The Erwin Hymer Museum in Bad Waldsee is repositioning itself: The permanent exhibition with its more than 80 historic leisure vehicles will be comprehensively modernized with a new concept from November. The museum will be temporarily closed for the renovation after a big anniversary celebration to mark its 15th anniversary at the beginning of November. The reopening is planned for spring 2027.
In the eye-catching museum building in Bad Waldsee, whose transparent façade is modeled on a caravan window, the history of mobile travel will continue to be told along Europe's largest collection of historic leisure vehicles. However, the building, which was opened by motorhome pioneer Erwin Hymer himself during his lifetime in 2011 and is supported by the Erwin Hymer Foundation, "is not intended to become a classic car itself at some point," says museum director Sascha Fillies with a wink. "That's why we're making it fit for the future now".
The historical vehicles collected by Erwin Hymer and individual travel will continue to take center stage. At the same time, the exhibition has been given a scenography that more closely combines the joy of discovery with exciting content. Analog and digital elements intertwine and guide visitors through immersive experience spaces. Exhibits are made to speak. Visitors learn even more about the people and their (travel) stories behind the often astonishing vehicle inventions.
The aim is for visitors with different interests and motivations to spend an unforgettable time at the Erwin Hymer Museum - whether they are families, tourists and motorhome enthusiasts, travel nostalgics or vanlife enthusiasts.
The museum is open as usual up to and including October. At the end of October, the Erwin Hymer Museum will host a big anniversary celebration to mark its 15th anniversary.
Further information on current offers, opening hours and the program can be found on the museum's website.
The Erwin Hymer Museum in a nutshell
On an exhibition area of over 6000 square meters, the Erwin Hymer Museum invites visitors of all ages on a journey of discovery through the cultural and technical history of "mobile travel". The more than 80 historic vehicles from all over the world - including caravans, motorhomes, camper vans, cars and motorcycles - awaken many a memory and invite visitors to marvel. With extraordinary exhibits and a varied supporting program, the museum appeals to families, residents and guests of the region, travel nostalgics, technology fans and vanlife enthusiasts alike. The permanent exhibition will be renovated from November 2026.
The museum will then remain closed until its reopening in spring 2027.
Erwin Hymer and the Erwin Hymer Foundation
The Erwin Hymer Museum goes back to the initiative of motorhome pioneer Erwin Hymer. It is supported by the Erwin Hymer Foundation in Bad Waldsee, which is financing the forthcoming renovation of the permanent exhibition. The non-profit foundation under civil law was established by Erwin Hymer in 2001 with the purpose of promoting art and culture, in particular the promotion of cultural assets in the technical field and the establishment and maintenance of a museum for vintage caravans and motor caravans.
Erwin Hymer was an entrepreneur and the inventor of the "Hymermobil". His name stands for a whole genre of leisure vehicles. But Erwin Hymer was not just an engineer and inventor with an inventive spirit. He was also a passionate collector. His historical leisure vehicles, collected from all over the world, form the basis of the Erwin Hymer Museum's collection today.
