Saxony travel guides

The Blue Wonder is Dresden's Loschwitzer Brücke, a steel bridge across the Elbe between Blasewitz and Loschwitz. This guide covers what it is, how to cross it, where to look out over the river valley, and how to arrive by tram, bus or boat.

The Deutsches Hygiene-Museum at Lingnerplatz 1 brings the permanent Human Adventure exhibition, the World of the Senses children's museum and rotating special shows under one roof. This guide separates the three strands, suggests how long to allow, and explains what to confirm with the operator before you go.

Dresden's Old Masters Picture Gallery holds around 750 paintings from the 15th to the 18th century, anchored by Raphael's Sistine Madonna. This guide covers what you will actually see, how it differs from the Neue Meister at the Albertinum, the Zwinger house ticket scope, and what to check before you go.

Two days in Dresden is workable because the historic core is compact: the Frauenkirche, Zwinger, Semperoper and Residenzschloss sit close enough to walk between in under twenty minutes. This itinerary keeps day one in the Altstadt and Neustadt, and reserves one museum in depth for day two.

Dresden rewards a district-by-district approach: the compact old town south of the Elbe, the residential Neustadt to the north, and the riverfront that links them. This guide compares the three areas and suggests how to walk each one without turning the day into a forced march.

Dresden rewards families who mix one paid museum with a short ride and a long outdoor block. Children under 7 enter the City of Dresden museums free, and the river, Grosser Garten and Dresden Heath give you free space to burn off energy between stops.

Meissen is an easy S-Bahn ride from Dresden and packs three distinct zones into one day: the old town ridge, the castle hill with Albrechtsburg and the cathedral, and the porcelain manufactory in Triebischtal. Here is how to plan the train, the free walking stops and the separately ticketed interiors.