Quick summary
- A former working harbour rebuilt as a media district in the 1980s and 1990s and now home to more than 700 companies.[1][2]
- Cafes, bars and restaurants sit around the harbour basins and in the converted warehouses, with the Rhine and the promenade as the backdrop.
- The MedienHafen Tour runs 2 hours with a live guide in German and English, from US$218, and a private group is available.[3]
- Frank Gehry's Neuer Zollhof was completed in 1999, the Colorium stands 17 stories tall, and the Rheinturm reaches 240.5 metres.[4][5][6]
- The Rhine embankment promenade is one and a half kilometers long, so a walk before or after dinner is the simplest way to see the district.[7]
- Top choice MedienHafen Tour from US$218 Rating4.64 from 276 reviews[3]Duration2 hours[3]Live guideGerman, English[3]CancellationCancel up to 24 hours in advance[3]Reserve now, pay laterReserve now and pay later[3] Check availability
- Altstadt Guided Tour from US$218 Rating4.50 from 488 reviews[8]Duration1.5 - 2 hours[8]Live guideGerman, English[8]CancellationCancel up to 24 hours in advance[8]Reserve now, pay laterReserve now and pay later[8] See this tour
- City Architecture Tour from US$23 Rating4.74 from 65 reviews[9]Duration2 hours[9]Live guideGerman[9]CancellationCancel up to 24 hours in advance[9]Reserve now, pay laterReserve now and pay later[9] See this tour
The MedienHafen is home to more than 700 companies and some of the best and most popular restaurants in the city.
Is the MedienHafen worth an evening?
Before reserving
- Reserve a table for warm evenings, when the outdoor seats go first
- Compare the from prices of the tours you are considering before you commit
- Note the meeting point before you set off, as harbour streets are easy to mix up
- Keep the free cancellation window in mind when you book a guided walk
On the day
- Arrive early enough to walk the basins and the promenade before you eat
- Ask about a private group if you are travelling with your own party
- Bring a layer, as riverside tables cool down quickly after sunset
- Tell the operator about mobility needs when you book so the route works for you
What a MedienHafen restaurant evening looks like
MedienHafen did not start out as somewhere to eat. The old docks at the southern end of the Rheinuferpromenade date from the end of the 19th century and played a part in the city's boom until the end of WWII.[10] In the 1980s and 1990s, Düsseldorf's city planners and developers reimagined the vacant former working harbour as the MedienHafen media district.[1] It is now home to more than 700 companies.[2]
Eating here is less about one famous street than about the water. Tables sit around the harbour basins, on the ground floors of converted warehouses and inside the glass and steel blocks behind them, with the Rhine, the cranes and the curve of the promenade as the backdrop. The range is wide: Rhineland brauhaus cooking with Altbier, Mediterranean and Italian menus, steaks, Asian kitchens and modern European places that fill up with the district's office crowd at lunchtime and settle into a slower rhythm after work.
Everything here sits within walking distance of everything else, and that shapes an evening. You can take a drink on one terrace, move to a different kitchen for a main course and finish somewhere else for dessert or a nightcap, all without leaving the water. That grazing style suits the district better than committing to one long sitting, especially on a first visit when you are still working out where you want to be.
Where the tables sit, from basins to promenade
The architecture does much of the work here. The Neuer Zollhof, Frank Gehry's complex of three buildings, was completed in 1999 and still draws people to the water's edge to look up.[4] A little further along, the Colorium, designed by British architect Will Alsop, stands 17 stories tall.[5] Above everything is the Rheinturm, 240.5 metres tall and built between 1979 and 1982.[6]
Restaurants and bars fan out around these landmarks rather than lining one single street, so it pays to walk a loop before you choose. The Rhine embankment promenade runs one and a half kilometers along the water[7], a straightforward route from the old town to the harbour and back for a pre-dinner stroll. After dark, look up at the tower for the Lichtzeitpegel, the light clock that Horst H. Baumann designed for the Rheinturm, reading the time as a vertical series of lights.[11]
Facing the water matters more than the postcode. Many of the seats worth asking for are on upper floors and roof terraces with a view across the basins towards the Rheinturm, while ground-level tables put you in the middle of the evening crowd. Ask for a window or an outdoor table when you book, and say if you want to watch the light change over the water.
Evening light on the harbour basins, where dinner tables stand a short walk from the water.
MedienHafen restaurants, morning to night
The harbour keeps office hours, and its kitchens follow. Coffee and pastries start early near the tram stops, lunch is quick and busy with the district's office crowd, and the long, unhurried sitting comes later, when the light drops and the water goes still. On a weekday you can often eat well without planning far ahead. On a warm Friday or Saturday evening, booking matters much more.
