North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) is Germany's most populous state, and its sights are packed close together. Along the Rhine you'll find Cologne Cathedral and Aachen Cathedral, the oldest UNESCO World Heritage Site in Germany. In the Ruhr, former coal mines, blast furnaces and gas tanks have become museums, parks and exhibition halls, and in between lie Münster's arcaded Prinzipalmarkt, the Wuppertal Suspension Railway and the Drachenfels hill in the Siebengebirge.
This page covers our top 10 picks for NRW, one- and two-day itineraries, transportation tips and the best time to visit, followed by every NRW attraction in the tripto.de catalog. Opening hours and prices are listed on each attraction's page, so check with the operator before you go. Note: since July 1, 2026, visiting Cologne Cathedral as a sightseer requires a ticket.
Our picks for a first visit — each with a short reason why.
Churches & monasteries
Cologne
Cologne Cathedral is the soaring Gothic landmark of Cologne, Germany, and one of the largest cathedrals in the world. Its twin spires rise about 157 m (515 ft) right next to the main train station, and it has been a UNESCO World Heritage S…
1. More than 600 years in the making, home to the Shrine of the Three Kings. Since July 2026 a visit costs €12; kids 13 and under are free, and you can still enter free to pray via the north portal.
Churches & monasteries
Aachen
Aachen Cathedral (Aachener Dom) in the city of Aachen, right on Germany's border with Belgium and the Netherlands, is the church Charlemagne built as the heart of his empire around the year 800. It became Germany's first UNESCO World Herit…
2. Charlemagne's palace chapel with its eight-sided Octagon, Germany's first UNESCO site. Admission is free; the choir hall and throne are shown only on a 45-minute guided tour.
Industrial heritage
Essen
The Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex (Zeche Zollverein) in Essen is the icon of Germany's Ruhr region and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2001. Its red double-trestle winding tower is one of the most recognizable industrial struc…
3. The red double headframe of Shaft XII is the Ruhr's icon. The grounds are free; guided tours of the mine and coking plant and the Ruhr Museum charge admission.
Industrial heritage
Duisburg
Landschaftspark Duisburg-Nord is a former steelworks in Duisburg that has been transformed into a public park, one of the most striking examples of industrial heritage in Europe. Across some 445 acres (180 ha), rusting blast furnaces stand…
4. A shuttered ironworks turned park: climb Blast Furnace 5, watch climbers in ore bunkers and divers in the gas tank. Open 24/7 and free, with a light show on weekend evenings.
Industrial heritage
Wuppertal
The Wuppertal Schwebebahn is the world's oldest electric suspended monorail still in regular service and the symbol of the city of Wuppertal in western Germany. Since 1901 its cars have hung from a steel frame, gliding mostly above the Wup…
5. Cars have hung above the Wupper River since 1901, and the line turns 125 in 2026. A Deutschlandticket or regular VRR ticket covers the 13.3-km (8-mile) ride.
Old towns & squares
Münster
The Prinzipalmarkt in Münster is one of the most photogenic old-town streets in northern Germany: a curving row of tall sandstone gabled houses above a continuous arcade, framed by the Gothic tower of St. Lambert's Church. It is also a key…
6. Gabled houses over arcades, St. Lambert's tower and the Historic City Hall, where part of the Peace of Westphalia was sealed in 1648. The Peace Hall costs €3.
Monuments
Detmold
The Hermannsdenkmal (Hermann Monument) near Detmold is a colossal copper statue of the Germanic chieftain Arminius, standing 53.46 meters (175 feet) tall on a forested hill in the Teutoburg Forest. Unveiled in 1875, it commemorates the amb…
7. At 53.46 meters (175 ft), one of Germany's tallest statues, unveiled in 1875 in the Teutoburg Forest. The grounds are free; the viewing platform costs €5.
