Cologne/Germany

Cologne was originally founded more than 2000 years ago. The city emerged from the Roman settlement Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensum and owes its name to the Roman empress Agrippina. Roman remains, such as of the Roman city walls, can still be found throughout the city centre. A lot of remnants from Roman times can still be seen in the Romano-Germanic Museum, for example the famous Dionysos mosaic.

As an important centre of religious and secular power and due to its location on the Rhine, Cologne has always been an important location for trade. Today, Cologne has a population of around one million, making it the fourth-largest city in Germany and the largest in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW). There are eight bridges within the city limits of Cologne that span the Rhine, a river which flows through Cologne. A special feature of the city is the Rhine cable-car, which is the last remaining cable-car for crossing the Rhine that is still in operation.

Cologne is also a cultural centre with many important museums and galleries and a lively art and theatre scene. Cologne is also home to several radio and TV stations and major publishing houses, making it an important media location in Germany.

The city’s most famous landmark is Cologne Cathedral which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and which is one of the largest Gothic cathedrals in Europe. The Gürzenich event centre is a good departing point to see several sights, such as discovering the historic old part of town with its restaurants and breweries, visiting the many museums (we highly recommend the Fragrance Museum and the Chocolate Museum) or attending an event in the Musical Dome or the Kölner Philharmonie and of course a stroll along the Rhine promenade.

The Kölner Lichter (Lights of Cologne) is a famous and popular event that takes place in July; it is a spectacle of music and fireworks which is best enjoyed from one of the Rhine bridges or from one of the cruise ships on the river.

The largest public party is, of course, carnival, which draws some two million visitors to Cologne each year. Numerous carnival parades take place in the individual parts of the city, the largest being the Rosenmontag procession in the city centre.

"Kölsch" is what the people of Cologne call not only their dialect, but also their beer which may only be brewed in the city of Cologne. Breweries in Cologne offer their beer in typical brewhouses along with good traditional food. You can get the famous "‘Halven Hahn" which sounds like a poultry dish but is a rye roll with aromatic Dutch cheese. It is also typical for the Rhineland cuisine to combine sweet and savoury food. For instance, the Rhenish dish called "Himmel un Ääd" ("Heaven and Earth") is mashed potato and apple, which is usually served with grilled black pudding.

Further Information

For further information on Cologne please visit the website www.cologne.de.

For general information about Germany please visit the website Deutschland.de. You can select different languages there.