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Max Mueller Bhavan | India

German City Portraits

Germany is more than its landmarks. Its cities tell stories of history, creativity, transformation, and everyday life. Through our city portraits, discover the many faces of Germany — from cultural centres and university towns to maritime cities and urban landscapes in transition.

German City Portraits © Goethe-Institut | Tobias Schrank

North Germany

City Contours Bremen

Bremen isn’t Hamburg – but so what?!

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.

“Life without a pug is possible, but pointless:” The sketches and animated shorts of Vicco von Bülow, better known as Loriot, have become a New Year’s tradition in lots of families. Photo (detail): © picture alliance/BREUEL-BILD Photo (detail): © picture alliance/BREUEL-BILD

  • City contours Hamburg

    Groovy, individualist and friendly is what Hamburg is all about

    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). 

    The colourful, bohemian Sankt Pauli district. Photo (detail): © picture alliance/Helmut Meyer zur Capellen/imageBROKER Photo (detail): © picture alliance/Helmut Meyer zur Capellen/imageBROKER

  • City Contours Rostock

    On its Way

    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. 

    View of Rostock. Photo (detail): © Adobe Photo (detail): © Adobe

West Germany

City Contours Bonn

Who says Bonn is boring?

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.

Ludwig Beethoven surrounded by 700 doubles: this art instillation was set up in honour of the composer’s 250th birthday. Photo (detail): © picture alliance / Sven Simon Photo (detail): © picture alliance / Sven Simon

  • City contours Cologne

    For those with a head for heights and a heart for fun

    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.

    More to offer than the cathedral and the Carnival – Cologne is also a stronghold of gay and lesbian life: participant of the Christopher Street Day festival 2019. Photo (detail): © picture alliance/Christoph Hardt/Geisler-Fotopress Photo (detail): © picture alliance/Christoph Hardt/Geisler-Fotopress

  • Detours | Trier

    Romans and other famous individuals

    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?  

    The Romans left behind a whole series of architectural monuments in Trier that are now listed as UNESCO World Heritage sites: the Porta Nigra city gate is also Trier’s landmark. Photo (detail): © Adobe Photo (detail): © Adobe

  • City Contours Düsseldorf

    The Heart of North Rhine-Westphalia

    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.

    Düsseldorf © Nimish Sawant © Nimish Sawant

Central Germany

City contours Göttingen

The knowledge city with an innovative spirit

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.

In Göttingen, all roads lead to the university, with every fourth resident being a higher education student. Photo (detail): © picture alliance/dpa/Swen Pförtner Photo (detail): © picture alliance/dpa/Swen Pförtner

  • City contours Frankfurt

    Frankfurt: from soaring skyline to down-to-earth graffiti

    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.

    City of opposites: the skate park next to the European Central Bank. Photo (detail): © picture alliance / Westend61 / Martin Moxter Photo (detail): © picture alliance / Westend61 / Martin Moxter

  • City contours Jena

    Life is bene in Jene

    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.
     

    Graffiti and industrial buildings in front of the Zeiss Tower. Photo (detail): © Adobe Photo (detail): © Adobe

  • City contours Weimar

    “A Marvel in Thuringia's Heartbeat.”

    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.

    Goethe–Schiller Monument in Weimar Detail © Nimish Sawant Detail © Nimish Sawant

East Germany

City contours Berlin

“Dit is Berlin”

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. 

Berlin has a reputation for being loud, non-conformist and just a bit rude. Take a look into what the German capital is really like. Photo (detail): © picture alliance/Sabine Lubenow/DUMONT Bildarchiv Photo (detail): © picture alliance/Sabine Lubenow/DUMONT Bildarchiv

  • City contours Dresden

    Dresden: pomp to prefab

    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.

    A view through the alleys of Dresden’s old town: In part due to its architecture, the city is also known as “Florence on the Elbe” or the “Venice of the North”. Photo (detail): © Adobe Photo (detail): © Adobe

  • City contours Leipzig

    Green art city with an industrial past

    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.

    When art becomes an adventure: an installation in Leipzig’s Kunstkraftwerk. Photo (detail): © picture alliance/dpa/dpa-Zentralbild/Waltraud Grubitzsch Photo (detail): © picture alliance/dpa/dpa-Zentralbild/Waltraud Grubitzsch

South Germany

City contours Freiburg

Eco-city with a bath for ladies

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.
 

Wellingtons comme planteurs dans une Bächle. Photo (detail): © Adobe Photo (detail): © Adobe

  • City contours Heidelberg

    A City of Literature, Culture, and Contrast

    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.

    Heidelberg © Nimish Sawant © Nimish Sawant

  • City Contours Munich

    Conservative? Traditional? Boozy?

    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.

    Surfer at Eisbachwelle Photo (detail): © picture alliance / Mika Photo (detail): © picture alliance / Mika

  • City Contours Schwäbisch Hall

    Probably the smallest cosmopolitan city in the world

    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.

    While other cities celebrate Carnival or Fasching, the residents of Hall get decked out in fantastic costumes to parade through the streets to the Hallia Venezia. Photo (detail): © Adobe Photo (detail): © Adobe

  • City contours Mannheim

    It’s hip to be square

    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.

    Though many might find it hard to believe, Mannheim has a lot to offer party-goers: a neon sign in the hip Junbusch district. Photo (detail): © Jan Zipperer Photo (detail): © Jan Zipperer

  • City contours Nuremberg

    A touch of Bella Italia

    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.
     

    The rust-red roofs of Nuremberg, where some streets surprisingly offer an almost Mediterranean flair: view from Nuremberg Castle. Photo (detail): © Adobe Photo (detail): © Adobe