museum
Zollverein Coal Mine
A Bauhaus-styled colliery and UNESCO icon of the Ruhr, now a striking park of red walkways, museums and a winter ice rink.
4 km · about 10 min drive
EuropeGermanyNorth Rhine-Westphalia
Gelsenkirchen
North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany · Europe
About Gelsenkirchen
Gelsenkirchen is worth a stop: 10 minutes from Wattenscheid, 4km from Zollverein Coal Mine.
Gelsenkirchen is in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, with about 270,000 people. You drive on the right here. The nearest town is Wattenscheid, about 4 km away.
Gelsenkirchen (; German: [ˌɡɛlzn̩ˈkɪʁçn̩] ; Westphalian: Gelsenkiärken) is the 26th-most populous city of Germany and the 12th-most populous in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia with a population of 266,199 as of 2025. On the Emscher River (a tributary of the Rhine), it lies at the centre of the Ruhr area, theRead more
largest urban area of Germany, of which it is the fifth-largest city after Dortmund, Essen, Duisburg and Bochum. The Ruhr is located in the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region, the second-biggest metropolitan region by GDP in the European Union. Gelsenkirchen is the fifth-largest city of Westphalia after Dortmund, Bochum, Bielefeld and Münster, and it is one of the southernmost cities in the Low German dialect area. The city is home to the football club Schalke 04, which is named after Gelsenkirchen-Schalke. The club's current stadium Veltins-Arena, however, is located in Gelsenkirchen-Erle.
Gelsenkirchen was first documented in 1150, but it remained a tiny village until the 19th century, when the Industrial Revolution led to the economic and population growth of the region. In 1840, when the mining of coal began, 6,000 inhabitants lived in Gelsenkirchen; by 1900 the population had increased to 138,000. In the early 20th century, Gelsenkirchen was the most important coal mining town in Europe. It was called the "city of a thousand fires" for the flames of mine gases flaring at night. In 1928, Gelsenkirchen was merged with the adjoining cities of Buer and Gelsenkirchen-Horst. The city bore the name Gelsenkirchen-Buer, until it was renamed Gelsenkirchen in 1930. The city remained a center of coal mining and oil refining during the Nazi era, which led to it being a frequent a target of Allied bombing raids during World War II: nevertheless, over a third of the city's buildings date from before 1949. There are no longer coalmines in and around Gelsenkirchen; the city is searching for a new economic basis, having been afflicted for decades with one of the country's highest unemployment rates.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is there to see near Gelsenkirchen?
Within an hour or so of Gelsenkirchen: Zollverein Coal Mine (4 km), Wuppertal Schwebebahn (28 km), Classic Remise Düsseldorf (39 km).
Where is Gelsenkirchen?
Gelsenkirchen is in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, about 4 km from Wattenscheid.
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Quick Information
- Population
- 270,028
- Continent
- Europe
- Country
- Germany
- Region
- North Rhine-Westphalia
- Timezone
- Europe/Berlin
- Coordinates
- 51.5051, 7.0965
Emergency & Services
Essential numbers in Germany
ADAC roadside assistance: +49 89 22 22 22. No general speed limit on some autobahn sections but advisory 130 km/h.
Full driving guide for GermanyTags
Worth the detour from Gelsenkirchen
3 notable places within an hour's drive.
landmark
Wuppertal Schwebebahn
The world's oldest electric suspension railway glides above the Wupper River, a 1901 engineering marvel still in daily use.
28 km · about 30 min drive
landmark
Classic Remise Düsseldorf
A magnificent classic car centre in a restored locomotive roundhouse filled with rare vehicles, workshops, and automotive lifestyle shops.
39 km · about 45 min drive
Driving in Germany
- Drives on
- the right
- Petrol
- ~€1.78/litre
- Motorway tolls
- None
When to drive here
April to October
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