Museum of Amber (Museum of Gdansk branch)

What to expect

The Museum of Amber in Gdansk is a museum of a single material, shown from how amber forms to what has been made of it: from historic objects to contemporary jewellery. Since 2021 it has been housed in the Great Mill (Wielki Młyn) in the Old Town, at Wielkie Młyny 16. The building was raised by the Teutonic Knights around 1350, and the museum calls it the largest mill of medieval Europe.

The permanent exhibition spans two floors and almost a thousand square metres. On the first you learn how amber forms. On the second you see objects made of amber, from historic pieces to modern jewellery.

The museum says it shows over 1000 exhibits: from lumps of amber with 40-million-year-old inclusions, through an amber room, to designs by contemporary artists. The floors lead from nature to craft and art, so it is best to see them in order, starting with the first.

On Google Maps the museum is rated 4.7 out of 5 from 12,645 reviews (as of 25 October 2026). With so many reviews, the average does not hinge on a few chance entries.

Who it suits: families with children, because the museum has educational corners with amber puzzles and games, and anyone curious about nature or jewellery-making, because the exhibition brings the two together. Skip it if you have only an hour in Gdansk: the museum itself puts a visit to the two floors of the permanent exhibition at about 2 hours. Allow 2 hours.

Tips

• Choose your day. There is just one cheapest day: free admission on Mondays, and for every visitor, because the exception covers only the seasonal branches of the Museum of Gdansk, and the Museum of Amber is not one of them.
• Closed day. The museum is closed on Tuesdays; the hours are in the practical box. It also announces holiday closures and one-off changes, so check the notices on its website before you go.
• Buy a timed ticket. No more than 100 people may be in the exhibition rooms at once, so the museum advises buying an electronic ticket for a chosen day and time. It takes no ticket reservations, so the electronic ticket serves as your booking.
• Do not come late in the day. The museum sells tickets only until a set time before closing, and the two floors take about 2 hours, so arrive at least two hours before closing.
• Who pays less. Prices: standard ticket 37 PLN (about 8 EUR), reduced 26 PLN (about 6 EUR). Reduced tickets are for pupils, students, pensioners and disability pensioners with a valid ID; children up to the age of 7 and people with disabilities, together with their carers, go free every day.
• Family ticket and pass. The museum has a family ticket for up to two adults and six children and a pass valid for 90 days; their prices are on the price list on the museum’s website (link in the practical box).
• Polish only. The museum describes its audio guide, downloaded to your phone, as available in Polish, in a basic version, with audio description, in an easy-to-read version and in a family version. Guided tours cost extra, are booked a few days in advance and are given only in Polish.
• Wheelchair entrance. The museum is fully accessible to wheelchair users; their entrance and exit are in the courtyard at the back of the Great Mill, on the ul. Na Piaskach side. The building has two lifts (the first open to all) and a wheelchair-accessible toilet, and a wheelchair, a walking frame or crutches can be borrowed on site.

Getting there

The distances to the stops given below are measured in a straight line from the museum, based on ZTM Gdańsk data.

• Address: Wielkie Młyny 16, 80-849 Gdańsk, in the Old Town.
• Bus (line 100): the nearest stops are “Katarzynki 01” (about 251 m), “Targ Drzewny 01” (about 294 m) and “Heweliusza 01” (about 299 m); line 100 serves each of them.
• Tram: the “Dworzec Główny” (main railway station) stops lie about 286-340 m from the museum, among them “Dworzec Główny 02” (about 316 m) and “Dworzec Główny 01” (about 320 m). Trams 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 12 stop there.
• Bus (Dworzec Główny): many bus lines stop at the same stops, among them 106, 108, 111, 112, 130, 138, 154, 189 and 208.
• By car: the building has no visitor car park; the nearest is a guarded 24-hour car park at ul. Katarzynki 4, about 200 m from the museum.

Nearby

Within 700 m of the Great Mill as the crow flies lie, among others, these museums:

• Maritime Culture Centre of the National Maritime Museum, ul. Tokarska 21-25, 80-888 Gdańsk - about 600 m as the crow flies.
• Artus Court, a branch of the Museum of Gdansk, Długi Targ 43/44, 80-831 Gdańsk - about 640 m as the crow flies.
• Hevelianum , ul. Gradowa 6, 80-802 Gdańsk - about 680 m as the crow flies.

Background

The building at Wielkie Młyny 16 is more than 650 years older than the museum it houses: the Teutonic Knights raised the Great Mill around 1350, and the Museum of Amber opened in 2006. The building itself is therefore part of the visit, not just a backdrop for the display cases.

The museum’s first home was the Prison Tower, where it opened on 28 June 2006. After 15 years in the Foregate complex (Zespół Przedbramia), the museum moved to the Great Mill and was given its new seat there on 24 July 2021.

If an older guidebook places the museum in the Prison Tower, that information is out of date: since 2021 you see the exhibition in the Great Mill.