From the Baroque towers and palaces of Dresden to the Berlin Wall, this is my guide to the best places to visit in Eastern Germany.
I’ve been visiting this fascinating part of Germany for over 25 years. I have always found it one of the most compelling regions to visit.
Beyond Berlin, it’s still relatively off the beaten path for many international travellers – it’s nowhere near as widely known as Bavaria or the Black Forest. Quedlinburg or Goslar are every bit as enchanting as the much more famous Rothenburg – it’s just that far less people have discovered them.
And there is also a whole layer of history – when the region was Communist East Germany – to uncover.
I hope you enjoy my guide and find these places as fascinating as I have.
These are the best places to visit in Eastern Germany.
1. Berlin
Berlin is the capital of Germany and, by some distance, the largest city in the country. It’s gritty rather than pretty, but one of the most absorbing cities in Europe, and the world for that matter.
Berlin is where the longest conflict of the 20th century, the Cold War, played out. The Berlin Wall divided the city for 28 years, and its fall in 1989 was the sign that the Iron Curtain that divided Europe for so long was also about to fall.
Many of the main Berlin landmarks are from this period and the turbulent Nazi reign that preceded it. But beyond these, it’s a city with a wealth of architecture, from the splendid Baroque Schloss Charlottenburg to the Stalin-era Socialist Realist Karl-Marx-Allee.
Since the fall of the Wall, Berlin has attracted a huge community of artists from around the world. The city’s arts scene is outstanding, reflected in the street art in the likes of Kreuzberg and Schoneberg.
It’s also home to many superb museums, from the older World Heritage-listed institutions on Museum Island to the amazing Jewish Museum.
Top things to see and do in Berlin: Brandenburg Gate; Berlin Wall Memorial and East Side Gallery; Reichstag Building and its glass dome; Museum Island, especially the Pergamon Museum; Jewish Museum; Berlin Story with the Bunker; Checkpoint Charlie
Good to See: Leave time to explore some of the different Kieze (neighborhoods) Kreuzberg, Friedrichshain, Neukolln, and Prenzlauer Berg with their lively markets, street art, cafes, architecture, and shops.
As for eating out in Berlin, Turkish, Lebanese, and Syrian food is some of the best in the world. Lakes, forests, outdoor bars, restaurants, and festivals in summertime.
How Much Time Do You Need: If it’s your first time in Berlin, 3-4 days is ideal to cover the major sights, but a week is ideal to immerse yourself fully in the city’s culture, history, and nightlife.
Best Things to Do with Kids: Visit the Berlin Zoo, one of the world’s oldest and most biodiverse zoos. Or take a boat tour on the Spree River. Also, glimpse life under Communism at the excellent DDR Museum and visit the excellent Spy Museum.
See Also: Photographing Berlin – 15 Fantastic Photo Locations Around Berlin and 15 Best Day Trips From Berlin
2. Dresden
Dresden has been recognised as one of the most beautiful cities in Europe for centuries. Its Baroque skyline is breathtaking – small wonder it was known as the Florence of the Elbe.
Dresden has always been popular with Germans and Central Europeans but remains relatively undiscovered to international visitors. The historic centre of the city was destroyed during an Allied bombing raid in 1945, and it took 60 years for it to be rebuilt. The final element of this reconstruction is the soaring Baroque Frauenkirche, one of the most beautiful churches in Europe.
There are also several other churches in Dresden to visit, including the ornate Catholic Cathedral next to the river. The city is home to several outstanding museums. The Zwinger Palace is best known for its Old Masters Gallery (Alte Gemaldegalerie). And the Residenzschloss *(Royal Castle) across the street is renowned for its amazing collection of jewels and treasures in the Historic Green Vault (Grünes Gewolbe).
If you’re planning a Central Europe trip, especially between Prague and Berlin, then I strongly suggest stopping at Dresden. It’s a stunning city and a great base, with day trips from Dresden to places like the Bastei Bridge, Meissen, and Moritzburg Castle.
