2 Best Sights in Cologne (Köln), The Rhineland

The triumphs and tragedies of Cologne's rich past are packed into this museum relocated in March 2024 at the site of a former luxury shopping mall. Here you'll find an in-depth chronicle of Cologne's history—including information about the lives of ordinary people and the destruction incurred during World War II. For those who've always wanted to be privy to the inside stories surrounding local words such as Klüngel, Kölsch, and Karneval, the answers are waiting to be discovered within the museum's walls.

While this archeological museum is closed for renovations until 2026, a selection of important treasures from its collection of ancient Roman artifacts is on view in the Belgian House, near the Neumarkt Galerie shopping mall. Among them are tombstones and busts from the 1st century, ancient glass vessels decorated with the trademark “Cologne Squiggle,” and everyday objects from Roman life. Placards are in both German and English.