Travel to Germany : Düsseldorf : a Mecca for art, culture and shopping

Travel to Germany: A multi-story department in the fashion city of Duesseldorf

Düsseldorf : a Mecca for art, culture and shopping

January 13, 2010

This shopping city at the heart of the Rhine-Ruhr region is a dream come true for fashionistas and provides the perfect dose of retail therapy in the form of top-notch, glamorous German couture. Several times a year, Düsseldorf's fashion trade fairs attract the world's leading designers. The city is known throughout Germany for the premium shops on Königsallee, its old quarter and its carnival celebrations.

Shopping and more shopping

Düsseldorf is an elegant fashion capital and the ideal place for a shopping spree. Düsseldorf has something for everyone: the exclusive Königsallee Boulevard, with its abundance of luxury boutiques and upmarket flagship stores, Schadowstrasse and the legendary old quarter, the place to go for an unusual bargain.

Models walking the ramp at a fashion show in Düsseldorf

Models walking the ramp at a fashion show in Düsseldorf

Usually affectionately known as the "Kö", Düsseldorf's Königsallee has a number of elegant shopping arcades and is one of the loveliest boulevards in the world. Königsallee's reputation for luxury and exclusivity is well-deserved. So many major designers have a presence here that a roll call reads like a "who's who" of the fashion industry: Armani, Kenzo, JOOP, and Jil Sander.

Schadowstrasse is one of Germany's busiest shopping streets and has higher sales revenues than any other in Germany. Countless department stores and smaller shops line the street, which leads off from Königsallee.

Düsseldorf's old quarter is known as "the world's longest bar" because of all the pubs and bars packed closely together. With its cobbled-stoned quaint passageways crammed with little shops and avant garde shops, old churches and traditional pubs, it is an absolute must for any visitor. People of all ages flock here to seek out fashion, art and design.

Düsseldorf's attractive riverside promenade runs alongside the old quarter to the Media Harbour, which world-class architects such as Frank Gehry have transformed into an architectural showcase.

Benrath Palace

Elector Karl Theodor built the summer residence and hunting lodge to the south of Düsseldorf in the 18th century. The remarkable ensemble of palace and park forms an architectural synthesis of great cultural-historical importance. It displays a rare fusion of late-rococo artistic styles and is home to the Museum of European Garden Art.

"Axis of art" with the NRW art gallery

A traditional pub

All of Düsseldorf's leading art institutions are lined up on a stretch just 800 metres long: Art Museum, Art Palace, Art Academy, Kunsthalle art gallery and art association and the North-Rhine Westphalia Art Gallery.

The K20 art gallery on Grabbeplatz is a forum for classical modernism, while 21st-century art can be seen at the K21 art gallery in the Ständehaus. The museum kunst palast's collections range from contemporary art and classical modernism to works by Old Masters.

Museums and gardens

Opened in 1987, the Aquazoo in Düsseldorf is a municipal facility which is both an aquarium and a natural history museum. At the entrance, visitors are greeted by the friendly penguins. Children are particularly impressed by the sharks and crocodiles, which glide past the glass panels of the aquariums.

Opened in the heart of Düsseldorf's old quarter in 1993, the Film Museum houses temporary exhibitions along with a permanent collection on film and cinematic history that covers everything from the early fairground cinemas and the animated films of Lotte Reiniger to costumes from significant films in cinematic history.

Founded in 1909, the Hetjens Museum is the only collection in the world that covers the entire 8,000-year history of ceramics under one roof. Every era and culture is represented and exhibits originate from all corners of the globe.

The Hofgarten gardens, with the rococo Jägerhof Palace, are the city's green lungs. The Aquazoo, with its spectacular aquariums and fascinating science exhibitions, is a highlight of the North Park. The extensive Bilk Rhine Park with the 234-metre Rhine tower sprawls along the southern bank of the Rhine. The river Düssel, which gave the city its name, snakes through South Park.

Its geographical location makes Düsseldorf the ideal base for interesting excursions into the surrounding area. The romantic Rhine Valley and the Rhine Legends Route are right on the doorstep.