Top Things to See and Do: Visit Frauenkirche, the iconic baroque church and climb the dome for amazing views; Zwinger Palace, with its galleries and museums, Old Masters Gallery, and Porcelain Collection; Semperoper, the famous opera house; Residenzschloss, The Green Vault, and New Green Vault, two unique treasure chambers; walk along the Brühlsche Terrasse and enjoy the views along the River Elbe; Military History Museum.
Good To See: Stasi Museum Dresden; the world’s oldest funicular railway in the suburb of Loschwitz, the Elbe Castles overlooking the river; explore the cafes, bars, and courtyards of Dresden Neustadt.
How Much Time Do You Need: Two to three days to explore the main attractions. Allow longer if you want to take some day trips to Meissen, Gorlitz, Saxon Switzerland, or Leipzig.
Best Things to Do with Kids: Visit Dresden Zoo. Explore the Dresden Transport Museum and the Hygiene Museum, and enjoy the Great Garden (Großer Garten), a large park with a miniature railway.
3. Leipzig
Leipzig is the largest city in eastern Germany outside Berlin, and the one that has possibly changed the most along with Berlin since Germany was reunified in 1990. This has been helped along in recent years by the arrival of more and more creative people, squeezed out of Berlin by soaring rents.
For over 300 years, Leipzig has had an astonishingly rich musical heritage. It’s best known as the former home of Johann Sebastian Bach, who was choirmaster at the Thomaskirche (St Thomas Church) for over 20 years. Richard Wagner was also born in the city, and Robert Schumann also lived and worked in Leipzig. Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy also lived in Leipzig for six years.
The renowned Gewandhaus Orchestra, the 800-year-old St Thomas’s Boys Choir, and the Leipzig Opera are musical institutions of world renown.
Leipzig also made an enormous contribution to the fall of the GDR (Communist East Germany) in 1989. Peaceful weekly gatherings at the Nikolaikirche (St Nicholas Church) gradually grew, and by October 1989 the crowds were in their thousands. The church authorities asked both protesters and state security forces to avoid violence.
They did so, and the gatherings grew exponentially in the following few weeks. The Communist authorities had lost control. Within a month the Berlin Wall was down, and German reunification was within reach.
How Much Time Do You Need: Two days to see the highlights. Check out my One Day In Leipzig article to find what you can realistically see in a single day. My companion Leipzig Landmarks article shows you all the main sights, most of which are within walking distance of each other.
Best Things to Do with Kids: Leipzig Zoo, one of the oldest and best zoos in the world. Away from the city centre, explore the lively Plagwitz and Lindenau.
See Also: Runde Ecke Stasi Museum Leipzig – One Of The Best Museums On East Germany and the Bach Museum Leipzig – delving into the world of Johann Sebastian Bach. The Leipzig City History Museum also does a great job of bringing all the strands of the city’s story together.
Nearby: There are many great day trips from Leipzig – check out my feature on the best things to do in Torgau for one of the most rewarding.
4. Potsdam
Potsdam is the most popular day trip from Berlin, a fascinating small city just an hour away from the centre of Berlin by S-Bahn train.
It’s the capital of the Land (state) of Brandenburg, and was formerly a favoured residence of Prussian kings and princes eager to show off their wealth. And they left an extraordinary architectural legacy.
Potsdam is most famous for its World Heritage-listed Sanssouci Palace and Park, on the edge of the city centre. The Park takes a few hours to explore, and includes the Neues Palais, a much larger and grander affair than the Sanssouci. THere are more superb buildings around the park, from the Italian-inspired Peace Church to the gorgeous Chinese Teahouse.
The small city centre is also rich in architecture. There you’ll find one of master architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel’s most famous churches, the beautiful red-brick Dutch Quarter and the Russian-inspired wooden houses of the Alexandrovka village.
