversary exhibition in the Gürzenich drew over five times the visitors he required. He bought Hall 10, the 1898 Prussian Customs Office, the Malakoff Tower and the swing bridge in January 1992; the museum opened on 31 October 1993, built by architect Fritz Eller at a cost of 53 million DEM.
The name honors Cologne chocolatier Hans Imhoff, who opened his private collection to the public. Visitors today watch cocoa beans being roasted and turned into bars, then sample freshly made pieces at the end of their visit.
The building opens daily from 10:00 to 18:00, except Mondays from January through March and in November. Online bookings help reduce waiting times, especially on weekends and during school holidays.
The three-metre chocolate fountain is not self-service: a museum employee dips wafers into the liquid chocolate and hands them to visitors. The tropicarium is a glass cube ten metres on each side, growing Theobroma cacao and Theobroma grandiflorum. Miniature machines produce small bars that are given out at the entrance.
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