The German Cities
German City Portraits

Düsseldorf is the capital of one of Germany’s industrial heartlands, North Rhine-Westphalia. The city’s charm isn’t just limited to the high-end streets of the Königsallee, but also in the beautifully done-up green spaces, the wide avenues around the Rhine, a well-connected public transport system, and avant-garde art. Sharvari Dixit Bhalerao, an Indian nutritionist living in Germany, takes us through a few cultural highlights in the city.

Nuremberg has a picturesque flair and history – including some troubled chapters. The city offers a lot that makes life richer: Our author Clara Lipkowski details spots to experience modern culture, art and curiosities.
 

Tourists nationwide know the Rostock district of Warnemünde for its beach, lighthouse, pier, and fish butties. The city of Rostock itself is generally associated with shipyards, the fishing combines used in the GDR, and the Lichtenhagen pre-fab housing estate. So it is high time we took a closer look at this historic Hanseatic league city. 

Just a prefab city? Not at all: Come to Jena by train and you will find yourself in the middle of a verdant paradise. The city on the Saale is ambivalent and imperfect – which is precisely why our author Nancy Droese finds it so appealing.
 

Boring? Colourless? Despite what you may have heard, Hannover is none of these things; it’s just as exciting as Berlin or Hamburg – only more manageable and without all the irritations. Time for a visit to what is probably the most underrated city in the world.
 

Nestled in the heart of the German state of Thuringia, Weimar is a small city with significant political, artistic, and cultural influence. As the birthplace of the Weimar Republic and the playground of influential figures like Goethe and Schiller, it stands as a cultural hub with diverse attractions for visitors.

What makes Leipzig so special? Is it the trade fair city’s long tradition as a trade hub, adventures outdoors, or perhaps its colourful art scene? Our author Tanja Grevismühl explores Leipzig’s classical highlights and adds some you are not likely to find in a travel guide.

Göttingen’s motto “The city that creates knowledge” is emblazoned on the central train station where it welcomes newcomers and long-time residents alike. It could hardly be more fitting, given that Göttingen University sets the pace and rhythm of the city. Our author Stefan Keitel takes us on a tour of places full of academic free spirit, industrious research and political resistance.

A city of just 160,000 inhabitants—a fourth of which are students—drawing in close to 14 million visitors annually is a clear indicator that Heidelberg isn’t just another university town. Located along the Neckar River in the north of the south German state of Baden-Württemberg, Heidelberg is blessed with an enticing combination of old-world charm, a young population, cutting-edge research, and stunning natural beauty. Heidelberg boasts the tag of UNESCO’s ‘City of Literature’ thanks to its importance in the proliferation of romanticism.

Frankfurt does not enjoy the best reputation and is known for its banking district, major international airport, drug scene, and red-light district. And while few would choose the city as their new home, most people who move to Frankfurt soon discover they never want to leave. Our author Eva-Maria Verfürth goes beyond the clichés to show what makes Germany’s financial hub so liveable and lovable.

Rumour has it that the residents of this former Hanseatic League city between the Alster and the Elbe rivers listen to sea shanties, eat “Labskaus”, and are fairly taciturn. And there’s some truth to that, of course. But people from Hamburg are also musical polyglots, march to the beat of their very own drums, and have an unvarnished view of their history. Author Ingo Scheel takes us on a tour of the “Tor zur Welt” (gateway to the world). 

Dresden has a reputation for being a bit too baroque, stuffy, and reserved. But the Saxon capital has another different side that is modern, alternative, and surprising. Our author Kaddi Cutz reveals the multiple facets of the Florence on the Elbe and overhauls a cliché or two.

Anyone who thinks all small towns are sleepy and quiet is quite wrong, or at least wrong about Schwäbisch Hall. It is home to world-class art and theatre and some world market leaders, all conveniently within walking distance.

Berlin has a reputation for being loud, non-conformist and just a bit rude. Our author Nele Jensch looks into what the German capital is really like as she takes readers on a tour of the city where you can see more in one go around the block than elsewhere over the course of year. 

A holy robe, a black gate, Roman apple wine and some celebrity family history that hardly anyone knows about: do you need any more reasons to visit Trier?  

Is Bonn truly overshadowed by Cologne, and does the former German capital have an identity crisis? Our author Leonie Gubela explains what makes Bonn unique and why some assumptions about it could use a rethink.

Well, which is it then? Come and explore the Bavarian capital with us – also against the grain. We give you an outline of the classic places, communities and events that are an intrinsic part of the city profile – and we redraw the contours by challenging a few clichés.

The first things most people think of when they hear Cologne are the cathedral and Carnival. But this city on the Rhine, founded by the Romans and already a commercial hub in the Middle Ages, has so much more to offer. Visitors can admire the remains of an ancient temple outside a McDonald’s toilet, enjoy culture in a former cable factory, and attend the largest computer game trade fair in the world.

Freiburg is known throughout Germany as a green city. Our author Gina Kutkat explores the sunny town in the Breisgau Region to see what this means. Along the way she uncovers spots with a unique flair and open-minded inhabitants, while underscoring contours not visible at a first glance.
 

For many, Mannheim is just an annoying ICE stopover that makes the trip from Frankfurt to Stuttgart that much longer. And it could be argued that passengers on a train do not get to see this city on the Rhine and Neckar rivers from its best side. But author Jan Zipperer is confident that Mannheim has a lot to offer.

No more than a traditional Hanseatic city with a hotly disputed beer? This port city has many more surprises in store than just four musical animals and the Weser River. Our author Hinnerk Köhn thinks Hamburg, Cologne and Berlin would do well to take a page out of Bremen’s book.

As a cricket enthusiast, you might think you would miss your go-to sport in Germany. But with over three hundred clubs, cricket is booming, defying Germany’s reputation as a football-dominated nation. In this article, we speak with Venkatraman Ganesan, former captain of the German National Cricket Team, to gain insights into the growing cricket scene in Germany.