Dusseldorf Tourist Attractions

Düsseldorf's elegant shopping street and promenade is the Königsallee (familiarly known as the "Kö"), lined by exclusive shops, galleries, restaurants and cafes. It extends on both sides of the old town moat from Graf-Adolf-Platz in the south to the Hofgarten in the north. There are two new shopping arcades, the Kö-Galerie and the Kö-Karree, opened in 1985. At the north end of the Kö is the Triton Fountain.

In Düsseldorf's Grabbeplatz, on the left of the Heinrich-Heine-Allee, which runs parallel to the Kö, can be found a new building (1986) with a facade of polished dark-colored stone which houses the North Rhine-Westphalia Art Collection, with a notable collection of works by Paul Klee, numerous works of modern art and the Julius Bissier Collection.

Opposite Düsseldorf's Art Collection, on the south side of the Heinrich-Heine-Allee in Grabbeplatz, is the Kunsthalle (periodic exhibitions), with a piece of sculpture by Max Ernst, "Habakkuk".

Adjoining the Kunsthalle in Düsseldorf is the Baroque Andreaskirche, with the mausoleum of the princely house of Pfalz-Neuburg.

The Düsseldorf old town lies to the west of the Heinrich-Heine-Allee and south of the Andreaskirche.

On the banks of the Rhine in Düsseldorf lies the recently laid out Rheinpark Bilk. In the park are the 234 m/768ft high Rheinturm, with a restaurant (views), and the new Landtag (the Parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia), on a ground-plan of intersecting circles. Here the Rhine is spanned by the Rheinkniebrücke, opened to traffic in 1969.

The Düsseldorf city center is bounded on the north by the large Hofgarten, a park originally laid out around 1770. On its south side are the Academy of Art (Kunstakademie), the Opera Haus (Deutsche Oper am Rhein), the Theater (Schauspielhaus; 1968-70) and the high-rise Thyssen Building (Thyssen-Hochhaus).

On Düsseldorf's Jägerhofstrasse is the Dumont-Lindemann Archives (Municipal Museum of the Theater).

At the east end of Jägerhofstrasse in Düsseldorf is the Baroque Schloss Jägerhof, with the Goethe Museum (Kippenberg Foundation) and a collection of porcelain.

TonhalleOn the northwest side of the Hofgarten in Düsseldorf is the Ehrenhof (1925-26), a group of buildings designed to house exhibitions, museums, concerts and other events. The first of these is the domed rotunda of the Tonhalle, a concert hall that also contains the Museum of Art's collection of glass in the Grünes Gewölbe (Green Vault)

The Nordpark in Düsseldorf was laid out for an exhibition in 1937.

In Düsseldorf's Immermannstrasse is the Japanese Center, built in 1977-79, with a massive entrance front of polished stone (Japanese shops, restaurants, hotel, offices).

The Railway Station in Düsseldorf was reopened in 1985 after complete rebuilding at a cost of some 600million DM. It is a junction for the Federal Railways, the S-Bahn and the U-Bahn. There is a large shopping mall.Southeast of the station is Bertha-Süttner-Platz (new layout), with steel sculpture by Horst Antes and a pool. The buildings facing the square are examples of Post-Modern architecture.

The Südpark in Düsseldorf was considerably enlarged for the Federal Garden Show of 1987, and is now the largest continuous open space within the city.

A bridge links the Südpark with the campus of Düsseldorf University (founded 1965). The University Botanic Garden (open to the public) has a domed hothouse and an Alpine garden.

The Neanderthal Museum tells the story of the original discovery of the famous Neanderthal skeleton. A number of animals, supposedly reverse evolutionized, are present at the museum. Exhibits at the Neanderthal Museum trace humans throughout history. The valley itself where the discovery has been made is now a pleasant nature preserve.

The Rhineland Music Festival is an annual 10-day event that takes place in early June and includes a wide array of events.Since its inception in 1984, the festival has offered daily performances of symphonic, chamber and choral performances, film screenings, organ recitals, ballets, theater performances and jazz concerts. These are complemented with lectures on various topics.The three Rhineland cities (Aachen, Cologne and Düsseldorf) take turns hosting the festival and the performances take place in the most prominent buildings of each city.

This 17th C. moated castle is to be found in the Ruhr valley within easy reaching distance from either Essen of Dusseldorf. Throughout its halls can be found valuable paintings and antique furnishings.On the grounds are a castle chapel, a terrace and tennis court.