fragrance museum

Well worth a visit, full of different Cologne for men and women, I loved the fact that the cologne was associated with your star sign. There was a guided tour but unfortunately we didn't have time. The shop is bright and well laid out and the staff were very knowledgeable

Would like to have visited the museum, which was about a block from my hotel, but their English language tours are very few and none were offered during my available times. Even tried to get on a French tour, but couldn't make that work either. Still, enjoyed the lovely shop, and did purchase a large bottle of cologne.

A bit pity that museum you can see only in the guided tour. When we arrived here, the tour was not offered and only perfume shop was available. Girls in the shop tried to do their best to tell us a bit about the history of this place, but to see the main exposition you shall be lucky or shall have enough time to return when the tour will be available. That is not what you expect when going to the place, displayed for public as a museum.

We visited this place after reading the reviews on tripadvisor and it was well worth it. This is the site where Farina designed the original 'eau de cologne' back in 1907. Unfortunately we hadn't booked an English tour in advance so that was fully booked by the time we had arrived. Luckily the staff there were extremely helpful and decided to give us a free mini tour on the shop floor. The lady that helped us was very passionate about the brand and the history behind it including all the world-famous people that had worn the fragrance (Napoleon, Mark Twain and princess Diana to name a few). She even showered each of us with freebies (and there were nine of us!). It was hard to believe that this was just a free mini tour and we would have loved to be on the full tour. It is an experience not to be missed for any fragrance-lovers or those looking to learn more about the history of this beautiful city.

Incredible place, interesting and very well designed visit to the museum. A must-do in Koln and, according to me, THE BEST ATTRACTION in Koln. It is different from other museums, employees are very kind and motivated by their job, the added value of the museum is obvious (presents at the end of the visit, almost theater-like visit, smelling activity...). Not only for perfum lovers but for everyone that want to have a great experience. Visit of the museum in different languages. Suitables for teenages and older. Be carefull! You need to book the visit in advance (even the same day could be okay but do not come without telling because they only have a limited number of people allowed per visit!). You have a guided visit, you have a precise hour to do so, you can't visit the museum on your own.

Museum is not very big but for a relatively low price you get a very interesting guided tour of the museum, learning about history of the Farina family and fragrance in general.

For 5euro super! And i got free sample! It was really easy to find! Now i know more about my favorite aromat. The gid was funny and exiting!

The Farina House is where the Eau de Cologne was invented by master perfumer Farina. You take a tour which costs 5 euros and they teach you about the perfume making business and how Farina came about with something lighter. You get to smell different things and try to guess...extremely informative and the host makes it very fun. He is dressed in a costume and plays the part well. At the end of the tour you get a little sample of the Eau de Cologne and that by itself it the best souvenir you can get and worth the 5 Euros. I went with my son and he loves to smell perfumes and even though he is only three, the guide made sure he smelled everything and my son gushed so much with everything he smelled. A must for Cologne and beautifully decorated inside...a trip through perfume history!

We went there today not really knowing what to expect. Our tour guide was very enthusiastic which made learning about the pioneering perfume industry in cologne all the more enjoyable. We particularly enjoyed being perfumers for a while by smelling lots of different scents. To top it off, we received a small bottle of the famous perfume! Overall a brilliant experience and great value for money! Make sure you book a tour to not miss out as it's a small group!

If you like perfumes, take a tour and smell the base perfumes. Highly recommend this tour if you are visiting cologne, as the world knows cologne for perfumes.

This is what museums should be. Places that bring history to life through the senses, with humour, engagement and entertainment. Loved it!The museum is a tour meaning that you are guided through the house by a bloke dressed up in 17th century attire complete with wig, face powder, the lot. He plays the man from the Farina family who first created the original eau de Cologne. In the process of going through the house, you are also taken through the history of the family and the scent. One of the cellar like rooms in the basement contains oils, perfumes and concoctions for you to smell - some of the ingredients of the perfumes. This was great fun and the people on our tour - those under 10, young students and adults - all loved it.At the end of the tour you even get a 5ml sample of the perfume. All in all, extremely good value for money, a brilliant way to spend an hour. I highly recommend going here. Wonderful! The museum also has the most gorgeous gift shop that is exquisitely decorated.

This is a must whilst in Cologne, great experience and excellent value for money. The tour is lead by a costumed individual who adds character to the whole fourty minute or so tour.

It's is great to be able to look into the history of this great company. I even went to a fragrance museum in Venice and there I found traces of Farina, who created "Koelnisch Wasser", the true stuff.

.......... a good tour and worthy of the 5 euros each. Quite difficult to find and they run tours in several different languages at different times of the day so you need to book!!! Rathaus is the nearest tram stop - on the exit we took, keep walking straight ahead, you should pass a leather goods shop on your left, turn right just past there and you should see the 'Perfume Museum' about 200 metres up on the righthand side(corner shop) - it looks just like a shop but is in fact both a museum and shop!!Participation by those on the tour is encouraged !!!

To visit the museum you have to buy a ticket for the tour. It's €5 and there's one every hour (in different languages). The tour guide- the creator or Eau de Cologne himself, was very insightful into the history of perfume making in the city and the tour was also interactive as we got to identify different scents.