The Škoda Museum in Mladá Boleslav is celebrating its 30th anniversary. Since its opening in 1995, it has exhibited numerous unique historic vehicles, organized many themed exhibitions and welcomed more than four million visitors. Since its opening, it has thus contributed to the enrichment of cultural life in Mladá Boleslav and the entire region.
Home and cultural archive of the brand
The Škoda Museum was opened in 1995 on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Škoda Auto and is located in a historic industrial building from the early 20th century. The building, which originally produced bicycles, motorcycles, engines and cars, is located at 294 Václava Klementa Street in Mladá Boleslav, which leads to Škoda's main plant.
In 2012, the museum underwent extensive modernization and took on its current form. The 1800 m² exhibition area is divided into three sections: "Tradition", "Evolution" and "Precision". Other special features include a special depot for sports cars and prototypes, the multifunctional hall "Laurin & Klement Forum", the café and restaurant "Václav" and a souvenir store. The museum exhibits around 50 cars, five motorcycles and two bicycles, while the depot houses 23 studies, prototypes and racing cars. Since 2018, the museum's exhibition has also included a L&K Lorraine-Dietrich 450 aircraft engine from 1926. In collaboration with the National Technical Museum in Prague, it commemorates the aviation chapter in the history of Laurin & Klement.
Over the past 30 years, the Škoda Museum has also developed into a cultural center for the city of Mladá Boleslav and the entire region. In addition to permanent and temporary exhibitions, it regularly hosts various cultural and educational events and activities for adults and children. It also participates in local and national initiatives, including the popular Museum Nights.
Unique exhibits and themed exhibitions
The Škoda Museum continuously enriches its permanent exhibition with special exhibitions in which concept cars, design studies and student projects are presented shortly after their world premiere. In recent years, these special exhibitions have included the new generation of the Superb and its predecessors, 50 years of the RS, the Škoda Popular and Rapid and 60 years of the Škoda 1000 MB. There were also exhibitions on the topics of sustainability and ecology.
The museum consistently records high visitor numbers and attracts visitors from all over the world: it welcomed its one millionth visitor in 2006 and its four millionth in January this year. The visit can also be combined with a tour of the Škoda production plants in Mladá Boleslav, Vrchlabí or Kvasiny or with a trip to the birthplace of Ferdinand Porsche in Liberec-Vratislavice.
Two anniversaries: 30 years of the museum and 130 years of Škoda
The anniversary of the museum coincides with the 130th anniversary of the laying of Škoda's foundation stone. This makes the company one of the oldest active car manufacturers in the world. A special exhibition to mark this special anniversary will be on display until the end of the year.
