Choose from 274 Fun Things to Do in Germany
Chamaeleon Theater
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Elbphilharmonie
- The Elbphilharmonie is a must-see for music lovers and architecture buffs.
- Demand for tickets is high, so it’s a good idea to book ahead if you plan to see a show.
- While photography is permitted within the new concert hall, recording of any kind during performances is not permitted.
- The entire concert hall is accessible to wheelchair users.
Ehrenbreitstein Fortress (Festung Ehrenbreitstein)
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Glienicke Bridge
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Bayerische Staatsoper (Bavarian State Opera)
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Goethe House & Museum (Goethehaus)
The Goethe House & Museum is the site where the great German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was born in 1749. Goethe’s former house is a fantastic and tangible example of the living style of the 18th century Frankfurt's gentry. The house was technically Goethe's parents', and he lived here until moving to Weimar where he died in 1765.
Main features include Goethe's original writing desk and the library on the fourth floor, where Goethe composed his famous epistolary, The Sorrows of Young Werther, and where he began writing Faust. The rooms are decorated with a charming mix of reproduction and original furnishing. The museum is a picture gallery dedicated to the Age of Goethe. The Goethe House & Museum offer an intriguing a peek into 18th century lifestyles and Goethe’s early years.
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The Goethe Haus, birthplace of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, is a must-see for German literature fans. Get there from the U-Bahn or S-Bahn via Hauptwache.
Dusseldorf Old Town
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Cathedral of Our Blessed Lady (Frauenkirche)
- The Cathedral of Our Blessed Lady is a must-see for history buffs and first-time visitors to Munich.
- Admission to the church is free.
- The main church is accessible to wheelchairs and strollers, but the tower is not.
East Side Gallery
Some of the more famous and most photographed images on the wall include a boxy East German Trabant car that appears to burst through the wall called “Test the Best” by Birgit Kinder; and “The Mortal Kiss,” a fraternal communist kiss between Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev and East German boss Erich Honecker.
Many of the images became weathered from taggers and tourists adding their own graffiti to their favorite pictures on the wall. In 2009, forty of these works of art were restored.
Sections of the wall continued to be removed for purposes like the O2 World Arena to have its own boat landing and more recently, to provide access to a planned luxury apartment complex overlooking the Spree River, despite protests.
This is a great place for a bike ride or a walk.
Drosselgasse
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Elbe Tunnel (Alter Elbtunnel)
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EL-DE Haus
In 1934, a jeweler by the name of Leonard Dahlen rented his shop to the National Socialist Party, better known as the Nazis. Officially, the building was repurposed as the Nazi Documentation Center, but the Nazis soon set up the shop as the headquarters of the Gestapo, the party’s secret police. Its basement made room for cells and torture stations, where a parade of the regime’s victims - Jews, Roma, homosexuals and other political enemies - were imprisoned and treated savagely for the better part of a decade. Miraculously, when most of Cologne was destroyed during the Allies’ bombardment, the EL-DE Haus remained completely intact.
Today, the building is a memorial to the victims of the Nazi’s fascist regime.
In 1981, the government opened the basement to the public and in 1987, the Nazi Documentation Center was also opened, permanently featuring an exhibit detailing life in Cologne under the National Socialist government. Part of the exhibit features the testimony of a Communist sympathizer and resistance fighter named Martha Mense, who was held for five months and interrogated there for the crime of printing anti-Hitler literature.
While the subject matter is certainly grim, the museum is one of two German museums to have won the European Heritage Association’s prestigious Best in Heritage award, a prize given only to select museums.
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Should this museum prove to be too sobering or disturbing for some visitors, a good alternative is the Kölnisches Stadtmuseum. Its exhibits include a little bit of everything, provided everything has something to do with Cologne. Documenting Cologne's history, economy and culture over the centuries, the Kölnisches Stadtmuseum houses everything from a working-class kitchen to medieval weaponry.
Bebelplatz
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Eisbach Wave (Eisbachwelle)
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Bavarian Alps
- It can get cold in the mountains, even in summer, so pack plenty of layers and warm clothing for the evening hours.
- The mountain roads that connect the alpine villages can be steep and winding, so always allow extra travel time. In winter, road closures are common and cars should be equipped for driving in snow.
- Bavarian villages are great destinations for food lovers: Be sure to try dumplings (knödel), white sausages (weisswurst), noodles (spätzle), and, of course, Bavarian beer.