Nationaal Museum van Douane en Accijnzen

About the museum

The Nationaal Museum van Douane en Accijnzen in Antwerp is run by a museum association staffed by volunteers. The museum highlights border affairs and the work of Douane en Accijnzen (Customs and Excise) in Belgium since 1830. The museum is located on the third floor of the Noordster Financial Centre on Ellermanstraat.

In the renewed permanent display, four main characters form the common thread: the official and his administration, the flow of goods, the border and the fraudster or smuggler. Behind every object, document or photo lies a story about investigation, fraud and fraud control, often with a witty touch about the cat-and-mouse games between occasional smugglers and customs officers, but also about hard confrontations with professional criminals.

Alongside the permanent display, the museum organises temporary exhibitions on aspects of customs and border affairs past and present. The documentation centre holds, among other things, images, legislation, instructions, registers, customs tariffs and duty rosters, with documents dating back to the Austrian Netherlands in the 18th century. It also has a library of about a thousand works. The museum is a member of the International Association of Customs/Tax Museums and publishes the D&A-Museumnieuws three times a year.

Highlights

• Renewed permanent display on border affairs, customs and excise since 1830
• Stories about smugglers, fraud control and customs officers at the border
• Documentation centre with duty rosters and archive items going back to the 18th century
• Library of about a thousand works on border affairs and customs
• Free admission for individual visitors

Permanent exhibition

• Vaste opstelling: grensgebeuren, douane en accijnzen – The renewed display traces the work of Customs and Excise since 1830 through the official, the flow of goods, the border and the fraudster or smuggler.

Operated by

Nationaal Museum van Douane en Accijnzen vzw

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Admission is free for individual visitors, for groups without a guide and for schools with a guide.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

According to the website, the museum is accessible to wheelchair users.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

The museum is on the third floor of the Noordster Financial Centre. From the car park on the Brouwersvliet it is about a ten-minute walk.

Amenities & dining

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit