The Top Five Sights in Germany 2010

Categories: Sightseeing, Cultural and History

The second place goes to The Brandenburg Gate

[ source: Wikipedia]

For the third time the German Tourism Association has conducted a survey to find out which are the 15 most popular sights in Germany. Like in 2009 the winner is the Cologne (Cologne vacation rentals | Cologne travel guide) Cathedral, which certainly is one of the most important architectural monuments in Germany and on top of that the third tallest cathedral in the world. It took over 600 years to construct this Gothic masterpiece, and when it was finally finished in 1880, it was still true to the original plans from 1248. If you would like to find out which other sights managed to get into the Top Five, then read on.

Silver goes to the Brandenburg Gate, which usually is the first landmark that comes to mind when thinking of Berlin. It is the last remaining city gate in Germany’s capital and a place where history was made. As part of the Berlin (Berlin vacation rentals | Berlin travel guide) Wall, for decades after the Second World War it was a sad symbol for the division Berlin itself as well as the rest of Germany. But when in 1989, after a peaceful revolution, the Cold War ended and the first people from Eastern and Western Germany met at the opened Brandenburg Gate, it became the new symbol for the reunited Germany.

The third place goes to The Church of Our Lady in Dresden (Dresden vacation rentals | Dresden travel guide), which is another symbol of reconciliation between past enemies. Built in the 18th century, the church was destroyed in the firebombing of Dresden during the Second World War. Due to the increasing decay of the ruins, it was decided in 1994 to reconstruct the former glorious church. The rebuilding of the church was almost entirely financed by private donations and took 11 years to get finished. In 2005 the people of Dresden and visitors from all over the world celebrated the re—consecration of The Church of Our Lady.

The fourth most popular sight in Germany is the Port of Hamburg (Hamburg vacation rentals | Hamburg travel guide), which is the third largest one in Europe and also known as Germany’s Gateway to the World. Everybody who wants to get a true feeling of the wheeling and dealing constantly going on there, should get to the port as early as 5.00am on a Sunday and stroll around the traditional Fish Market. Everything you can imagine is dealt there — from antique china to the most exotic fish.

Finally, number five on the list is the Wartburg Castle in Thuringia, which was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List (List vacation rentals | List travel guide) as an Outstanding Monument of the Feudal Period in Central Europe in 1999. This is the place where Marin Luther stayed for a year in the first half of the 16th century to translate the New Testament into German and with this not only strengthened the Protestant Reformation but also made a major contribution to the development of modern German.

[ source: meinestadt.de ]

Location, Map, and Driving Directions

Related Links

About this Article

This travel guide has been written by Kathrin Wagner.

She grew up in a small town in Bavaria and then studied Media studies, Literature and History in Erlangen and Munich. As a student she already spent half a year in London and moved back there after graduation in 2006. She is still living in London, where she works in publishing.

More Germany Travel Related Articles

• "WaWi" in Munich, the Beer Garden for a real "Brotzeit"
• Saalfeld Fairy Grottoes
• boot Dusseldorf 2012
• Take a Carriage Ride to explore Oberstdorf
• Birkeneck Luxury Holiday Home
• Travemünde – Seaside Resort at the Baltic Sea
• Skiing Zugspitze
• Themed Holiday Trips to Germany
• Visit a traditional "Fest" in Germany
• Heidelberg's famous castle illuminations and fireworks

Nearby Destinations Where You Can Find Nice Germany Vacation Rentals

Cologne

Founded by the Romans in 38 B.C., Cologne (Köln) lies on the Rhine river, and is the largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia. Besides visiting the awesome Gothic Cathedral, visitors will want to explore the city’s even older Romanesque churches, as…

Related: Cologne travel guide

Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf is famous for its nightlife, carnival, events, and shopping, and also for fashion and trade fairs like the Boot Messe (famous for boats and watersports) and Igedo (fashion). Every year more than 4 Million people visit the big fun fair (Kirmes)…

Related: Düsseldorf travel guide

Aachen

Aachen is a historic spa city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was a favored residence of Charlemagne, and the place of coronation of the medieval Kings of Germany. It is the westernmost city of Germany, located along its borders with Belgium and…

Related: Aachen travel guide

Essen

Essen is a city in the center of the Ruhr Area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Located on the Ruhr River, its population of approximately 579,000 (as of June 30, 2008) makes it the 7th- or 8th-largest-city in Germany. The city was appointed European…

Related: Essen travel guide

Brühl

Brühl is a city in Germany, located 20 km south of Cologne, in the Rhein-Erft-Kreis. The town of Brühl was the residence of the Prince Bishops of Cologne. In the 18th century the Prince Bishop Clemens August replaced a former ruined castle and built…

Related: Brühl travel guide

Feedback, comments, questions?

If you have visited here please share your experiences with our readers on Facebook. Or, if you have other cool trip suggestions and would like to contribute a travel guide here, please drop me an email. We also are encouraging free-lancers, travel guide writers or publishers who have great Germany related content to send us an email and get in touch with us.