Anyone with an interest in the Cold War should also visit Potsdam. The Potsdam Conference of 1945 decided on the division of Germany (between West and East, with the latter under Soviet control) after World War II. The Conference, at the Cecilienhof Palace, effectively set the stage for the raising of the Iron Curtain and Cold War.
How Much Time Do You Need: 2 days are ideal to visit the main attractions, A single day trip from Berlin wasn’t enough for me, so I had to go back.
Best Things to Do with Kids: Exploring the Babelsberg Film Studio Park. Visiting the Biosphere Potsdam, a tropical greenhouse with over 20,000 plants. Enjoying a boat tour on the lakes around Potsdam.
5. Saxon Switzerland National Park
The Saxon Switzerland National Park is the more alluring name of the Elbe Sandstone Mountains to the south-east of Dresden. Together with the Bohemian Switzerland National Park across the border in the Czech Republic, it forms one of the most remarkable landscapes in Europe.
The mountains got their name from two Swiss artists who worked at the Dresden Academy of Arts in the late 18th century. The mountains reminded them of the Swiss Jura, and the name stuck!
Much of the landscape consists of what the Czechs call ‘rock cities’, amazing labyrinths of sandstone pinnacles. There are some phenomenal hiking trails through and around these.
The most famous landmark in Saxon Switzerland is the 19th-centrury Bastei Bridge, built across the highest pinnacles in the National Park to reach the remains of a rock castle, Felsenburg Neurathen.
It’s also easy to explore across the border. You can catch the train to Schöna, the ferry to Hřensko on the Czech side, then hike or catch a bus to Pravčička Brana, a stunning natural rock arch.
Top Things to See and Do: Bastei Bridge, offering spectacular views, especially at sunrise in summer; Königstein Fortress, one of the largest hilltop fortifications in Europe; Pravčická brána, Europe’s largest natural sandstone arch; Hiking the Malerweg, a scenic trail through the park; Boat trips on the Elbe River’ Hiking to the Bastei Bridge at sunrise for breathtaking sandstone formations and the Elbe River views.
How Much Time Do You Need: Most people come for a day trip. But you could easily spend a week exploring the many hiking trails, including the Malerweg, which connects places in the region that inspired artists.
6. Erfurt
Erfurt, the capital city of Thuringia, is off the international travellers’ beaten track. This is ironic as it was on the Via Regia, one of the major trans-Europe trade routes of the Middle Ages. And it’s even harder to figure out when it’s one of the best-connected cities in Germany by rail!
Erfurt suffered very little damage during World War II, so is one of the best-preserved medieval cities in Germany. It’s a wonderful city to wander, home to some outstanding churches, cobbled streets and squares, many timber-framed houses and colourful Renaissance buildings.
One of the best-known Erfurt sights is the Krämerbrücke (Merchants’ Bridge), one of just four bridges in Europe lined with shops. The Domplatz, with the Cathedral and St Severus Church, is one of the most beautiful squares in Europe. And Erfurt’s Old Synagogue (Alte Synagoge) is a recently inscribed UNESCO World Heritage Site, along with the Mikveh (Bath House).
Erfurt is also an important stop on the Martin Luther trail, as he studied and was later ordained there.
Good to see: Topf & Söhne Memorial, a fascinating exhibition in the office building of the company that built the incinerators for the crematoria at the Auschwitz death camp.
How Much Time Do You Need: Two days to explore the main sights and soak in the medieval atmosphere.
Best Things to Do with Kids: Climb the Agidienkirche church tower for fantastic views over Erfurt. Visit Egapark Erfurt, a large botanical garden with wonderful playgrounds.
7. Weimar
Weimar has often been regarded as the cultural capital of Germany. It was the epicentre of Germany’s 18th-century enlightenment, and home to two of its greatest writers, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Friedrich Schiller, lived. It is also where Goethe wrote Faust, his most famous work.