Viewpoints
Königswinter
The Drachenfels ("Dragon's Rock") near Königswinter is the most famous hill in the Siebengebirge range and one of the classic viewpoints on the Rhine. Its summit, about 321 m (1,053 ft) high, is crowned by the ruins of a medieval castle, w…
8. A castle ruin atop a hill of about 321 meters (1,053 ft) in the Siebengebirge, with views down the Rhine to Bonn. Hike up or ride Germany's oldest rack railway.
Museums
Bonn
The Beethoven House in Bonn (Beethoven-Haus) is the birthplace of Ludwig van Beethoven and home to the world's largest Beethoven collection. In this modest pink townhouse on Bonngasse, the composer was born in December 1770. Today its crea…
9. The composer's birthplace holds the world's largest Beethoven collection. The special exhibit Beethoven by Warhol runs through April 5, 2027; closed Tuesdays.
Theme parks
Brühl
Phantasialand in Brühl, between Cologne and Bonn, is one of Germany's most popular theme parks and is famous for its richly themed worlds. Instead of rides lined up in open fields, roller coasters like Taron, Black Mamba and F.L.Y. weave t…
10. Themed areas like Klugheim and Rookburgh with rides such as Taron and F.L.Y. Tickets are online only; the Wintertraum season runs Nov 14, 2026 to Jan 24, 2027.
Start right next to the main station. Allow two hours if you add the tower climb and treasury; a combined tower and treasury ticket is €12.
Places: Cologne Cathedral
Walk through the Old Town to the Alter Markt with its brewpubs, then on to the Romanesque church of Great St. Martin. The church is closed on Mondays.
Places: Alter Markt (Old Market Square) Great St. Martin Church
Follow the river to the Chocolate Museum (daily 10 a.m.–6 p.m., last entry 5 p.m.) and the crane houses of the Rheinauhafen.
Places: Chocolate Museum Cologne Rheinauhafen (Rheinau Harbor)
Cross the bridge lined with love locks to Deutz and ride up to the KölnTriangle observation deck for the classic cathedral view.
Places: Hohenzollern Bridge KölnTriangle
Cathedral first, then Museum Ludwig next door for Pop Art and Picasso (closed Mondays, free under 18).
Places: Cologne Cathedral Museum Ludwig
Lunch at a brewpub on the Alter Markt, then a look inside Great St. Martin.
Places: Alter Markt (Old Market Square) Great St. Martin Church
Walk across the Hohenzollern Bridge and catch sunset from the KölnTriangle (October–April daily 11 a.m.–8 p.m.).
Places: Hohenzollern Bridge KölnTriangle
Take streetcar 107 from Essen main station to the Zollverein stop. A one-hour mine tour costs €12.50; the Ruhr Museum is open daily 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
The current exhibit, Mythos Wald, has been extended through November 2027. Closed Mondays except during NRW school breaks.
Places: Gasometer Oberhausen
Finish by climbing Blast Furnace 5. On weekend evenings a light installation bathes the site in color.
Places: Landscape Park Duisburg-Nord
Skip the Ruhr for Beethoven's birthplace in the morning, then take light rail line 66 to Königswinter and the rack railway up to Drachenfels and Drachenburg Castle.
By air: The main airports are Düsseldorf and Cologne Bonn. From Cologne Bonn Airport, S-Bahn line S19 runs every 20 minutes and reaches Cologne main station in about 14 minutes. At Düsseldorf, the SkyTrain links the terminals with the long-distance train station in about 7 minutes, and S-Bahn line S11 stops beneath the terminal.
By train: ICE and IC trains stop in Cologne, Düsseldorf, Essen, Bochum, Bonn, Aachen and Münster, among others. Cologne Cathedral stands right next to the main station.
Getting around: Regional trains, S-Bahn, light rail and buses reach nearly every sight, and the Deutschlandticket is valid on local transit, including the Wuppertal Suspension Railway. A car is easier for the Hermannsdenkmal, where city buses stop in nearby districts, and for Phantasialand, served by a shuttle bus from Brühl station.
Spring through fall is best for Drachenfels, the Hermannsdenkmal and the Ruhr's parks. During the NRW fall school break (October 17–31, 2026), the Oberhausen Gasometer is open on Mondays too.
