Fisheries Museum

The Fisheries Museum in Hel is a branch of Poland's National Maritime Museum, set in the oldest building in town: a Gothic brick church from the 15th century right by the harbor on the Hel Peninsula, north of Gdańsk. Inside are traditional Kashubian fishing boats, nets and a boatbuilder's workshop; outside, a small open-air collection of boats; and from its wooden tower, a view across the port and the Bay of Gdańsk. It is the best place on Hel to see how the peninsula lived before tourism.

From church to museum

The church is first recorded in 1417. From 1525 until 1945 it served Hel's Lutheran congregation. Badly damaged in World War II, it faced demolition until the regional conservator decided to turn it into a fishing exhibition. In 1972 the building passed to what is now the National Maritime Museum in Gdańsk, which opened its Hel branch here.

What to see

• Permanent exhibition on the history of fishing in the Bay of Gdańsk: historic boats and fishing gear, a reconstructed boatbuilder's workshop, and displays on Hel's history and Baltic ecology.
• Photographs and maritime paintings, including works by Stanisław Kamocki and Jan Maksymilian Kasprowicz.
• Open-air boat collection around the church.
• Viewing tower, included in the ticket.
• Temporary exhibition "Morze – My – Inaczej" (Sea – Us – Differently), 24 April 2026 to 18 April 2027.

Visiting tips

The displays fill three floors, and the museum suggests about one hour. Labels are in Polish, but you can borrow cards with English and German descriptions. There is an elevator, so the exhibitions are wheelchair accessible except for the tower terrace. There is no cloakroom and no restroom in the building, so plan accordingly. Kids usually like the boats and the climb up the tower best.

Opening hours and tickets (as of October 2026)

• 7 Sep – 31 Dec 2026: Tuesday–Sunday 10:00–16:00, closed Mondays
• Summer 2026 (15 Jun – 6 Sep): daily 10:00–18:00; 2027 hours not yet announced
• Last entry 30 minutes before closing; closed on 1 November and 24–26 December
• Tickets: 23 PLN standard, 17 PLN reduced, tower included
• Free Tuesdays: since 7 September 2026 the permanent exhibition is free on Tuesdays; the tower and the temporary show then cost 8.50 PLN each
• Phone +48 58 675 05 52, email hel@nmm.pl

How to get there

The museum is at Bulwar Nadmorski 2. Hel train station, the end of the line from Gdynia (about 2 hours), is roughly 800 m away, a 10-minute walk. In summer, water trams from Gdańsk, Gdynia and Sopot dock about 400 m away. Drivers will find paid parking along ul. Kaszubska and ul. Admirała Steyera; road 216 onto the peninsula is often jammed on summer weekends.

Is it worth visiting?

Yes, especially on a cool or rainy day: it is compact, well labeled for foreign visitors and sits on the waterfront promenade between the seal sanctuary and the harbor.

Nearby

The University of Gdańsk seal sanctuary, ul. Wiejska with its old fishermen's houses, Hel Lighthouse and the Museum of Coastal Defence.