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Since 2001, Miniatur Wunderland has been one of Hamburg's newer but particularly popular attractions. What makes it special is that it keeps growing and changing – just like its worldwide fan base.
Yet the world's largest model railway actually began as a crazy idea: while on holiday in Zurich, Frederik Braun, one of the two founders, walked into a model railway shop and decided he wanted to build one in Hamburg. Back home, he gathered e-mail addresses from the internet and ran a survey on the popularity of real and fictitious sights in the city. Miniatur Wunderland came third among male respondents.
One two-page financing plan later, Hamburger Sparkasse – backed by guarantees from the owners and from Bürgschaftsgemeinschaft Hamburg – agreed to finance Frederik and Gerrit Braun's project. The layout was funded without any public money.
Today, the 1:87 scale, H0-gauge layout is located in the historic Speicherstadt and is a real crowd-puller. As of August 2019, 15,715 metres of tiny track have been laid, and 1,040 digitally controlled trains run through Miniatur Wunderland's various themed worlds.
It all began in December 2001 with the first three sections: Knuffingen, Central Germany and Austria. The “Hamburg, German coast” section followed, making the layout the largest in Europe. Over the years, more small worlds were added: the USA, Scandinavia, Switzerland and Italy. When the track reached 15,400 metres, the adjudicators of the Guinness Book of Records confirmed to Miniatur Wunderland GmbH that its layout is the largest in the world!
The 190-square-metre Bella Italia section alone took four years to build, with 180,000 working hours and costs of 4 million euros. In August 2019, work began on the Monaco/Provence section, adding a further 315 metres of track.
Miniatur Wunderland welcomed its ten millionth visitor as early as 5 December 2012, and its fifteen millionth on 2 December 2016. Around three quarters of visitors come from Germany; visitors from abroad come mainly from Denmark, Switzerland, Austria, England, the USA and China.
Lingovo, Schürbeker Straße 5, 22087 Hamburg
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In 2010, company founders Frederik and Gerrit Braun and their partner Stephan Hertz were awarded the Cross of Merit on Ribbon of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany for their social commitment. In 2012, Miniatur Wunderland was nominated for the Micheletti Award in the category “Europe's best museum of technology and industry”.
The lovingly detailed miniature scenes are a magnet for young and old alike and continue to grow in popularity. With great meticulousness and endless tinkering, the founders and their team keep fascinating their audience with new dioramas and little scenes along the way. With a keen sense of humour, they paint a picture of each society portrayed in which visitors happily recognise themselves. So it's no wonder that young and old, families and singles flock to the historic Speicherstadt in their droves to spend hours discovering and admiring new details in the various sections of the layout.
Through it all, Miniatur Wunderland's heart has always been in the right place – as it proves time and again with numerous special offers and discount campaigns.
