Rheinauhafen (Rheinau Harbor)

The Rheinauhafen in Cologne is a former Rhine port just south of the Old Town that has been reinvented as one of Germany's most striking waterfront districts. Listed warehouses, preserved harbor cranes and the futuristic Crane Houses line a car-free promenade along the river, with museums, cafés and views of Cologne Cathedral. Strolling the harbor is free, relaxing and one of the best things to do in Cologne for architecture fans and photographers.

From Island Harbor to Urban Quarter

The port was built on the Werthchen, a Rhine island joined to the west bank in 1847. Construction ran from 1892 to 1898, and the harbor opened on May 14, 1898, with 850 meters of quays, 18 kilometers of track and over a million tons of cargo handled in its first year.

From the 1970s, freight moved to a larger port in Niehl, and harbor operations ended in 2001. Redevelopment had already begun in 1998: an underground garage now runs beneath the whole site, and above it a mixed district has grown with about 1,500 residents and 2,200 jobs. Six of the original 41 cranes are protected monuments.

What to See

• Crane Houses (Kranhäuser): Three inverted-L towers by Hamburg architects Bothe Richter Teherani, designed to echo the old harbor cranes. They house offices and apartments and look most dramatic at blue hour.
• Historic warehouses: The Siebengebirge warehouse and Silo 23 show the scale of the port around 1900.
• Old Harbor Office: A red-brick building with a small tower at the northern end, a fine contrast to the glass towers.
• Swing bridge and Malakoff Tower: The historic bridge and fortress-like tower guard the harbor basin.
• Museums: The Chocolate Museum at the harbor's tip and the German Sport & Olympic Museum in a historic hall.

Visiting Tips

The Rheinauhafen is public space, open around the clock and free. Allow one to two hours to walk from the Chocolate Museum to the Crane Houses and back, longer with a museum or café stop. Evenings are magical when the towers' lights reflect in the river, and from mid-November a harbor Christmas market sets up by the Chocolate Museum. The flat promenade suits strollers and wheelchairs.

How to Get There

Cars cannot drive into the harbor itself; use the Rheinauhafen underground garage. By public transit, take the tram to Heumarkt (lines 1, 7 and 9) and walk about 10 minutes along the river, or ride bus 133 to the Chocolate Museum stop. From Cologne Cathedral, the Rhine promenade makes a lovely approach on foot. Cologne is about an hour from Frankfurt by ICE and roughly 15 minutes from Cologne Bonn Airport by S-Bahn.

Is It Worth Visiting?

Yes, especially if you enjoy contemporary architecture and riverside walks. Combine it with the Chocolate Museum, then continue north to Great St. Martin Church, the Alter Markt and Cologne Cathedral.