Ocean Museum Germany

What Ocean Museum Germany does

Stiftung Deutsches Meeresmuseum (Ocean Museum Germany) is a civil-law foundation (Stiftung des bürgerlichen Rechts) established in 1950 and headquartered in Stralsund, Germany, operating four physically distributed museum locations: MEERESMUSEUM in Stralsund's old town, OZEANEUM on the harbor island, NATUREUM at Darßer Ort on the Fischland-Darß-Zingst peninsula, and NAUTINEUM featuring submarine-themed exhibits. The foundation is directed by Prof. Dr. Burkard Baschek and Andreas Tanschus and is publicly funded by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM), the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and the Hanseatic City of Stralsund. Its core product is marine and ocean education delivered through aquarium exhibits, life-sized whale models, tropical underwater worlds, and Baltic coastal exhibits, complemented by a 75-year scientific collection and an active research arm via the Forschungsstiftung Ostsee (Baltic Sea Research Foundation).

The technical platform comprises a TYPO3-based website, online ticketing via Beckerbillett GmbH's ticketfritz.de system with QR/barcode admission control, two proprietary mobile applications (Frag Walfred! for iBeacon-driven interactive museum guidance and OstSeeTiere for citizen science marine mammal sighting reports), a children's sub-brand (Kindermeer), and a visitor magazine (MeerBlick). Digital integrations include Google Analytics, Flockler for social aggregation, Podcaster.de for podcasts, and social platforms (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube).

The revenue model combines direct consumer ticket sales (€17–€35 Kombiticket pricing across adult, reduced, and child tiers), guided tours in German/English/French (€2.50–€4.50 per person), group catering via PAUSCH-Gastronomie, gift vouchers and annual passes, third-party reseller commissions through Tiqets and GetYourGuide, donations via the Freunde & Förderer (Friends and Sponsors) program, and multi-tier government subsidies. Admission revenue is VAT-exempt under §4 No. 20a UStG. The go-to-market is primarily direct-to-consumer at the four physical sites, supplemented by event-driven attendance (holiday workshops, summer workshops, special exhibitions), channel partnerships with international OTAs, and a group booking system requiring 14-day advance notice for parties of 15+.

Name

Ocean Museum Germany

Legal name

Stiftung Deutsches Meeresmuseum

Website

https://deutsches-meeresmuseum.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1950

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Stiftung Deutsches Meeresmuseum is a Stralsund-based civil-law foundation operating four marine-themed museum locations (MEERESMUSEUM, OZEANEUM, NATUREUM, NAUTINEUM) that serve families, school groups, and tourists with aquarium exhibits, guided tours, citizen science programs, and research funded by federal, state, and municipal governments.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Museum & Cultural Institution Services

NAICS

Museums (712110), Zoos and Botanical Gardens (712130)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Marine Conservation & Citizen-Science Experiences (reef monitoring, turtle walks) (THAAAIAH)

Keywords

• Marine museum operations
• Ocean education programs
• Aquarium visitor services
• Citizen science research
• Museum ticketing services

Headquarters

HQ city

Stralsund

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Admission Tickets: Direct ticket sales to visitors at four museum locations. Tickets available online (with time slots), at the door (cash or card), or via third-party resellers. Revenue is exempt from VAT under §4 No. 20a UStG.
2. Guided Tours and Programs: Revenue from various guided tour options (short tours, highlight tours, themed tours), available in multiple languages (German, English, French), and educational programs for groups.
3. Combination Tickets (Kombiticket): Discounted bundled tickets covering entry to OZEANEUM, MEERESMUSEUM, and NATUREUM at a combined price lower than individual tickets.
4. Vouchers and Annual Passes: Sale of gift vouchers and annual membership cards. Vouchers ordered online with shipping within 10 days of payment receipt plus service fee.
5. Group Catering: Catering services for groups including soup, main dishes, desserts, and coffee packages provided by PAUSCH-Gastronomie.
6. Donations and Sponsorship: Donations accepted via 'Freunde & Förderer' (Friends and Sponsors) program. Funded by public institutions including the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM), state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and the Hanseatic City of Stralsund.
7. Third-Party Reseller Commissions: Revenue from ticket sales through intermediaries Tiqets and GetYourGuide, who handle their own payment processing and customer data.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Ocean Museum Germany (Stiftung Deutsches Meeresmuseum) operates four themed marine museum locations in and around Stralsund — MEERESMUSEUM, OZEANEUM, NATUREUM, and NAUTINEUM — featuring aquariums, life-sized whale models, Baltic coastal ecosystems, and submarine exhibits. The foundation sells admission tickets (including combination/Kombitickets), guided tours in German/English/French, group and school programs, gift vouchers and annual passes, while supporting marine conservation through the citizen-science OstSeeTiere sightings program and the Forschungsstiftung Ostsee research foundation.