Many more greats from the schools of arts, literature and philosophy have lived in Weimar including Franz Liszt, Friedrich Nietzsche and Wassily Kandinsky.
In the 20th century, Weimar was also the birthplace of the influential Bauhaus architecture and design movement, and the Bauhaus Museum is an essential stop if you’re interested in early 20th-century architecture.
Top Things to See and Do: Goethe’s House and the Goethe National Museum; Duchess Anna Amalia Library – UNESCO listed library, Schloss Tiefurt – UNESCO country house, Park An der Ilm, Friedrich Schiller’s House.
Nice to see: The Neues Museum, the Bauhaus Museum, Hoffman’s – one of Germany’s oldest bookstores, Liszt-Haus — House where Hungarian composer Franz Liszt lived in the summers from 1869 to 1886.
How Much Time Do You Need: One to three days depending on how many museums you wish to see..The15-minute train ride from Erfurt makes for an easy day trip.
Best Things to Do with Kids: Exploring the Park an der Ilm, Visiting the Weimarhaus, a museum that presents the city’s history in an engaging way.
8. Rügen Island
The Baltic Sea is where Germany goes to the beach, and Rügen Island is perhaps the best place to do it. I have long rated it one of the most beautiful islands in Europe.
My highlight is the glorious Jasmund National Park, especially hiking along the coast and beaches with the iconic white cliffs. One of the best is the Pirate’s Gorge (Piratenschlucht), leading to a pebble beach with amazing cliffs.
There are also plenty of fantastic beaches on Rügen. Don’t miss Sellin – with its wonderful Pier – and nearby Binz, on the east coast of the island. Away from the coast, there is also a superb treetop walkway near Prora.
And for history buffs, Prora is one of the most bizarre places you will ever visit. The Nazis built this vast complex of seaside apartments for the masses, but they were never completed or used. The complex was the work of the Kraft durch Freude (Strength Through Joy) movement. It was all part of their attempt to mould German society – it boils down to ‘brainwash them with a beach holiday’!
One of the apartment blocks has been preserved as a museum, while the other surviving buildings have been converted to apartments.
How Much Time Do You Need: 3-4 days to enjoy the best of the beaches, hikes, and historical sites. But it’s somewhere you could linger far longer.
Best Things to Do with Kids: Visiting the Dinosaur Land Rügen, the treetop walk at Naturerbe Zentrum Rügen. And, of course, the beaches and promenades.
9. Meissen
Meissen is one of the best places to visit in Eastern Germany. This small city on the River Elbe is gorgeous, its riverfront dominated by the citadel of the Albrechtsburg Castle and the twin spires of Meissen Cathedral next door.
Meissen was a seat of power in the early Middle Ages, holding sway over much of Saxony. Its magnificent Old Town reflects this, the steep streets lined with fine merchants’ and burghers’ houses. The splendid Markt is one of the most beautiful squares in Germany, with a splendid Rathaus (Town Hall) the focal point.
And all of this before I mention Meissen porcelain. Meissen is the first place in Europe where the Asian art of creating porcelain was perfected. You can see it being made in the Meissen Porcelain Factory just outside the Old Town, and some superb examples. I recommend combining this with a visit to the extraordinary Porcelain Collection in the Zwinger Palace in Dresden.
Ideas for Traveling with Kids: The porcelain painting workshop at the Meissen Porcelain Factory is a fun and creative activity for families.
How Much Time Should You Spend in Meissen? A day trip is enough to see all the main sights in Meissen.
See Also: 10 Best Things To Do In Meissen Germany
10. Görlitz
Görlitz is one of the most beautiful cities in Germany. It’s the easternmost city in Germany, sitting on the border with Poland. Indeed, part of Görlitz – Zgorzelec – is across the River Neisse in Poland.
Görlitz somehow escaped the bombs that wrecked so many German cities during World War II. Görlitz is still in its original condition, with stunning details like its carved doorways and the beautifully preserved Renaissance entrance to the Ratscafe.
