Airborne Museum Hartenstein

The Hartenstein building was constructed in 1865 and served as Major General Urquhart's headquarters during the September 1944 battle. The museum opened on 11 May 1978 and underwent a major expansion and renovation that reopened in 2009. Immersive exhibits and personal testimonies cover the full story from the optimism of the initial drop to the devastating retreat, when only around 2,000 of the 10,000 airborne troops made it back across the Rhine. Of the 1st Airborne Division, 1,174 were killed and more than 6,500 taken prisoner. At least 453 civilians also died as a result of the fighting. Allow at least two hours.

Before it became Hotel Hartenstein, the building operated as an inn called Het Rode Hert (The Red Deer) from at least 1728. The museum's centrepiece is the Airborne Experience: an underground interactive diorama that recreates the atmosphere of a glider landing and the shattered streets of wartime Arnhem, with realistic sound effects. A multilingual audio tour covers 50 exhibits, each with personal background stories of soldiers and civilians on both sides.

Online booking is required — walk-in entry is not available. Museum Card holders enter free. The museum is in Oosterbeek, around 8 km west of Arnhem city centre; bus 1 connects the two.