New Synagogue Berlin (Centrum Judaicum): opening hours, tickets and visit

Updated on October 5, 2026

The New Synagogue (Neue Synagoge), Oranienburger Straße 28-30 in the Mitte district, is recognisable from afar by its golden dome. Built between 1859 and 1866 by Eduard Knoblauch and completed by Friedrich August Stüler, in a Moorish style inspired by the Alhambra, it could hold about 3,000 worshippers and was then the largest synagogue in Germany. Today only the façade and the dome have been rebuilt: the complex houses the Centrum Judaicum, a foundation that preserves the memory of Berlin's Jewish community, with a permanent exhibition and a place of remembrance. Admission is €7 (€4.50 concessions). The Centrum Judaicum is closed on Saturday, the Sabbath. Allow an hour for the exhibition, more if you see the temporary shows.

Highlights

The façade on Oranienburger Straße

The red and yellow brick façade, with its Oriental-inspired motifs, faces the street. Above it, the central dome, covered in gilded tiles, rises over the rooftops of Mitte. It was rebuilt in the 1990s.

The golden dome

With its ribs and small arched windows, the dome is the district's landmark. From the platform of Berlin Cathedral you can see it shining to the north. The climb to the dome is currently closed and, when it reopens, it is only possible from April to September.

The history of the building

The permanent exhibition traces the construction of the synagogue, its role in the life of Berlin's Jewish community in the 19th century and its destruction. On 9 November 1938, during the pogrom, the SA set it on fire; a local police officer, Wilhelm Krützfeld, had the fire put out by pointing to the building's protected status. A bomb badly damaged it in November 1943.

The vanished prayer hall

After the war the ruined main prayer hall was demolished, and reconstruction began in the late 1980s; the complex reopened in 1995. Behind the façade, the main hall has not been rebuilt: an empty space marks its place, which makes the site a memorial as much as a museum.

Tickets

Full price €7, concessions €4.50, family ticket €20 (two adults and up to three children up to 16). Prices checked in October 2026.

Practical info

Tips

A security check with a metal detector takes place at the entrance, as at most Jewish sites in Berlin: large bags must be left at the door. The Centrum Judaicum is closed on Saturday: check for exceptional closures on its website before you go. Last admission is 30 minutes before closing. Combine the visit with a walk through the Spandauer Vorstadt, between the Hackesche Höfe and Große Hamburger Straße, described in our guide to Mitte; to go further, follow our route through Jewish Berlin and the Jewish Museum.

How to get there

Oranienburger Straße 28-30, 10117 Berlin. S-Bahn S1, S2 and S25, Oranienburger Straße station. U-Bahn U6, Oranienburger Tor station. Tram M1 and M5, Oranienburger Straße stop. More details in our guide to public transport in Berlin.