Kiel: Water, Culture and Urban History

Kiel offers a variety of highlights for your stay: paths right by the water, beach views of ships, and cultural attractions ranging from garden art to urban history. Consider whether you would like to spend most of your time outdoors or in museums and exhibitions. Each of these different places gives your stay its own character.

Waterfront walks and beach views

The Kiellinie promenade runs right along the water, from the Ostseekai to the naval base in Wik. It is a popular place for walking, cycling and relaxing. Falckensteiner Strand offers a different experience: Kiel’s longest beach combines fine sand with impressive views of cruise ships and ferries passing almost within reach. So the Kiellinie is all about strolling and cycling, while Falckensteiner Strand offers sandy scenery and views of maritime traffic.

Botanical Garden: plants from different climate zones

The Kiel Botanical Garden has a history spanning 350 years. Its display greenhouses showcase model habitats from around the world and their characteristic plant species. Visitors can also experience the distinctive features of each climate zone firsthand. The garden is open 365 days a year, and admission is free except for some special events. Check the latest information before your visit, as opening arrangements may change.

Urban history and remembrance

The Warleberger Hof City Museum is housed in one of Kiel’s oldest buildings: a former aristocratic residence dating from 1616. The Flandernbunker offers exhibitions, guided tours and events exploring Kiel’s role as a military base, past and present. It also commemorates the Allied air raids on Kiel and the forced labor used in its construction. In Kiel, you can therefore encounter different historical perspectives, from an old aristocratic residence to a reckoning with war and forced labor.

Art and maritime history

The Kunsthalle zu Kiel stands on elevated ground above Kiel Fjord, beside the palace gardens. Its collection includes 19th-century art, Expressionism and international contemporary art. Outdoor sculptures, including works by Per Kirkeby, extend the exhibition space into the palace park. Founded in 1978, the Schifffahrtsmuseum Fischhalle offers a comprehensive insight into the city’s maritime history, with a focus on the 19th and 20th centuries. The museum underwent extensive renovation in 2014. The historic fish hall has been listed as a protected monument since 1972 and is included in the City of Kiel’s register of cultural monuments.

Schleswig-Holstein in a broader context

Schleswig-Holstein, the wider travel destination, lies between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea and encompasses a variety of coastal landscapes: sandy, grassy and pebble beaches, steep shores and the Wadden Sea. Its cultural sites also offer their own contrasts. The medieval center of the Hanseatic city of Lübeck was recognized as a World Heritage Site in 1987; the distinctive skyline with its seven towers and the largely intact pre-industrial building fabric were among the decisive features. Haithabu and the Danevirke have been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since July 2018. Haithabu was an important maritime trading center during the Viking Age.

Choose accommodation to suit your interests

This lets you connect your accommodation search with the focus you want for your stay, without reducing the different themes to just one way of experiencing Kiel.

Discover more destinations

Discover more destinations: Kiel, Pries, Schilksee, North Frisia, Amrum, Duchy of Lauenburg and Rendsburg-Eckernförde.

Back to the main travel overview: Schleswig-Holstein.