Product overview

Stiftung Deutsches Meeresmuseum (Ocean Museum Germany) operates as a unified foundation managing four distinct museum locations: MEERESMUSEUM in Stralsund's old town, OZEANEUM on the harbor island, NATUREUM at Darßer Ort, and NAUTINEUM featuring submarine exhibits. The museum complex is supported by a digital ecosystem including an online ticketing platform (Ticketfritz), mobile apps (Frag Walfred! for navigation, OstSeeTiere for marine sighting reports), and combination tickets enabling access to multiple locations. Educational offerings encompass guided tours in multiple languages, school programs, and children's activities, while research initiatives include a citizen science sightings database for Baltic Sea marine mammals. The portfolio extends to publications, a visitor magazine (MeerBlick), and a dedicated children's portal (Kindermeer).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• MEERESMUSEUM Main museum location in Stralsund's old town featuring marine diversity exhibits, tropical underwater worlds, penguins, whale models, and marine mammal displays. Open to individual visitors, families, and school groups.
• OZEANEUM Museum location on the Stralsund harbor island featuring life-sized whale models, northern underwater worlds, aquarium exhibits, and a children's play area. Open to visitors and groups with timed tickets.
• NATUREUM Museum location at Darßer Ort on the Fischland-Darß-Zingst peninsula showcasing the original nature of the Baltic coastal region. Open to visitors with timed tickets.
• NAUTINEUM Museum location in Stralsund featuring underwater station exhibits with a submarine theme. Open to individual visitors and groups.
• Kombiticket (Combination Ticket) Combined admission ticket granting entry to OZEANEUM, MEERESMUSEUM, and NATUREUM at a discounted price (Adults €35, reduced €27, children 4–16 €17). Sold at door and online via Ticketfritz.
• Guided Tours Program Paid guided tour program with formats ranging from 30 to 80 minutes (Kurzführung €2.50, Highlightführung €4, Die Ostsee €4, Expedition OZEANEUM €4.50, Kaltwassermeere €4, Ozeantour d'amour €4 per person), available in German, English, and French.
• Group Visits Program Program for organized groups (minimum 15 participants) requiring 14-day advance booking, including special rates, guided tours, and optional catering through PAUSCH-Gastronomie for travel groups, tour operators, and corporate groups.
• School and Children's Programs Curriculum-aligned educational programs for school classes (Schulklassen) and kindergartens (Kitas), including vacation workshops (e.g., 'Wie ein Museumstier entsteht' for ages 10–14), beach-find workshops, and tailored aquarium tours.
• Gift Vouchers and Annual Passes Purchasable gift vouchers (Gutscheine) and annual membership cards for museum entry, ordered online via Ticketfritz with postal delivery (10 days) plus service fee.
• Frag Walfred! App Standalone mobile app providing interactive museum navigation using iBeacons, 360-degree images, compass, push notifications for events, and offline content downloads. Available for Android and iOS, hosted in Frankfurt, Germany.
• OstSeeTiere App Standalone mobile app enabling citizens to report sightings of marine mammals (harbour porpoises, grey seals, harbour seals, ringed seals) and dead finds along the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern coast via smartphone or tablet, supporting museum research.
• Scientific Sightings Database

