Zollern Colliery

Zollern Colliery (Zeche Zollern) in Dortmund is often called the "Palace of Work," and with good reason. Its brick buildings with gables and turrets, two winding towers and an Art Nouveau machine hall make it one of the most beautiful former coal mines in the Ruhr region. Today it is a museum of the LWL Industrial Museum and an anchor point of the European Route of Industrial Heritage, and kids and teens get in free.

History

The Gelsenkirchen mining company built Zollern II/IV between 1898 and 1904 as a showcase colliery. Paul Knobbe designed the surface buildings, and Bruno Möhring created the Art Nouveau entrance of the machine hall, which housed electrically powered machinery, cutting-edge technology at the time. Coal production ended in 1955 and the mine was closed in the 1960s. When demolition loomed, the machine hall was listed as a protected monument in 1969, reportedly as one of the first industrial buildings in Germany to receive that status.

What to see

• The machine hall with its ornate portal, stained-glass windows and historic machinery
• The castle-like wage hall and administration building
• Two winding towers above the shafts
• The Montanium, a re-created underground world visited on a guided tour
• Exhibitions on miners' daily life, safety and the history of the colliery

Allow two to four hours.

Tickets and opening hours

The museum is open Tuesday to Sunday and on public holidays, 10 am to 6 pm (last entry 5:30 pm), closed on Mondays except holidays (as of October 2026). Admission is 8 EUR, reduced 4 EUR, and free for under-18s. Public tours need no booking; the Montanium tour costs 2 EUR extra. The museum regularly runs public tours in English, so check its events calendar before you go.

How to get there

Zollern is in the Bövinghausen district on Dortmund's western edge. From Dortmund Hauptbahnhof, take the U47 light rail to Huckarde Bushof, then bus 462 to "Industriemuseum Zollern"; the Deutschlandticket covers the whole trip. Dortmund itself is roughly an hour from Düsseldorf by train. Drivers should set their GPS to Rhader Weg 5, where the parking lot is.

Good to know

Dogs on a leash are welcome on the outdoor grounds but not inside the buildings, except assistance dogs. Families can follow a ten-station quiz around the site, and the Pferdestall restaurant with a terrace opens Tuesday to Sunday from noon. The site is certified under Germany's "Reisen für Alle" accessibility program.

Is it worth visiting?

Yes, especially if you are curious about the Ruhr region's industrial past. Zollern combines striking architecture with a very human story of mining life, and it complements Essen's UNESCO-listed Zollverein nicely. Pair it with the German Football Museum in central Dortmund or the Henrichenburg boat lift in nearby Waltrop.