Muzej grada Rijeke
In the baroque Sugar Palace, the permanent display presents the modern history of Rijeka from the 18th to the 21st century across 30 rooms on two floors.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The Muzej grada Rijeke (Museum of the City of Rijeka) has been operating since 1994. Its main seat is the Palača šećera (Sugar Palace) in Brajda, the largest baroque commercial palace in the Habsburg Empire. It was built in the 1750s as the administrative building of the sugar refinery launched by the Trieste and Rijeka Main Trading Company. The refinery marked the beginning of Rijeka’s industrial history and, at its height around 1775, employed a thousand workers.
After the refinery closed, the complex served as barracks, from 1851 as a tobacco factory, and from 1947 to 1998 as the Tvornica motora Rikard Benčić (Rikard Benčić engine factory). The palace was declared a protected cultural monument in 1970, and in 2000 the City of Rijeka bought it. It was renovated as part of a project to make Rijeka’s industrial heritage a tourist attraction and converted into a museum. Among the most beautiful spaces are the Fumijeva dvorana (Fumi Hall), with a ceiling painting by Giovanni Fumi, the Svečana dvorana (Ceremonial Hall) on the second floor, the Dvorana s vedutama (Hall of Vedute) and the Venerin salon (Venus Salon).
The permanent display follows the layout of the palace across 30 rooms covering 1,200 m². The first floor, “Priča o Rijeci, Europi i svijetu” (“The Story of Rijeka, Europe and the World”), presents the economic, political, cultural and social history of the city from 1719 to 2020; the second floor, “Slatka povijest Rijeke” (“The Sweet History of Rijeka”), covers the history of the refinery itself, the tobacco factory and the engine factory. The display is multimedia and interactive. The museum also manages the ship Galeb, which is being restored as a ship-museum, and the building “Kockica”.
Highlights
- Largest baroque commercial palace in the Habsburg Empire
- Permanent display “Priča o Rijeci, Europi i svijetu” across 30 rooms
- “Slatka povijest Rijeke” on the sugar refinery
- Fumi Hall and Ceremonial Hall with rich decoration
- Audio guide in five languages
Permanent exhibition
- Stalni postav u Palači šećera – Two floors with 30 rooms trace the modern history of Rijeka in a European context: the first floor “Priča o Rijeci, Europi i svijetu”, the second floor “Slatka povijest Rijeke”.
- Founded
- 1994
Admission & discounts
| Adults | €8 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €4pupils, students and pensioners |
| Children & teens | €4free up to age 7 · Children up to 7 enter free. |
| Seniors | €4 |
| Visitors with disabilities | freePersons with disabilities and children with developmental difficulties enter free. |
| Students & apprentices | €4 |
| Groups (10+ people) | €7 per personGroups of 10 to 30 people: adults €7, pupils, students and pensioners €3. |
| Families | €17Two adults and two children. |
| Audio guide for the permanent display (Croatian, English, German, Italian or Hungarian) | €3 |
| Adult ticket with audio guide | €9 |
| Ticket for pupils, students and pensioners with audio guide | €5 |
| Ticket for temporary exhibition | €2For all visitors. |
| Annual ticket | €30Free admission to all exhibitions during the year and a 20% discount on publications and souvenirs. |
| Expert-led tour in Croatian | €27Book at vodstva@muzej-rijeka.hr at least 7 days in advance. |
| Expert-led tour in English | €40Book at vodstva@muzej-rijeka.hr at least 7 days in advance. |
Free admission is also granted to members of ICOM and HMD, tourist guides and media representatives with a valid press card.
Accessibility
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Kids & families
Great for kids & families
| Kids’ admission | free up to age 7 |
|---|---|
| Family ticket | €17 · Two adults and two children. |
- Family tours & workshops
The museum offers a family ticket and an interactive, multimedia display; special children’s activities are linked to the building “Kockica”.
Getting there & parking
The Sugar Palace is located in Brajda in Rijeka, at Krešimirova 28.
Get directionsAmenities & 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
| Guided tours | yes |
|---|---|
| Audio guide | yes (HR, EN, DE, IT, HU) |
| Good to know | Expert-led tours must be booked at least 7 days in advance at vodstva@muzej-rijeka.hr. |
Museums nearby
All 7 museums in Rijeka All museums in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County
