Guided tours for groups of ten people and more can also be booked outside the normal opening hours and are, on request, offered in English and French. Near the German-French border, the former coal mining site “La Mine Wendel” presents the reconstruction of an underground coal mine. Opened in 1861, the coal mining site alternately was either part of Germany or France and, at its peak, employed up to 5,000 miners.
Lively insights into mining history
The adjacent miners' museum "Musée Les Mineurs Wendel" displays more than 160 objects and models, 25 audio and video documents as well as countless photos documenting the everyday life of the miners and their families, the social policy of the mining companies as well as typical mining professions above and below ground in originally preserved rooms.
Recreating the underground world of mining through visual and acoustic elements, the museum provides visitors with an authentic impression of the machinery, methods and tools used for mining as well as of the working conditions of the miners at the time. Visits also include a ride on a restored mine train to the entrance of the mine, providing a tour of the outside area of the mine, which is overlooked by four huge winding towers.