Every street is endowed with gorgeous medieval or Baroque houses. Unsurprisingly, it has become a popular film location, so much so that it has been called Görliwood. The best-known film shot there is probably The Grand Budapest Hotel, filmed in the Kaufhaus, the city’s Art Nouveau former department store.
Top Things to See and Do:
Explore the beautifully preserved Old Towna and visit the Görlitz Department Store, the inspiration for The Grand Budapest Hotel;.Walk across the bridge to Zgorzelec, Poland; St. Peter and Paul Church, with its stunning Sun Organ; Görlitz Zoo.
How Much Time Do You Need:
Two days is ample, but one full day would give you enough to see the main sights.
Best Things to Do with Kids
Meeting the animals at the wonderful Görlitz Zoo – one of the best small zoos we have ever visited. And take them on a quick cross-border trip over the bridge to Poland.
See Also: 12 Wonderful Things To Do In Görlitz
11. Harz Mountains
The Harz Mountains are one of the most beautiful landscapes in Germany. These hills and forests straddle Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. They gently rise from around 200 metres above sea level to the highest point, the Brocken, at over 1,100 metres above sea level.
Much of the Harz is wilderness, though there are hundreds of hiking trails across the National Park. You could opt for hikes through the pristine Bode Gorge near Thale, or take the more leisurely way around the Harz on the network of narrow-gauge steam trains.
The highlight is the Brockenbahn service to the summit of the Brocken, an amazing experience especially in winter. The less frequent service from Nordhausen (to the south) is the most scenic route, but the route from Wernigerode to the north is also spectacular.
The Harz region is also famous for its beautifully preserved UNESCO medieval towns, some of which are long-established UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Top Things to See and Do: Ride the Harz Narrow Gauge Railways to Brocken, the highest peak; Explore the medieval towns of Wernigerode Quedlinburg and Goslar; Hiking or mountain biking through the national park.Visit the mines of Rammelsberg (a UNESCO World Heritage Site).
How Much Time Do You Need: 2-3 days to enjoy the natural beauty, with additional time if you’re keen on extensive hiking or visiting multiple towns.
Best Things to Do with Kids: Sommerrodelbahn Bocksbergbob, a not-too-taxing bobsleigh ride for kids and families; the Brockenbahn steam train ride is also a hit with families, as are the region’s numerous fairy-tale trails and adventure parks.
12. Wernigerode
Wernigerode is a gorgeous medieval town on the northern edge of the Harz Mountains, and the closest town to the Brocken, the highest peak in the Harz and Northern Germany. It’s one of the most enchanting of the half-timbered towns in Germany, with a beautiful late Gothic town hall (pictured) and a fairytale castle on the hill overlooking the town.
The town also has a wealth of half-timbered houses, many of which date from around the late 16th and early 17th centuries. And don’t miss the Brockenbahn, which offers trips to the summit of the mountain, year-round.
Top Things to See and Do: Wernigerode Castle;.The historic Town Hall and the old town’s timber-framed houses. The Harz Narrow Gauge Railway, which offers trips to the Brocken, the highest peak in the Harz Mountains especially magical in winter. Harz Museum.
How Much Time Do You Need: One to three days to explore the town, the castle, and take a day trip on the steam railway the Harz area.
Best Things to Do with Kids: The Harz Narrow Gauge Steam Railway; the Miniature Park to see the Harz Mountains region in miniature. The road train ride up to Schloss Wernigerode is also magical; Wildlife Park Christianental;
The Wernigeröeder Maerchenweg (aka Fairytale Trail) is a 2.5 km hike that starts at Hasseröder Ferienpark, with Rapunzel’s Tower at the end.
See Also: 11 Best Things To Do In Wernigerode
13. Quedlinburg
Quedlinburg is one of the best-preserved medieval towns in Europe in the beautiful Harz Mountains. The town is more than 1.000 years old, completely preserved, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with more than 1,200 half-timbered buildings.
