The heart of Leipzig is the marketplace, site of the Altes Rathaus (Old City Hall), one of the finest examples of Renaissance architecture in Germany. This long building was constructed in only nine months, in 1556–57, by Hieronymus Lotter, mayor of Leipzig and architect to the prince elector. Today the first floor is home to a museum of city history that takes visitors on an exciting trip back in time to the golden days and the low points in the story of Leipzig. For a long time now, the city has been governed from the Neues Rathaus.

One of Leipzig’s most famous people is the man who became director of music for the city and for St Thomas’s Church in 1723. You can feel closest to him in the church, which was his second home in Leipzig. Whatever is performed, “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring” or “Praise the Lord”, a choral or a motet, there is nothing more impressive than listening to a concert of his work in St Thomas’s Church: every Friday at 6pm and Saturday at 3pm you can do this.

The church, altered in 1496 as a hall church in late Gothic style and later given a Baroque tower, has been connected to music for over 800 years, as its choir, the world-famous Thomanerchor, was founded at the same time as the first church in the 12th century. When he was master of music in the church, Bach conducted the boys’ choir with its high, bright voices. Go to the Bach Museum to find out more about the life and works of the great composer and musician.

Today the university dominates this square. Until 1968 it was considered one of the most beautiful public squares in a Germany city centre. Then the demolition gangs of head of state Walter Ulbricht came in and paved the way for the “modern face of socialism”. The City-Hochhaus high-rise, opera house and Gewandhaus date from this period.

The New Augusteum, the main building of Leipzig University with its Auditorium Maximum, the Paulinum with its hall and the university church of St Pauli are a modern complex with historical references as a reminder of the old university ensemble. The superb Mende Fountain in front of the Gewandhaus is the last remaining testimony to the square as it once was.
To get a good view of Leipzig city centre, don’t fail to go up to the roof of the panorama tower.

It may have a martial appearance, but it is a major testimony to history: the Völkerschlachtdenkmal, a monument commemorating the Battle of the Nations, which put an end to Napoleon’s domination of Europe in 1813. Flanked by embankments and gateways, the monument rises behind a large pool of water, the “sea of tears” intended as a symbol of the blood and tears that were shed in the battle. A lift takes visitors up to the Hall of Fame, where the crypt serves as a symbolic tomb for more than 120,000 soldiers who fell in the Battle of the Nations. Don’t pass up an opportunity to listen to a concert given by the Denkmalchor Leipzig (Monument Choir) in the Völkerschlachtdenkmal. The acoustics are unique! Every sound is reflected back with a time lag of seconds, and this remarkable echo means that a classical choir concert is an unrivalled experience. If you find the interiors too gloomy, you can enjoy a wonderful view of Leipzig from the observation deck of the monument.

“To the Venetians their bridges, to the Leipzigers their arcades”, according to a local saying. The pedestrian-friendly inner city of Leipzig its two main axes, Grimmaische Strasse and Petersstrasse, is characterised by a unique system of passages and “through yards” such as Mädlerpassage, Barthels Hof and Speck’s Hof. Shopping is fun outside the city centre, too: along Gottschedstrasse, a street of pubs, you will find many small but high-class stores with a highly individual range of goods. For the alternative scene, walk along KarLi, a street south of the city centre named after the co-founder of the German Communist Party, Karl Liebknecht. The Promenaden in the central station, the biggest rail terminus in Europe, is an extremely modern shopping centre.

If you don’t believe that you can take a trip in a genuine Venetian gondola in Leipzig, go to the Ristorante da Vito in Plagwitz. Here, on the Weisse Elster river, there is an unbelievable variety of industrial architecture from the late 19th century that has been renovated and is now sought-after residential, office, retail and workshop space. On foot or in a gondola you can explore these beautiful buildings with picturesque back yards, small gardens and idyllic stretches of canal. Take a stroll along the Karl-Heine-Kanal past former factory sites that are turning into exciting places in modern Leipzig.

The Museum der Bildenden Künste (Museum of Fine Arts) in a glass-and-concrete block on Sachsenplatz takes you on a journey through art history! Whether you prefer old masters, the Barbizon School or the Leipzig School, paintings or sculpture, graphic, photographic or video works, there are many highlights to admire.
Naked, wrapped only in a cloak and wearing sandals on his feet like an ancient god, Beethoven sits on a throne decorated with allegorical scenes, an eagle at his feet. The sculptor Max Klinger used marble, onyx, ivory, precious stones and bronze to depict as a heroic divinity the composer whose works had raised him to the sphere of the gods.
This colossal statue of Beethoven on the first floor is only one example from Klinger’s oeuvre that is displayed here: with Salome, Cassandra, Christ on Olympus and the Crucifixion, the city of Leipzig honours its illustrious son with a wide-ranging exhibition of his work.

Leipzigers love their coffee houses. Long ago Goethe expressed his delight after staying in the city: “Praise to my Leipzig!” Round off your trip to Leipzig with a visit to the Riquet coffee house. This well-known café in an Art Nouveau building with elephants’ heads on the door has a long tradition. You will feel transported back to the days when waitresses in starched white aprons served delicious cake and excellent coffee, ladies in their finery met here for a chat, and distinguished gentlemen leafed through their newspapers. In the age of Starbucks and coffee to go, this is only a nostalgic vision, of course, but time spent in this café is still very enjoyable.