Düsseldorf weekend, shopping, dining, sightseeing. This German city with all its sits, architecture, the river Rhine, locals and tourist mingling together in a city that had a lot more to offer than what I thought.
Düsseldorf is not a huge airport, big enough but nothing like London Heathrow or Chicago O'Hare. Easy to find you way in other words. Our aircraft did not park at a gate, like many other aircraft so we were transported by bus into the terminal arrivals. After collecting our bag we just had to find the train to the city. Not difficult at all really, just read the signs.
As you can see the train ticket from the airport and to the city centre is cheap, only 2,50 Euro. And the travel time is about 20 minutes, maybe even a little less.
The city of Düsseldorf is not big either so it is easy to find your way around, as long as you have a map or something similar, GPS, google and so on. You can walk almost everywhere. We walked from the train station to you hotel, and it took only 10 minutes, and our hotel was situated in the middle of the city centre. When we arrived at the hotel we through our bags in the room and walked straight down to the river Rhine to have a Friday drink.
Saturday we had planned to see some more of the city and do some shopping. One of my favorite things to do when I visit a new city is to just walk around and see the sites I come across, of course I like to see all the popular, historic sites as well, but it is so much fun to just walk around and when you get to a place you look at the map to see where you are and what you see in front of you. Düsseldorf was no exception, let's start walking! The first thing I noticed is that there were some really beautiful buildings in this city. The architecture in the city is a little unique as you find everything from the early 1920's to new an moderne buildings that have become icons of the city. Also one of the oldest office blocks in Germany is actually in Düsseldorf.
Burgplatz, just by the River Rhine is a great place to relax and look around, it has been said that it is one of the most beautiful squares in Germany. Also a good place for some lunch or just a drink in the sun, whiles you look out on all the people and the river.
To get a better view of the river walk along the promenade by the river front, a really nice place especially when it is sunny and warm. This is also where you find a lot of bars and restaurants, and it is very popular amongst the locals and the tourists.
Notice the small details around you. I discovered this sign just by luck.
Düsseldorf is also a beautiful, and very active city by night, especially during the weekends, a lot of locals and tourist are out and there is plenty to see and do. (Have a own post about bars and restaurants in Düsseldorf if you want to read more about this, Düsseldorf bars and restaurants ).
Anyway, again I like to just walk and just see what I can find and in Düsseldorf this is a great tips as there is bars, restaurants, shops, people, buildings and amazing architecture popping up everywhere. Alstadt, the old town is a place you should visit. We spent Saturday night here, dinner and a few bars.
If you ever go to Düsseldorf I would definitely recommend you to take a tip up the Rhine Tower, Rheinturn. The view you get over the city is amazing. I'm afraid of height so I didn't enjoy it as much as other people (by the looks of it), but I am glad I made my self go up there because it is a must do thing in Düsseldorf.
The Rhine Tower is 240,5 meters high and was finished in 1981, took about two years to build it and it is relatively new considered other landmarks around the world. The observation deck is open to public every day from 10.00 AM to 11.30 PM and it costs 5 euros for one adult.
After being in that tower for a while I just had to get back down to the ground where I feel a lot more comfortable. A stroll back to the hotel to pick up our bags to go to the airport is okay now, plenty of time so I can enjoy the scenery on ground.
I must say that Düsseldorf surprised me in a very positive way and the city had a lot more to offer than what I expected in the first place. I would actually love to back someday and maybe bring a group of friends or something, this city is just perfect for a girls weekend.
Mange flotte bilder fra Dusseldorf! Enig med deg - å vandre gatelangs i en ny by er veldig befriende og spennende! Man blir litt fort lei av å rushe fra turistattraksjon til turistattraksjon. Da er det mye bedre å kunne stoppe litt underveis på små cafeer eller utforske en morsom bakgate! =)
SvarSlettJa jeg synes man ser så mye mer da og så passer det bra å bare gå rundt sånn i de byene som ikke er alt for store :)
SlettHaha! The skeletons at the bar! How fun to see
SvarSlettI know :) It was on on big boat but you weren't allowed to go down there, that was a bit of a bummer.
SlettKult! Aldri vært i Dusseldorf selv, men skal virkelig vurdere å droppe innom neste gang jeg har tid til overs i Tyskland.
SvarSlettDet burde du så absolutt gjøre, jeg var så positivt overrasket over denne byen og jeg gleder meg til å dra tilbake en dag :)
Slettvilken fin resa:)
SvarSlett