Must see attractions in Cologne & Northern Rhineland

Cologne’s geographical and spiritual heart – and its single-biggest tourist draw – is the magnificent Kölner Dom. With its soaring twin spires, this is…

It’s impossible to overestimate the significance of Aachen’s magnificent cathedral. The burial place of Charlemagne, it’s where more than 30 German kings…

Serenely tucked within beautiful Eifel countryside, Abteikirche Maria Laach is one of the finest examples of a Romanesque church in Germany. Part of a 900…

The former coal-wash plant at the Unesco-listed Zeche Zollverein provides a suitably atmospheric setting for accessible and engaging exhibits on the…

A key site along the Ruhr area's Industrial Heritage Trail, the former Zollverein coal mine was a marvel of efficiency while in operation from 1932 until…

The Roman Colonia Ulpia Traiana has been reborn as an archaeological park, an open-air museum that features faithfully reconstructed buildings to help…

Osnabrück-born Jewish painter Felix Nussbaum (1904–44), who emigrated to Belgium and was murdered at Auschwitz, hauntingly documented life, exile,…

Sculptures and ruins displayed outside the entrance are merely the overture to a full symphony of Roman artefacts found along the Rhine. Highlights…

A grand dame among Germany’s art repositories, the Museum Folkwang has sparkling digs designed by top British architect David Chipperfield. Galleries…

A stately 19th-century parliament building forms a fabulously dichotomous setting for the cutting-edge art of the K21 – a collection only showcasing works…

Aachen's cathedral treasury is a veritable mother lode of gold, silver and jewels. Of particular importance are the silver-and-gold bust of Charlemagne…

A collection that spans the arc of 20th-century artistic vision gives the K20 an enviable edge in the art world. It encompasses major works by Picasso,…

Molten iron used to flow 24/7 from the fiery furnaces of this decommissioned ironworks that is now an urban oasis, performance space and all-ages…

After a harmonious fusion of the 1908 neo-Renaissance original with an airy postmodern wing, Münster's main museum for art and culture now has the proper…

The favourite palace of archbishop and prince-elector Clemens August, Schloss Augustusburg is a precious rococo symphony designed by François Cuvilliés…

Close to the train station, this exquisite late-Gothic church is easily recognised by its neo-Gothic twin spires, which are undergoing restoration. One is…

One of Germany's finest art museums, the Wallraf-Richartz presents a primo collection of European art from the 13th to the 19th centuries in a minimalist…

Star composer Ludwig van Beethoven was born in 1770 in this rather humble townhouse, where today original scores, letters, paintings and instruments,…

The Haus der Geschichte der Bundesrepublik Deutschland presents a smart, fun romp through recent German history, starting from the end of WWII. Walk…

For a deeper understanding of the Roman presence in the region and the ruins in the adjacent Archaeological Park, the engaging RömerMuseum is a must. In a…