The start of the tour and the exhibition
Please arrive at the museum 30 minutes before your tour starts. This will give you time to lock away your personal belongings and anything that glows, get some change ready for the dark bar and use the toilet in peace. Our tours start five minutes before the tour begins at a meeting point in the middle of the foyer. It begins with a safety briefing, during which visitors are also given a long cane. They need this to better orient themselves in the exhibition. The person giving the briefing explains how to use the long canes.
The group then goes with the person giving the briefing into a room with residual light. Here, in the semi-darkness, further important information is provided. The residual light is then switched off, the guide welcomes the group and the tour begins. If any of the visitors are in wheelchairs, another guide joins the group to ensure that they can navigate our exhibition safely. The exhibition includes a 1.20 m section with a 15% incline. The flooring changes throughout the exhibition to simulate different surfaces.
The guide accompanies the visitors throughout the entire tour. They pay attention to everyone, guide them and answer questions.
Our exhibition is completely dark so that our visitors can experience how to find their way around without the sense of sight. They use their other senses, such as hearing, touch and smell, to perceive the exhibition rooms. In the dark, four different rooms await you, all of which depict everyday situations. Some rooms may be louder than others, but the guides will ensure that everyone in the group feels comfortable.
The last room of the tour is our Dark Bar. Here, the group has another opportunity to talk to the guide. Visitors are also welcome to ask personal questions about their own experience with blindness. All of our guides are blind or visually impaired themselves. Visitors can also buy something to drink here. You pay in the dark, so we recommend bringing some cash with you on the tour.
Before you return to the foyer, your eyes can adjust to the light again in the guest book room. Here you can leave a message for your guide and the entire museum team. Use the touchpad to write your message or speak into the microphone and leave an audio comment. The digital guest book is wheelchair accessible and, in addition to the touch function, also has mechanical controls with universal icons and Braille labelling.
Guided tours are offered for people with walking disabilities and wheelchair users. Advance registration is required. Fixed seating is available for people with walking disabilities, which can be used during the tour. Electric wheelchairs are not allowed in the completely darkened exhibition, as illuminated controls are not permitted and navigation in the dark is handled by a guide. For this reason, a manual wheelchair is available for hire. Guided tours for people with hearing impairments and deaf people are available on request. Advance booking is required. Signs are agreed in advance with deaf guests for orientation and communication in the dark. There is no inductive hearing system available. It is possible to bring and use your own mobile induction loops.