Saxony (Germany)
Dresden is the Baroque capital of Saxony, rebuilt from the ashes of 1945 into one of the most beautiful skylines in Europe.
Seen from the Elbe meadows, its domes and towers line up along the river like a painting by Canaletto: the stone bell of the Frauenkirche, the Hofkirche, the Residenzschloss and the Semperoper, with Brühl’s Terrace, the Balcony of Europe, running along the water. Behind that skyline sit treasures to match, from the Zwinger, the pleasure palace of Augustus the Strong, with Raphael’s Sistine Madonna in the Old Masters Picture Gallery, to the jewels, gold and ivory of the Green Vault. You can climb to the platform on the Frauenkirche dome, tour the opera house, ride a historic paddle steamer to the summer palace at Pillnitz and step into a 360 degree panorama in an old gasometer. Saxon Switzerland, with its sandstone towers and the famous Bastei Bridge, is a short train ride upriver. And from late November the city is home to the Striezelmarkt, first held in 1434 and one of the oldest Christmas markets in Germany. This guide books the tickets worth booking, explains what is open in the winter months and matches you to the right hotel, from a royal palace beside the castle to a smart budget base in the Neustadt.
Zwinger and Old Masters Picture Gallery
The Baroque pleasure palace of Augustus the Strong, with fountains, pavilions and the Crown Gate around a vast courtyard, and the Old Masters Picture Gallery, home of Raphael’s Sistine Madonna, in the Semper wing.
Green Vault and Dresden Castle (Residenzschloss)
The treasure chamber of the Saxon electors inside the Residenzschloss, with the mirrored rooms of the Historic Green Vault and the gold, gems and ivory of the New Green Vault, one of the richest collections of its kind in Europe.
Dresden Striezelmarkt Christmas Market
One of Germany’s oldest Christmas markets, held on the Altmarkt since 1434, with the world’s largest Erzgebirge step pyramid, rows of wooden stalls selling Stollen, mulled wine and Saxon crafts, from 25 November to 24 December 2026.
Panometer Dresden
Yadegar Asisi’s giant 360 degree panorama inside a nineteenth-century gasometer, currently showing the Great Barrier Reef, an immersive underwater world of coral and fish seen from a viewing tower in the middle of the round hall.
The Baroque pleasure palace of Augustus the Strong, with fountains, pavilions and the Crown Gate around a vast courtyard, and the Old Masters Picture Gallery, home of Raphael’s Sistine Madonna, in the Semper wing.
The treasure chamber of the Saxon electors inside the Residenzschloss, with the mirrored rooms of the Historic Green Vault and the gold, gems and ivory of the New Green Vault, one of the richest collections of its kind in Europe.
The great stone dome of Dresden’s Church of Our Lady, destroyed in 1945 and rebuilt from rubble and donations until its consecration in 2005, with a pastel Baroque interior and a viewing platform 67 metres above the Neumarkt.
A behind-the-scenes tour of Dresden’s celebrated opera house on the Theaterplatz, home of the Saxon State Opera and the Staatskapelle, with its gilded auditorium, painted foyers and the story of its two rebuilds.
A full-day small-group tour from Dresden into the sandstone towers of Saxon and Bohemian Switzerland, with a walk across the Bastei Bridge high above the Elbe and a visit to Pravčická brána, Europe’s largest natural sandstone arch.
A guided virtual reality journey back to Baroque Dresden in 1719, ending with a carriage ride through the old streets to the royal wedding celebrations at the Zwinger, right beside the Residenzschloss.
A one-day ticket for Dresden’s red sightseeing buses, looping from the Zwinger through the Old Town and the Neustadt to the villa districts, the Blue Wonder bridge and Pillnitz Palace, with commentary in nineteen languages and short guided walks.
A 75-minute guided convoy through Dresden at the wheel of your own Trabant, the two-stroke icon of East Germany, rattling past the Old Town, through side streets and parks and out to the villas of Blasewitz along the Elbe.
Yadegar Asisi’s giant 360 degree panorama inside a nineteenth-century gasometer, currently showing the Great Barrier Reef, an immersive underwater world of coral and fish seen from a viewing tower in the middle of the round hall.
Cruises on the historic paddle steamers of the Sächsische Dampfschifffahrt, 190 years old in 2026, from the Terrassenufer below Brühl’s Terrace past the Elbe castles and the Blue Wonder to Pillnitz, with a heated winter steamer in the colder months.
FreeThe riverside summer palace of the Saxon kings, with Chinese-style roofs facing the Elbe, formal gardens, a historic Palm House and a famous centuries-old camellia, and in winter a free park and the Christmas Garden light trail.
FreeOne of Germany’s oldest Christmas markets, held on the Altmarkt since 1434, with the world’s largest Erzgebirge step pyramid, rows of wooden stalls selling Stollen, mulled wine and Saxon crafts, from 25 November to 24 December 2026.
Hotels we would book ourselves, from splurges to good-value bases.
$$$$Altstadt (Taschenberg)
Dresden’s grand hotel in the Baroque palace Augustus the Strong built for Countess Cosel in 1705, opposite the Residenzschloss and steps from the Zwinger and Semperoper, with 180 rooms, 31 suites, a pool and spa and four restaurants and bars.
Rates on Expedia →
$$$Altstadt (Ringstrasse)
A stylish boutique hotel in the historic Gewandhaus on the Ringstrasse, at the edge of the Old Town near the Altmarkt and the Kreuzkirche, with an indoor pool, a dry-aged steak restaurant, a show bakery and the Botanist Bar.
Rates on Expedia →
$$$Altstadt (Neumarkt)
A large, reliable full-service hotel on An der Frauenkirche, between the Frauenkirche and Brühl’s Terrace, with spa and fitness facilities and the Old Town’s headline sights on the doorstep.
Rates on Expedia →
$$Altstadt (Neumarkt)
A modern lifestyle hotel on the Salzgasse, opposite the Albertinum and moments from the Frauenkirche, with 180 rooms and suites, the VEN restaurant, the sixth-floor Twist Bar and free saunas, steam room and gym.
Rates on Expedia →
$Innere Neustadt
A smart budget hotel on the Palaisplatz in the Inner Neustadt, beside the Japanese Palace and the Elbe, with compact design rooms, an Erich Kästner themed lounge and bar, and the Old Town a walk across the river.
Rates on Expedia →The practical primer for a first visit to Dresden: what to book ahead, getting around on foot, by tram and by steamer, how many days you need, what is open in winter and where the headline sights fit.
How to choose your base in Dresden, from a royal palace hotel opposite the castle to central hotels by the Frauenkirche, a design hotel by the Altmarkt and a smart budget pick in the Neustadt.