The town is on the eastern edge of the Harz Mountains, and even the Communist East German government (known for once blowing up a 13th-century church to suit its political ends) held Quedlinburg in high regard.
The 12th-century Collegiate Church of St Servatius is one of the best-preserved Romanesque churches in Germany. It houses the 10th-century tomb of Henry I the Fowler and his Queen Mathilde, and is also home to one of the oldest tapestries in Europe, dating from the 12th century.
Don’t miss the town’s exquisite Marktplatz (main square) and the half-timbered houses of the Altstadt (Old Town), particularly along Breite Strasse.
Top Things to See and Do: Explore the Old Town’s cobblestone streets, home to over 2000 timber-framed houses. Don’t miss Breite Strasse for its beautiful houses and Schuhhof, the narrowest street leading to the timber-framed houses of Hölle, Pölle, and Stieg. Quedlinburg Castle (Schloss Quedlinburg) and the Collegiate Church of St. Servatius and the Quedlinburg Treasure.
See Also: Germany Half-Timbered Towns Itinerary – three of the most beautiful half-timbered towns in the country, also including Werrnigerode and Goslar
Nice to see: The oldest half-timbered house in Germany is located at Wordgasse 3 and is now a half-timbered museum; The Harz Narrow Gauge Railways, for trips into the Harz Mountains. And the 10th-century church of St Cyriakus in Gernrode.
How Much Time Do You Need: One day is enough to explore the town – two to three days if you wish to see more of the Harz Mountains. Check out my guide to the best Things To Do In Quedlinburg for more information.
Best Things to Do with Kids: Take a ride on the Harz Narrow Gauge Railways.
14. Goslar
Goslar is a stunning town located on the northwestern edge of the Harz Mountains in Lower Saxony. Goslar’s Old Town is a treasure trove of over a thousand half-timbered houses from various periods, with narrow streets, and charming squares.
For many, Rothenburg ob der Tauber has become shorthand for ‘historic Germany’ but we think Goslar could stand in for it just as well. Its medieval houses are remarkable – full of amazing detailed carvings, often a little rude and ribald!
The UNESCO World Heritage Site on the north-western edge of the Harz Mountains includes not only the Goslar Old Town, the Upper Harz Water Management System but also the Rammelsberg ore mine. This is the only mine in the world to have been in continuous operation for over 1,000 years.
Top things to see and do in Goslar: The Marktplatz (Market Square), one of the best-preserved medieval squares in Germany, and stroll through the Old Town with its beautiful half-timbered houses. Explore the Rammelsberg Mine, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Visit the Imperial Palace of Goslar.
See Also: 16 Best Things To Do In Goslar Germany
15. Bautzen
Bautzen is one of the hidden gems of Eastern Germany. It’s known to Germans, but the English-speaking world is yet to cotton on.
This is surprising as it’s got more than a large helping of medieval magic. Don’t miss the stunning view of the Old Town and its skyline of towers from the bridge above the River Spree. When I first saw it, it reminded me of the Tuscan hilltown of San Gimignano, with its many towers. Bautzen’s old town is every bit as picturesque.
The town is an hour east of Dresden, and is the capital of the Upper Lusatia region close to the Polish and Czech borders. It’s also the cultural capital of the Sorbs, a minority Western Slavic people living in eastern Saxony. You can discover more about their history in the Sorbian Museum in the grounds of the Ortenburg Castle in the Old Town.
The name Bautzen had different connotations throughout the history of Communist East Germany. It was home to two of the regime’s most feared prisons, and Bautzen II – now the Bautzen Memorial – was run by the regime’s much-feared secret police, the Stasi.
Top Things to See and Do in Bautzen: The medieval town center with its impressive fortifications; Dom St Petri – Bautzen’s unusual ‘double cathedral’; Ortenburg Castle.; The Sorbian Museum showcases the culture and traditions of the Sorbian minority.; The leaning Reichenturm tower.
