Classics in 14 Days

The five houses of Museum Island, from the Altes Museum to the Bode-Museum, have been jointly UNESCO World Heritage since 1999. The Pergamon Museum is currently closed for renovation; the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin plan the reopening of the North Wing and the Central Building with the Pergamon Altar for June 4, 2027.Berlin has three major opera houses: the Staatsoper Unter den Linden as the city's oldest opera house, the Deutsche Oper in Charlottenburg with over 1,850 seats, and the Komische Oper, which is currently performing at the Schillertheater. Since 1951, the International Film Festival, the Berlinale, has taken place, whose main award is the Golden Bear.

Under August the Strong, Dresden flourished as a cultural center, marked by Dresden Baroque and lavish court festivals. The city owes its nickname Elbflorenz primarily to its art collections, now housed at the Zwinger, Residenzschloss, and Albertinum.The Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden performs at the Semperoper. The Frauenkirche, its ruin a memorial on the Neumarkt during GDR times, has again served as both church and concert venue since its 2005 consecration.

Imperial CityBetween 1105 and 1571, all emperors and kings of the Holy Roman Empire temporarily stayed at Nuremberg Castle, Friedrich Barbarossa alone visiting twelve times. On the Main Market Square, the 14th-century Schöner Brunnen, with its forty figures, depicts the Empire's worldview.Dürer and ArtAlbrecht Dürer lived from 1509 to 1528 in his house at Tiergärtnertor. In St. Lorenz hangs Veit Stoß's Annunciation, next to it stands Adam Kraft's Sacrament House. The Germanisches Nationalmuseum preserves around 1.3 million objects, including the Behaim Globe.RemembranceAt the 7th Nazi Party Rally in 1935, the Nuremberg Laws were proclaimed; in November 1945, the Nuremberg Trials began in the Palace of Justice. The Documentation Center in the unfinished Congress Hall documents this history.

The City of the WittelsbachsFrom 1508 to 1918, the Wittelsbachs ruled from the Residenz. King Ludwig I had the Alte Pinakothek built from 1826 and began the systematic urban expansion around Königsplatz in Maxvorstadt. Today, the Pinakotheken, Museum Brandhorst, and other buildings form the Kunstareal.Beer and Beer GardensDuke Wilhelm V founded the Hofbräuhaus in 1589 as a brewery for the court. Beer gardens are part of the Munich summer; the one at the Chinese Tower in the English Garden alone offers 7,000 seats.OktoberfestThe Wiesn dates back to the wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese in October 1810. It traditionally begins on the Saturday after September 15th on the Theresienwiese, lasting 16 to 18 days. Festival tents are run by the six Munich breweries (Spaten, Augustiner, Paulaner, Hacker-Pschorr, Hofbräu, Löwenbräu); 7.2 million visitors came in 2023.

Founded in 1386, Ruprecht Karls University is Germany's oldest institution of higher learning. You'll find its traces throughout the Old Town, especially at the Students' Prison (Studentenkarzer) on Augustinergasse, where incarcerated students painted their names and coats of arms on the walls until the early 20th century.According to the palace administration, the Castle is considered the world's most famous ruin, welcoming about a million guests annually. The Philosopher's Walk (Philosophenweg) is named after students, as all were once required to study philosophy.

Romans, Prince-Electors and PrussiansUnder Augustus, a Roman fort, the “castellum apud Confluentes,” was built at the confluence. In 1018, Koblenz came under the control of the Church of Trier, whose archbishops governed the city until the French Revolution. The last Prince-Elector, Clemens Wenzeslaus, moved into the new Electoral Palace on the Rhine in 1786 but fled from French troops as early as 1794. After the French period, Koblenz became the administrative seat of the Prussian Rhineland, and the Prussians developed Ehrenbreitstein into today's fortress between 1817 and 1828.Destruction and ReconstructionDuring the Second World War, 87 percent of the city was destroyed. The equestrian statue at Deutsches Eck, unveiled in 1897, fell victim to a grenade hit in March 1945. In 1953, Federal President Theodor Heuss declared the empty plinth a memorial to German unity, and in 1993, a replica of the figure returned. In 2011, Koblenz hosted the first Federal Horticultural Show in Rhineland-Palatinate, and since then, the cable car has connected the old town with the fortress.The SchängelThe name Schängel originated during the French period from “Jean,” dialectally “Schang,” and was initially meant disparagingly. Today, it is an honorary title for native Koblenzers. The Schängel Fountain in the courtyard of the City Hall, inaugurated in 1941, depicts a boy who spits water every few minutes, and you can even encounter the figure on manhole covers.

Cathedral and Romanesque ChurchesThe Cathedral's foundation stone was laid in 1248, but it was only completed in 1880. Gerhard Richter's 2007 window in the south transept comprises 11,263 squares in 72 colours. Within the former city wall, there are also twelve large Romanesque churches from the 10th to 12th centuries, including St. Gereon and Groß St. Martin.Brauhaus and KölschKölsch, a pale, top-fermented beer, is traditionally served in a slender 0.2-litre 'Stange'. At the Brauhaus, a 'Köbes' (the local term for waiter) serves you. The 1986 Kölsch Convention dictates what can be called Kölsch.CarnivalHighlights of the season are Weiberfastnacht on Thursday, the Rosenmontagszug, and the Nubbelverbrennung before Ash Wednesday.