Dramatic Dresden: A Walk through the Historic Old Town

(83 reviews)

Dresden audio tour: Dramatic Dresden: A Walk through the Historic Old Town

This is a 1.1mi walking tour

It takes an average of 90 mins to complete.

Dresden

Germany

$9.99

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About the Tour

Dresden was once known as the Florence of Germany, but after years of neglect, it lay in ruins for many decades. Luckily, its beauty has been revived and visitors find themselves, once again, enthralled by the impressive architecture that spans several centuries. On this tour, I’ll show you the most stunning buildings and monuments, and tell you about the Old Town’s dramatic history.

The tour starts on Theaterplatz, where you can enjoy the Old Town’s skyline and the iconic sight of the Semper Opera and the Zwinger, two of Dresden’s most famous buildings. You’ll walk through the Zwinger Park, which had its foundations laid in the 1700s, and now houses several impressive museums. You’ll also pass by the Royal Palace where August the Strong lived. On the way, I’ll tell you about his mistress, the unlucky Countess of Cosel, and how she lived happily in exile. As you make your way towards Neumarkt Square, you’ll see one of the best-preserved courts where jousting tournaments were held, the Old Town’s former Jewish center, and the Frauenkirche, a very imposing baroque church that was destroyed during World War II but re-emerged out of the rubble in 2005. By the time you reach the Art Academy’s lemon press-shaped dome, aptly named Zitronenpresse, you’ll have heard about several of Saxony’s rulers who helped shape Dresden’s beautiful Old Town.

On this hour-long tour, you’ll get the chance to:

Marvel at beautiful baroque buildings and parks
Take pictures of the Semper Opera, one of the world’s most famous opera buildings
Hear about one of the most outrageous burglaries committed in this century
Try a hot beverage called liquid nougat in a cacao-café and visit the attached chocolate museum
Find out why heavily armoured knights rode down a ramp before their jousting tournaments
Admire the Royal Castle’s beautiful inner courtyards
Meet August the Strong in person and have a little chat with him
Compare the rebuilt Neumarkt, the historic center of town, with the painting that shows how it looked in 1750
Be awed by the grandeur and beauty of Dresden’s landmark, the Frauenkirche, a Lutheran church
Get ideas of which museums to visit and what else to do in Dresden
Visit some of the medieval foundations that have survived throughout the historic center’s long history

So grab your camera and join me on this fascinating tour of Dresden’s Old Town!

Tour Producer

Jo Eckardt

59 tours

My name is Jo Eckardt. I studied literature, history, and social work - in Cologne and then in New York where I lived from 1984 to 2001. In 2001 I returned to Germany, settling in Berlin, my favorite city!

A few years later I started my own touring company called A Friend in Berlin (www.afriendinberlin.de). There is so much to see and experience in Berlin: the obvious highlights and landmarks, reminders of Berlin's complicated past, but also lots of surprises such as the many parks and canals, beer gardens, and amazing restaurants at reasonable prices. What I love most though are the stories behind the landmarks - when history becomes alive.

I also love traveling in other cities and regions, especially in historic towns, and I've created several VoiceMap tours to share my passion with you. Check out all my tours! I also write books, mostly in German, but some are in English too (under the name Jo Thun).

Preview Location

Location 12

Royal Palace with Green Vault and other Museums

The building you see on your left is one of the most important castles from the Renaissance period, the Dresden Royal Palace. Step over to the left side and stop in front of it. We'll get a chance to go inside in a little while, for now, let's just stay outside.

The palace... The building you see on your left is one of the most important castles from the Renaissance period, the Dresden Royal Palace. Step over to the left side and stop in front of it. We'll get a chance to go inside in a little while, for now, let's just stay outside.

The palace doesn't look that old. That's because it was remodeled in 1889 and received a new facade in the Renaissance Revival style. Originally though, the castle goes back to the 1400s. Before then there was a stone castle here put up probably around 1230. In the late 1400s, the castle was rebuilt with four wings arranged in a square, incorporating the former great hall of the old castle. In 1548, the castle was enlarged once more to double its size, and during the next centuries, more modifications were made. So, in other words, you could study the architecture of this palace and find traces of all the different styles. In the war, the bombs resulted in a fire that destroyed most of the inside and only left the walls standing. Only a few rooms of the Green Vault survived the fire unscathed. Repairs didn't start until the late 1980s. In fact, most of the Old Town of Dresden lay in ruins for decades, so it isn't all that long that Dresden's former glory has been repaired, at least partially.

Since there are five museums located there, you can spend a day here, so maybe you want to come back some other time. But let me tell you about them now: The most famous museum is the Green Vault. It was in the news a couple of years ago because robbers broke in through a window in 2019 and stole artefacts worth hundreds of millions of Euros. They just smashed the window displays and took out gold and jewels. It was the same people who a couple of years earlier had stolen a giant gold coin from the Bode Museum in Berlin, also worth millions. While the coin was never found, some of the items taken from the Green Vault have since been returned, and some of the criminals are in jail. The collection of the Green Vault is astonishing and quite unique. That's because August the Strong and the other Saxon rulers were passionate collectors of little trinkets, golden treasures, crystals, diamonds, swords, and rare objects. The historic Green Vault is located in the original rooms, some of them restored, while a few survived the fire in 1945. Tickets sell out quickly, but the modern Green Vault is a good alternative if you can't get into the historic one. It's just as fascinating! Also with the regular ticket, you also get access to the Royal Parade Rooms, the Turkish Chamber and the Great Hall of Arms. There's also the Hausmann-Tower which you can climb and get a fantastic view over the city of Dresden. It's closed during the winter months.

Let's get going again. Walk underneath the arch that connects the Castle with the Taschenberg Hotel.

You'll find an open square on the right. There's a nice historic Christmas market here in December, and in the summer you can sit on the Paulaner terrace and have a drink or a meal. Continue walking. Read More

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Major Landmarks

Theaterplatz
Statue of King Johann
Semperoper Dresden
Zwinger
Old Masters Picture Gallery
Zwinger Xperience
Wallpavillon Zwinger Dresden
Kronentor
Cholerabrunnen
Sophienkeller im Taschenbergpalais
Taschenbergpalais
Dresden Castle
Green Vault
Schlossportal in der Schlossgasse
Georgentor
Stallhof
Fürstenzug
Jüdenhof
Peace Fountain | Turk Foutain (1616
Neumarkt
Friedrich August II Koenig Von Sachsen
Martin Luther Statue
Frauenkirche Dresden
Coselpalais (1762-1764)
Pulverturm
Zitronenpresse (Oktogon. Kunsthalle der HfBK Dresden)

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Getting There

Route Overview

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Start location
Theaterplatz, 01067 Dresden, Germany
Total distance

2km
Final location
An d. Frauenkirche 12, 01067 Dresden, Germany
Distance back to start location

499.93m

Directions to Starting Point

The tour begins in the center of Theaterplatz, the large square that is surrounded on four sides by the River Elbe, the Semper Opera, the Zwinger and Old Town. It can be reached by tram or with a 20-minute walk from Dresden's Main Train Station.

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Tips

Places to stop along the way

There are several extraordinary museums on the way that deserve a visit, but they each take several hours, so best come back another time for those. The Dresden Xperience, on the other hand, only takes about 40 minutes, and it will give you a very good idea of how the Zwinger park once used to look. I will also suggest cafés and restaurants along the way.

Best time of day

During the day so you can go inside the Royal Palace (access is free).

Precautions

No special precautions are necessary, other than watching out for traffic when crossing the street, and being aware of your valuables. Sometimes there are political demonstrations in Dresden, best stay away from them.

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