Visit the largest sea museum in the Mediterranean and learn about Genoa’s long maritime history, as well as its most famous seafarer, Christopher Columbus.
The Galata Maritime Museum is a vast museum dedicated to Genoa’s long seafaring heritage. Explore the state-of-the-art exhibits as you find out about Genoa’s role as one of Europe’s greatest dockyards. The displays here span the four great ages of seafaring. They cover everything from early maritime history to the travels of Christopher Columbus to Genoa’s modern-day relationship with the ocean.
The museum is housed in the Galata, the largest structure in Genoa’s charming old dockyard known as the Darsena. Allow plenty of time to walk through the exhibits, which include impressive models, photography, film, artifacts, replicas and multimedia.
Genoa was once one of the greatest builders of galleys and, in the 1600s, the strong relationship between humans and the sea was at its pinnacle. See an impressive reproduction of a Genoese galley, from a time when merchants used these vessels to transport precious goods such as silk, gold and spices. The reproduction provides a fascinating insight into the conditions on board for the sailors. There are other grand reconstructions here too, including a 19th-century Brig-schooner and the Citta di Torino steamship, which was in use in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Get insight into the perils that awaited seafarers in the Sala Tempesta (Storm Room). Learn about the hardships that befell hundreds of thousands of Italian migrants heading to North and South America aboard steamships in the mid-19th century.
Of course, no maritime museum in Genoa could fail to include a substantial section on Christopher Columbus. The Genoese adventurer, who arrived in the Americas on October 12, 1492, might have sailed in the name of Spain but hailed from this flourishing port city. Appreciate his achievements in navigation and seafaring through the extensive displays.
The Galata Maritime Museum is open daily from March to October and Tuesday to Sunday from November to February. Purchase a combined ticket and save money on other top Genoa attractions. Stazione Darsena metro stop is within easy walking distance of the museum, as is the main train station.