In winter many sights cut their hours: the Hermannsdenkmal platform opens only 11 a.m.–3 p.m. from November 1, and the Drachenfels railway pauses from November 16 to December 31, 2026, except on Advent weekends. Phantasialand runs its Wintertraum season from November 14, 2026, to January 24, 2027. Cologne kicks off Carnival on November 11 at the Alter Markt; on Rose Monday the KölnTriangle and the Beethoven House are among the places that close. During Advent, Münster's Lichtermarkt sets up at St. Lambert's (in 2026 from November 23 to December 22).
One day covers Cologne's cathedral and Old Town. A second day adds the Ruhr with Zollverein, the Gasometer and Duisburg-Nord Landscape Park. Aachen, Münster, Bonn with the Siebengebirge or the Hermannsdenkmal each deserve another day.
Not anymore. Since July 1, 2026, sightseeing costs €12 (€6 reduced), and the tower plus treasury combo is also €12. Kids 13 and under are free. You can still enter free of charge through the north portal to pray, attend Mass or light a candle.
Aachen Cathedral, Münster's Prinzipalmarkt, the Hohenzollern Bridge, Cologne's Rheinauhafen, the outdoor grounds at Zollverein and Duisburg-Nord Landscape Park, which is open around the clock. The grounds of the Hermannsdenkmal are free too; only the viewing platform charges.
Top picks are Phantasialand in Brühl, Cologne Zoo, the Chocolate Museum, the show mine at the German Mining Museum in Bochum and a ride on the Wuppertal Suspension Railway. Duisburg-Nord Landscape Park has a climbing garden and lots of space to explore.
Yes, especially for industrial heritage. Zollverein in Essen is a UNESCO site, the Oberhausen Gasometer is Europe's tallest exhibition hall, and at Duisburg-Nord you can climb a blast furnace. All three are reachable by train and streetcar.
Take S-Bahn line S19, which runs every 20 minutes and takes about 14 minutes to Cologne main station. The cathedral is a two-minute walk from there.
Churches & monasteries
Köln
Cologne Cathedral is the soaring Gothic landmark of Cologne, Germany, and one of the largest cathedrals in the world. Its twin spires rise about 157 m (515 ft) right next to the main train station, and it has been a UNESCO World Heritage S…
Churches & monasteries
Aachen
Aachen Cathedral (Aachener Dom) in the city of Aachen, right on Germany's border with Belgium and the Netherlands, is the church Charlemagne built as the heart of his empire around the year 800. It became Germany's first UNESCO World Herit…
Industrial heritage
Essen
The Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex (Zeche Zollverein) in Essen is the icon of Germany's Ruhr region and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2001. Its red double-trestle winding tower is one of the most recognizable industrial struc…
Monuments
Detmold
The Hermannsdenkmal (Hermann Monument) near Detmold is a colossal copper statue of the Germanic chieftain Arminius, standing 53.46 meters (175 feet) tall on a forested hill in the Teutoburg Forest. Unveiled in 1875, it commemorates the amb…
Theme parks
Brühl
Phantasialand in Brühl, between Cologne and Bonn, is one of Germany's most popular theme parks and is famous for its richly themed worlds. Instead of rides lined up in open fields, roller coasters like Taron, Black Mamba and F.L.Y. weave t…
Churches & monasteries
Köln
Great St. Martin Church in Cologne (Groß St. Martin) is one of the city's twelve great Romanesque churches, and its massive crossing tower is the second landmark on Cologne's riverfront skyline after the cathedral. Rising above the colorfu…
Industrial heritage
Köln
The Hohenzollern Bridge in Cologne is the steel arch railroad bridge that frames the city's most famous view: the twin spires of Cologne Cathedral rising above the Rhine. It is one of the busiest railroad bridges in Germany, and its walkwa…
Zoos
Köln
The Cologne Zoo (Kölner Zoo) in the city's Riehl district is one of Germany's oldest and most popular zoos, welcoming visitors since 1860 and well over a million people a year today. Across about 20 hectares (50 acres), you can see Asian e…
Museums
Köln
