ESCAPADE TO DRESDEN
One-Day Trip From Berlin
You want to escape for a day from the agitated Berlin life? We have the little cheap tips for you!
Our today’s suggestion is a day in Dresden, the capital of Sachsen, 170km away from Berlin, 2h by bus, around 20€ return trip, departure from Berlin Südkreuz, Alexanderplatz oder ZOB with the Flixbus company. The arrival in Dresden is whether in the Altstadt or in the Neustadt. Don’t forget your student card to benefit from the attractive prices for the visits! And beware, in Germany, most of the museums are closed on Monday, and are closing rather early (as well as the churches).
Dresden was at a time a Polish territory, that is why there are a lot of Polish remaining and symbols. It was the most destroyed German city during the war as well, but the reconstruction is a real success, since some monuments are exactly the same as they were before. Sadly, there are a lot of working on the main bridge crossing the Elbe for the moment, which makes the visit not as beautiful as it could be. If you want to see all the great things the city offers you should take two days.
We suggest you to begin with the Theaterplatz with the fabulous opera Semper where Richard Strauss presented for the first time most of his masterpieces.
The residence castle (Residenzschloss) was completely destroyed during the war but most of the treasures were found in the ruins. What we strongly recommend is the historical Green Vault (Historisches Grünes Gewölbe) where all the treasures of the royalty are kept (gold, jewels, bronze, silver, diamonds, precious stones, amber, ivory…): breath-taking. The castle also has a Turkish collection, coins collection, weapon collection and a new green vault which is less impressive than the historical one.
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Price of the entry: 14€ for the historical vault only, 12€ for the castle without the historical vault, 21€ combined, reservation recommanded. Expensive but it is really worth the price.
You can also admire from it the Zwinger, the cathedral, the residence palace and the Guard of the old city (Greek temple, where there is a delicious café) and a statue of King Johann. The cathedral is the biggest church of Saxe, of barque style and the heart of August II the Strong is kept there.
Take a break at the Camondas chocolate factory, after passing the gate in the Schlobstrabe,where the hot chocolate beverages are delicious, as well as the pasteries.
Then, the Zwinger is a wide and squared baroque esplanade, with gardens, fountains, tours, that shelters three museums: China collection (Meissen factory), mathematics and physics museum and paintings of Ancient Masters. The galleries with patios are really delightful.
Price of the museums: 7€ for the three.
Don’t forget to go to Our Lady church, new market and the new city hall, deeper in the old city.
If you have time, the Albertinum is definitely a museum to see, since it has the paintings of Caspar David Friedrich in its gallery of the Modern Masters. Price of the entry: 7€.
When you come back near the Elbe, you have a beautiful panorama of the river from the Brühl terrace. Then cross, the bridge, and you will have another panorama under your eyes from the Old City (Altstadt). You are entering now in the New City (Neustadt): take a look at the golden statue of August II The Strong, then wander in the gardens of the Japanese Palace.
If you have remaining time, go the dairy of Pfund Brothers which kept its charms.
A good and cheap restaurant in Neustadt is Raskolnikoff (reservation recommended): the Spätzle, the Flammenkuchen and the home-made beer are excellent.