Mülheim an der Ruhr

Mülheim an der Ruhr is in the Ruhr area. With more than 50% covered by greenery and forest, the city is an attractive place between Düsseldorf and the rest of the Ruhr.

Understand

Mülheim is between Duisburg, Essen, Oberhausen and Ratingen. It is home to many companies, especially the food industry, such as the Aldi Süd Company, the Harke Group and the Tengelmann Group. In 2020, it had approximately 170,000 residents.

Mülheim was the first city in the Ruhr Area to become completely free of coal mines, when its last coal mine "Rosenblumendelle" was closed. The former leather and coal city had made a complete transformation to a diversified economic centre. It is the home of two Max Planck Institutes and the Ruhr West technical college.

Get in

By train
  • 🌍 Mülheim (Ruhr) Hauptbahnhof. This station built in the 1860s is served by IC, EC and regional trains. On the lower level there is Stadtbahn (underground tram) service (confusingly abbreviated with an U). Also beneath the ground, in a dodgy tunnel, there's a bus station for local buses. As of 2023, the station is being renovated. 

By local public transport

Due to the Ruhr area being one sprawling, urbanised cluster of cities, the local public transport of buses, trams and light rail overlap seamlessly into other cities.

From Oberhausen, take Tram 112 which runs from Oberhausen-Sterkrade, past Centro shopping centre and Oberhausen station to and through the city centre of Mülheim and south to the central cemetery of Hauptfriedhof, near the airfield.
From Duisburg, take Tram 901 which starts in the blue collar and immigrant district of Duisburg-Marxloh, past steel plants and the port, crossing Duisburg city centre and their Zoo, before entering the city tunnel and terminating at Mülheim Hauptbahnhof. As of 2024, there's only limited disabled-friendly space onboard, but new trams are being put to service.
From Essen, take Stadtbahn (light rail) service U18 starting at the Limbecker Platz centre in central Essen, stopping at Essen station, before continuing west in the middle of Autobahn A40, passing Rhein-Ruhr-Zentrum shopping centre and diving into a set of bridges and tunnels before also terminating under Mülheim Hauptbahnhof. From Essen-Kettwig you can also hop onto Bus 151 Kettwig - Mülheim - Heißen - Rhein-Ruhr-Zentrum.
From Ratingen, take Bus 752 to Saarn and change to Bus 135, or take O16 to Lintorf and transfer to Bus 752 (which runs from Düsseldorf city) and take it to Mülheim.

By car

Mülheim is situated in the north of the triangle formed by Autobahn
A40 Venlo (NL) - Duisburg - Essen - Bochum - Dortmund, A52 Essen - Düsseldorf - (going through Düsseldorf on wide city avenues and crossing the Rhine) - Roermond (NL) and A3 Arnhem - Duisburg - Cologne - Frankfurt - Nuremberg - Austria. A52 brushes the far south of Mülheim and meets A40 at a 45° angle in Essen city centre to the east. A40 and A3 meet at nearby Duisburg interchange. A3 and A52 meet north of Ratingen centre.

By plane

The nearest international airport is Düsseldorf Airport, which sees flights across Europe and overseas.

Mülheim and Essen share a local airfield in the south of the city,

If you're rich enough and own a private plane you could land here, but probably wouldn't stay in Mülheim. Less fortunate people can book a blimp or hot-air balloon ride here though.

Get around

Local public transport is operated by the Ruhrbahn, the joint public transport agency for Essen and Mülheim and fares are according to VRR tariffs. Mülheim is served by buses and a shrinking tram network. The tram network lost several kilometres of service in the the early 2020s, the latest being tram 104 losing the Kahlenberg branch line and being cut back to the city centre in August 2023. The local buses are also under threat of cuts. Despite this neglect by the city, you should be able to get most places in the city by public transport with reasonable ease. A single adult ticket across the city will set you back €3.30 in 2024.

See
  • 🌍 Aquarius-Wassermuseum. Tu-Sa 10:00-18:00 (last admission 17:00), closed last two weeks of December (roughly). Built in 1893 by August Thyssen is now a museum run by the regional waterworks company. Adults €4, children €3, family (2 adults and children) €12. (updated Jan 2018)
  • 🌍 Schloss Broich (Broich Castle), Am Schloß Broich 28 (Tram 102,901 Bus 120,131,135,752 Stop Schloß Broich). Daily 08:00-20:00. Broich Castle was erected to protect the town from invasion by the Normans 1100 years ago. It is regarded as Mülheim’s oldest building. It is also the oldest, still maintained Carolingian fortification in German-speaking Europe. The halls are now used for municipal receptions and civil ceremonies. In the attic is also the headquarters of the Mülheim City Marketing and Tourism. The Hochschloss is home to the Historical Museum of the Mülheim History Society (open Sa Su 11:00-17:00, as of Dec 2023, free), which provides excavation finds, models and a "Luisen room" insight into several centuries of Mülheim history. €13.00. (updated Apr 2024)
  • Petrikirche, Pastor-Barnstein-Platz 1. Evangelical church. The oldest church building in Mülheim, it began as a major chapel in the 11th century, but was substantially rebuilt after being bombed in World War II. It is a venue for musical and other artistic events. (updated Jan 2018)
  • 🌍 Bismarck Tower (Bismarckturm), Bismarckstr. 22 (Bus 130 to Stop Max-Planck-Institut). Observation tower and memorial to former chancellor Bismarck who unified Germany in 1871 tbat was built in 1908. It was scheduled to be demolished in the 1970s but was saved by protests of over 90% of citizens. Closed for visitors since 2018 due to bad condition, a renovation is planned. (updated Apr 2024)

Do
  • 🌍 Weisse Flotte, Alte Schleuse 1 (Bus 130, Stop Wilhelmstr.). From late April, every 2 hours. A boat ride on the Ruhr between Mülheim and Essen-Kettwig. Cash or Giro Card payment. €7.50 one way full trip adult. (updated Dec 2023)
  • 🌍 Hallenbad Süd, An den Sportstätten 2 (Tram 112 Stop Sportzentrum Südstr.), ☏ +49 208 43967999. M W 06:00-10:00, F 14:00-19:00, Sa Su 08:00-13:00. Public indoor pool with heated water. Every first Saturday of the month, from 08:00-12:30, reserved for women-only swimming. Adult €4.00, child €2.00. (updated Apr 2024)

Buy

All the usual stores can be found either in the city centre or to the east at Rhein-Ruhr-Zentrum shopping centre.

Sleep

Go next
  • Essen, shopping capital of the Ruhr Area, industrial heritage
  • Duesseldorf , capital of NRW and Germany's fashion capital, large Japanese community and international airport.
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