Menus reward curiosity. Order Altbier even if you think you do not like dark beer, ask what the kitchen does with Rhineland classics, and let the table order a spread rather than one dish each. If you want sushi, MedienHafen has Japanese flavours on nearby menus, and the city's full Japanese quarter is a short ride away. Afterwards, walk the basins: the reflections on the water are one of the simplest pleasures in the district.
Sweet things are worth saving room for, and so is a second stop. Many groups end up in two places, dinner where the view is and a bar where the noise is. Taxis and trams are easy from the waterfront if you would rather not walk back, and the old town is close enough that the harbour and the Altstadt can share one evening.
Getting to the MedienHafen and moving around it
The MedienHafen sits on the Rhine, south of the old town and within easy reach of the main station. Trams and the U-Bahn cover the waterfront, taxis and ride shares drop off along the harbour streets, and river boats tie up on the promenade. Once you are there, almost everything worth seeing on a single evening is a short walk away.
The river is the district's long front garden. The Rhine runs 1320 km from its source to the sea[12], a working river with a long harbour history behind it. Signs along the quay and the bridges over the basins help you keep your bearings, and the promenade gives you a straight, flat line to follow when you are full and want to keep moving.
Cyclists share the riverside paths with pedestrians, and the harbour's own streets are calm enough for an unhurried wander. If you are arriving by car, plan for the evening rush and park a little away from the busiest basins, since you will see more on the walk in.
from US$218
The MedienHafen Tour runs 2 hours with a live guide in German and English, with free cancellation up to 24 hours in advance.[3]
When to go: seasons, light and high water
Summer is terrace season. The promenade fills in the late afternoon, the water throws light onto the Gehry facades, and dinner outside is the point of coming. Spring and early autumn may suit you better if you would rather eat well without competing for a table, and winter turns the district inwards, towards brauhaus benches and warm rooms looking out at grey water.
The river has its own moods. In 1995, the Rhine crested at 10.69 meters at Düsseldorf[13]. Quayside walks are worth doing in any season, and after wet weather you see the Rhine at its most serious. If the forecast turns, the old town and the harbour are close enough to swap between, so keep one indoor option in reserve.
Booking a table, and booking a guide
Book dinner for the day you want it, not the hour before, especially in the warm months. A short guided walk is a good way to get your bearings first, and the MedienHafen Tour is the obvious place to start: from US$218, 2 hours, with a live guide in German and English.[3] You can reserve now and pay later, and cancel up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund.[3]
Worth comparing: the Altstadt Guided Tour covers the old town in 1.5 - 2 hours from US$218[8], and the Guided City Architecture Walking Tour runs 2 hours from US$23 with a guide in German, calling at Königsallee, Kö-Bogen, Dreischeibenhaus and Ehrenhof.[9] If beer is the plan, the Brewery Tour with Alt Beer Tastings starts at US$32.[14]
Groups have options too. The MedienHafen Tour and the Altstadt Guided Tour both offer a private group[3][8], which works well for families, work trips and anyone who would rather set the pace. Say what you want to see when you book, and mention if the group would like more time at the water.
Making a day of it around the harbour
The MedienHafen is easy to slot into a wider day in Düsseldorf. Start in the old town, cross to the promenade, walk south to the harbour, eat, and finish under the Rheinturm. The city is a busy visitor destination: it recorded 3,068,803 guest arrivals in 2018[15], so it is worth booking the set-piece parts of your day rather than hoping to walk in.
With a full day, add a museum, a river cruise or the Japanese quarter, and keep the harbour for the evening, when the light and the reflections do their work. With only one night, spend it here: a slow walk around the basins, a long dinner and the tower lights over the water on the way home.
From prices for food and drink tours in Düsseldorf
From prices of GetYourGuide listings: Altbier-Safari[16], Sushi, Sake & Japanese Lifestyle Tour[17], Brewery Tour with Alt Beer Tastings[14], Old Town & Altbier Tour[18].
What a harbour day costs, from prices
From prices for these GetYourGuide listings.[3][8][9][14]
When to sit down in the MedienHafen
Plan your harbour evening
Choose your base
Decide whether you want the water's edge, the old town or the glassy blocks of the media district, since each has a different mood and menu.
Book the walk first
The MedienHafen Tour lasts 2 hours with a live guide in German and English, so it fits neatly before dinner.[3]
Build in a stroll
The Rhine embankment promenade runs one and a half kilometers, which is just right for working up an appetite.[7]
Time the light
Sit down as the sun drops so you catch the harbour at its best and see the Rheinturm's light clock on the way home.[11]
Keep it flexible
The MedienHafen Tour allows free cancellation up to 24 hours in advance, so weather need not decide your evening.[3]
See the MedienHafen with a guide before you eat
from US$219Reserve now & pay later
