Nederlands Openluchtmuseum

Current exhibitions

About the museum

The association that runs the museum was founded in 1912, inspired by the Scandinavian open-air museums, above all Skansen in Stockholm. In 1918 the museum opened on a wooded estate in the north of Arnhem, the first of its kind in the Netherlands. Its aim was to preserve rural building traditions and ways of life that were in danger of disappearing with industrialization and urbanization.

Over the decades, farmhouses, mills, workshops, homes and a small church from all parts of the country were dismantled and rebuilt in the park. In the fall of 1944 the grounds lay in the front line during the fighting around Arnhem and were damaged; after the war the collection was expanded and reorganized. Since 1996 a historic tram has connected the different areas of the park.

Today the museum also explicitly tells more recent and many-voiced stories: alongside farmhouses stand, for example, a Molukse Barak (Moluccan barrack) from the Lage Mierde camp, houses from Amsterdam's Westerstraat and an emergency home from after the 1953 flood disaster. In the entrance building, an interactive presentation shows the 50 windows of the Canon van Nederland. The collection comprises some 153,000 objects, including farm wagons, traditional costumes, textiles and toys; the museum is also closely linked to the Kenniscentrum Immaterieel Erfgoed Nederland.

Highlights

• More than 100 original, relocated buildings such as farmhouses, a windmill and a paper mill, workshops and homes
• Interactive exhibition on the Canon van Nederland in the entrance building
• Historic tram running through the museum grounds
• Craftspeople at work, such as a blacksmith, baker, printer and miller, with workshops
• Renewed Molukse Barak (since April 2026)
• Hands-on Kindererf (children's farmyard) and a large playground

Permanent exhibitions

• Canon van Nederland – An interactive journey through Dutch history in ten walk-through settings with games, films and original objects.
• Molukse barak – An original barrack from the Lage Mierde camp; the presentation, renewed in April 2026, was created with descendants of its residents and tells of the lives of Moluccan families after 1951.

Founded

1912

Director

Amito Haarhuis

Visitors per year

approx. 598,881 (2025)

Admission & discounts

€1 off per ticket when booking online (adults and children). Prices vary by season and day: adults ages 13 and up €20 (weekdays) to €24 (weekends/holidays). Free with a Museumkaart, the VriendenLoterij VIP-KAART (a second person also free until December 31, 2026), an ICOM card and as a Vriend van het museum (museum friend). The Museumkaart is available at the ticket desk. Booking online is not required but recommended during holidays.

Accessibility

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

The park and historic buildings are largely wheelchair-accessible, but the grounds are hilly, partly unpaved or cobbled; upper floors of some buildings (including the Stellingmolen, Westerstraat and Watersnoodwoning) cannot be reached. Recommendation: start your visit by taking the tram to “Landgoed”. Some trams take wheelchairs, and from May to September a special wheelchair car for up to 8 people runs. Two elevators (entrance building, Westerstraat), numerous accessible restrooms. 14 accessible parking spaces 50 m from the entrance; loaner wheelchairs in the parking lot for a €1 deposit coin. The Sunflower lanyard is recognized.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Hands-on stations
• Playground / play area
• Kids’ birthday parties

Kindererf with cow milking, chicken feeding, a vegetable garden and a worm hotel; a large playground and the Zaanse plein playground for toddlers; tram rides and a tram diploma, workshops and holiday programs. According to the museum, the Canon exhibition is suitable for children from about age 8. Children's birthday parties with a scavenger hunt for ages 4–6 and 7–10 (not during school holidays, on public holidays or in the winter half of the year). Strollers are allowed, but there is no rental.

Getting there & parking

In the north of Arnhem near the Knooppunt Waterberg interchange: A12 exit 26 or A50 exit 20 (Arnhem Centrum), then about 2 km; follow signs for Arnhem-Noord (Openluchtmuseum/Burgers’ Zoo).

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Restaurant
• Museum shop
• Lockers

Food and drink throughout the park: Canon Café, Bakkerij, IJssalon Venezia, Herberg de Hanekamp, Poffertjeskraam, Brabants café Budel (weekends/holidays), Frietbakkerij and Restaurant de Kasteelboerderij; no table reservations for regular visits. Bringing your own food is allowed in the park (including the Picknickplein), but not in trams, buildings or the restaurants. Lockers in the entrance building near the Canon exhibition. Card payment accepted. Dogs on a leash are allowed in the park and in the restaurants, but not in buildings, exhibitions or on the playground.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent
• Private parties
• Corporate events
• Weddings / ceremonies

Conferences, corporate events and parties in historic spaces such as the Kasteelboerderij, Herberg de Hanekamp, Café Budel, Pronkkamer or the entrance building; weddings with a ceremony in the Zeeuwse kerkje and a wedding tram are possible.

Plan your visit