The museum is located in a lovely old garden surrounded by fruit trees. In the garden, there is old-fashioned toys, and parents can relax in the shade under the fruit trees.
The old classroom, with desks and chalkboards, takes you back in time and creates opportunities for conversations across generations. Also, see a small summer house and a holiday apartment as they appeared in the 1950s and 1960s.
Gain insight into fishermen's hard and dangerous lives through the ages by visiting the Old Fisherman's House. Learn about the Jews' escape from Gilleleje in October 1943, and see one of the boats used for the escape. Skibshallerne is a great starting point for tours around Gilleleje. In the beautiful fruit garden, you can relax and enjoy the surroundings. The café sells coffee, tea, soft drinks, and cake; you are also welcome to bring your own food. A walk along the Lighthouse Trail to Nakkehoved Lighthouse is also an option.
Fishing on the North Coast
For thousands of years, people on the coast of North Zealand have utilized the sea's resources. At Skibshallerne, you can experience life by the sea, and see how fishing for plaice, herring, cod, and eel was organized throughout the year. The museum houses some of the country's oldest intact fishing boats, which fishermen launched directly from the beach before harbours were built. Also, see our collection of ship models and models of various fishing methods throughout the ages.
The exhibition explains how fishermen navigated the sea and remembered good fishing spots before modern navigation methods were invented.
Practical Information
- Entrance: DKK 40,- Free for youths under 18.
- Annual pass for all Museum Nordsjælland exhibitions costs DKK 70 and can be purchased at all exhibition locations.
- Guided tours/groups: For guided tours and group offers, get more information.
- Opening hours.
- No parking at the museum, use the city's parking lots. Short stops at the museum entrance are allowed for the disabled and those with mobility issues.
The Old Gilleleje
The old fisherman's house shows how a fisher family lived in the 1800s. In the old classroom, you can experience a school as it was in great-grandfather's time. The holiday apartments are furnished as they were up to 1930 and show how people spent their summer holidays in Gilleleje in the past.
October 1943
In October 1943, many Danish Jews fled to Gilleleje and the surrounding area to try to get to Sweden because of the German persecution. The fishermen sailed them across at night and often in rough weather, under constant threat of being discovered by German patrol boats. Most Jews escaped to Sweden, but some were captured by the Germans, such as those who hid in the attic of Gilleleje Church. Several of those captured ended up in concentration camps, where some died.
See the small fishing boat used to sail Jews from Villingebæk east of Gilleleje to a fishing cutter that took them further to Sweden.
Food & Shop
The café sells coffee, tea, soft drinks, and cake; you are welcome to bring your own food and eat in the old fruit garden. The museum shop offers old-fashioned toys, candy, summer clothes from Chimono and Linen by Krebs, glass figures, posters, and hangings, among other things.