The Museum Ludwig in Cologne is one of Europe's leading museums of 20th- and 21st-century art, set right between Cologne Cathedral and the Rhine. It holds the largest Pop Art collection in Europe, the world's third-largest Picasso collecti…
Museums
Köln
The Chocolate Museum in Cologne (Schokoladenmuseum Köln) is the city's most visited museum and one of the most popular museums in Germany. Set in a ship-shaped glass building at the tip of the Rheinauhafen harbor peninsula, it follows coco…
Old towns & squares
Köln
The Alter Markt in Cologne (Old Market) is the heart of the city's Old Town: a car-free square between the historic City Hall and the Rhine, lined with colorful gabled houses, traditional brewpubs and outdoor terraces. It is where Cologne'…
Viewpoints
Köln
The KölnTriangle in Cologne's Deutz district is a glass office tower on the east bank of the Rhine whose observation deck offers arguably the best view of Cologne Cathedral. From more than 100 meters up, the river, the Hohenzollern Bridge…
Landmarks
Köln
The Rheinauhafen in Cologne is a former Rhine port just south of the Old Town that has been reinvented as one of Germany's most striking waterfront districts. Listed warehouses, preserved harbor cranes and the futuristic Crane Houses line…
Landmarks
Aachen
Aachen Town Hall stands on the market square in Germany's westernmost major city, built on the foundations of Charlemagne's royal hall. For six centuries the coronation banquets of German kings were held here after their crowning in the ca…
Lakes
Münster
Fifteen minutes on foot from the Prinzipalmarkt and suddenly there is open space: the Aasee stretches for about 2.3 kilometres from the edge of the old town to the south-west, lined with meadows, plane trees and lakeside paths. For locals…
Churches & monasteries
Marienmünster
Marienmünster Abbey (Abtei Marienmünster) is a former Benedictine monastery founded in 1128 in the rolling Weser Uplands of eastern North Rhine-Westphalia. Its church, with twin pointed west towers and a Baroque crossing dome, rises above…
Zoos
Münster
The Allwetterzoo Münster ("all-weather zoo") is a 30-hectare woodland zoo on the edge of Lake Aasee in Münster, the historic university city in northwestern Germany. Its name comes from covered walkways linking many of the animal houses, s…
Churches & monasteries
Odenthal
Altenberg Cathedral does not stand in a city but in the middle of the wooded Dhünn valley, a good 20 kilometres north-east of Cologne. That makes the tall Gothic church rising between meadows and monastery buildings all the more surprising…
Old towns & squares
Bad Münstereifel
In Bad Münstereifel the River Erft flows right through the old town, lined with walls and crossed by little bridges. Around it stands an almost completely preserved town wall with four gate towers, enclosing half-timbered houses, a Romanes…
Old towns & squares
Düsseldorf
The Altstadt (Old Town) of Düsseldorf is the historic heart of the city and one of Germany's liveliest nightlife districts. Packed into roughly half a square kilometer on the Rhine are churches, museums, a Renaissance town hall and around…
Old towns & squares
Monschau
In Monschau, grey slate roofs and black-and-white half-timbering are packed so tightly into the narrow Rur valley that there is barely room for streets. A castle and the ruin of a second defensive tower look down on the old town, while the…
Caves
Attendorn
The Atta Cave (Atta-Höhle) in Attendorn is one of the largest and most beautiful show caves in Germany, tucked into the wooded Sauerland hills about 80 km east of Cologne. A guided tour of roughly 40 minutes takes you past rust-tinted flow…
Churches & monasteries
Köln
St. Gereon in Cologne is one of the city's twelve great Romanesque churches and one of its most unusual: a basilica with a ten-sided domed hall that grew out of a late Roman oval building. If you have already seen the cathedral and want to…
Museums
Bonn
The Beethoven House in Bonn (Beethoven-Haus) is the birthplace of Ludwig van Beethoven and home to the world's largest Beethoven collection. In this modest pink townhouse on Bonngasse, the composer was born in December 1770. Today its crea…