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 10,000 visitors in a single day (July 7, 2026)

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration10 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Tiqets International B.V.coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party ticket reseller for online admission tickets. Tiqets operates as an intermediary between the museum and visitors, particularly international tourists. Located at James Wattstraat 100, 1097 DM Amsterdam, Netherlands. Data processing for access authorization collected from Tiqets per Art. 6(1)b GDPR.
• GetYourGuide Deutschland GmbHcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party ticket reseller and tour booking platform. GetYourGuide serves as intermediary for visitors booking museum tickets and experiences. Located at Sonnenburger Strasse 73, 10437 Berlin, Germany. Access authorization data collected from GetYourGuide per Art. 6(1)b GDPR.
• Beckerbillett GmbHcoreTechnology or IntegrationTechnical service provider for the online ticketing system (ticketfritz.de). Handles ticket generation, barcode/QR code issuance, and payment processing integration. Located at Fangdieckstraße 61, 22547 Hamburg, Germany. Enables anonymous online ticket purchasing with single-use barcodes.
• Forschungsstiftung Ostsee (Baltic Sea Research Foundation)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDedicated research foundation operating under the German Ocean Museum umbrella, focusing on Baltic Sea scientific research, funding marine research projects, and supporting conservation efforts.
• ECOVIS Keller Rechtsanwälte PartG mbBminorOthersData protection officer provider. External data protection consultancy providing legal counsel on GDPR compliance and data privacy matters. Contact: August-Bebel-Straße 10-12, 18055 Rostock, Germany.
• PAUSCH-GastronomieminorOthersCatering partner providing food services for group visits and events at the museum. Offers soup, main dishes, desserts, and coffee packages for group bookings.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Oceanogràfic (Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias): Europe's largest aquarium, located in Valencia, Spain. Directly comparable to Ocean Museum Germany as a major European marine attraction combining aquariums, marine research, and educational programming for a broad public audience.
• Acquario di Genova: Major Italian marine aquarium in Genoa and one of the largest in Europe. Comparable to Ocean Museum Germany as a large European marine attraction with tropical and Mediterranean exhibits and educational programming.
• Aquarium de Paris: Major public aquarium in Paris with tropical and European marine species. Comparable to Ocean Museum Germany as a European urban marine aquarium with educational programs and a similar visitor-gate revenue model.
• Oceanário de Lisboa: One of Europe's largest indoor aquariums, located in Lisbon. Directly comparable to Ocean Museum Germany as a European marine attraction with a strong research and conservation mission and significant annual visitor volumes.
• National Marine Aquarium (Plymouth): UK's largest aquarium and a registered charity in Plymouth. Comparable to Ocean Museum Germany as a publicly-supported marine aquarium with strong research and conservation programming and a similar organizational scale.
• Monterey Bay Aquarium: Renowned non-profit aquarium in California with a strong research and conservation mission. Comparable to Ocean Museum Germany as a major mission-driven marine institution combining public exhibits, scientific research, and citizen-science engagement.
• Den Blå Planet (National Aquarium Denmark): Northern Europe's largest aquarium, located in Copenhagen. Closely comparable to Ocean Museum Germany as a Northern European marine institution with similar scale, northern-species focus, and public-education mandate.

Broad incumbents

• SEA LIFE (Merlin Entertainments): Global chain of marine aquariums operated under Merlin Entertainments across Europe and beyond. Comparable to Ocean Museum Germany as a marine-attraction operator, but operates as a commercial chain rather than a single-site nonprofit foundation.
• Georgia Aquarium: One of the largest aquariums in the Western Hemisphere, located in Atlanta. Comparable to Ocean Museum Germany as a large-scale marine institution but operates as a non-profit attraction with a substantially larger footprint and visitor base.

Others

• Deutsches Museum (Munich): Major German science and technology museum in Munich. Comparable to Ocean Museum Germany as a large German non-profit museum with government funding, educational programming, and special exhibitions, though the subject focus is science and technology rather than marine life.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/deutsches-meeresmuseum

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ocean Museum Germany