How Much Time Do You Need: One to two days, perfect for a thorough exploration of the town’s historic and cultural sites.
Best Things to Do with Kids: Dinosaur Park Kleinwelka, just outside Bautzen, and enjoying outdoor activities at the Bautzen Reservoir.
16. Colditz Castle
Colditz Castle was off the tourist trail until fairly recent times, just one of a great many medieval castles to Germans I know. However, it is widely known among aficionados of World War II history in Western Europe and English-speaking countries because of its history as a prison camp during the War. One of my school friends even had an Escape From Colditz board game!
Colditz served as a camp for captured Allied officers and previous escapees, and was known as OFLAG-IVC. It was meant to be the most secure prison camp in the Nazi network.
However, by putting these people together, the Nazis essentially created a brains trust determined to break free of the confines of Colditz. Many did, and it took incredibly ingenious methods to do so, from home-made gliders to tunnels.
There is an Escape Museum within the castle, documenting these many daring escapes, and also a wider guided tour of the Castle, exploring its history as a POW camp.
You can also stay in the Castle – part of it now serves as a Youth Hostel.
How Much Time Do You Need: Half a day to a full day on a day trip from Leipzig.
17. Chemnitz
Chemnitz is one of the most fascinating places to visit in Eastern Germany. In the 19th century, this city at the foot of the Ore Mountains was called the Manchester of Saxony because of its thriving textile industry.
Like Dresden, the historic centre of Chemnitz was largely destroyed by Allied bombing raids in 1945. However, its fate was very different. There was to be no meticulous rebuild of Chemnitz. Instead, a new city centre was built, with grand large open spaces and modernist buildings.
It also had a new name foisted upon it. For most of the history of Communist East Germany, it was known as Karl-Marx-Stadt. It had no connection with the political philosopher, but that didn’t matter to the GDR regime. Nor did it to the Soviets, who helped themselves to the city’s tram tracks but gave a monolithic slab of Marx as a gift to the city that then bore his name.
Chemnitz’s revival has been much slower than Dresden’s, but it’s slowly building. It resumed its old name in 1990, and there are pockets of beauty around the city, including the Art Nouveau houses of the Kassberg district and the splendid Old Town Hall. In 2025, Chemnitz will be the European Capital of Culture.
Top Things to See and Do in Chemnitz: Chemnitz Old Town Hall; Majolica Art Nouveau houses; Karl Marx Monument; Natural History Museum; Chemnitz Industrial Museum; Saxon Railway Museum
How Much Time Do You Need: One day is enough, allow two days if you would like to visit one of the superb Saxon castles nearby (Klaffenbach, Rabenstein, or Kriebstein).
Best Things to Do with Kids: Visiting the Chemnitz Zoo., Saxon Railway Museum, or Natural History Museum
Best Places To Visit In Eastern Germany – Final Words
I hope you have enjoyed my guide to the best places to visit in the eastern part of Germany.
If you’re interested in seeing more of the country, check out my guide to the best places to visit in Germany, which covers the entire country. Don’t miss my article on visiting Naumburg Cathedral, a stunning World Heritage-listed church a short distance from Leipzig.
I have written many more guides to different parts of Germany. Take a look at my guide to the best Rhine River Castles to visit, and the accompanying feature on the best Rhine River Towns.
If you’re curious about visiting other cities around Germany, check out my guides to One Day In Nuremberg and One Day in Hamburg for short break ideas.
For even more ideas, check out my Germany Travel Guide.
David Angel is a British photographer, writer and historian. He is a European travel expert with over 30 years’ experience exploring Europe. He has a degree in History from Manchester University, and his work is regularly featured in global media including the BBC, Condé Nast Traveler, The Guardian, The Times, and The Sunday Times. David is fluent in French and Welsh, and can also converse in Italian, German, Portuguese, Spanish, Czech and Polish.