A rebuilt church, a porcelain parade and a tiled dairy

Dresden's Baroque core sits between the Neumarkt and the Elbe, so park once and walk. The dairy and the bridge are across the river.

1. See the Frauenkirche as a 2005 building

The Frauenkirche stood as a ruin for about 50 years after the war; reconstruction was finished in 2005. The tourist office is underneath the Neumarkt in the QF Passage.

2. Walk the whole Fürstenzug

The Fürstenzug is a procession of Saxon rulers on Meissen porcelain tiles, about 100 m long. Sources give 23,000 or 24,000 tiles. I'd walk it end to end rather than count.

3. Note the Semperoper's reopening date

The Semperoper reopened on 13 February 1985, forty years to the day after the bombing.

4. Look inside the Grünes Gewölbe

The Grünes Gewölbe holds around 4,000 works of goldsmiths and jewellers, split between the Historic and the New Green Vault.

5. Stroll the Brühlsche Terrasse

The Brühlsche Terrasse runs about 500 m above the Elbe and is nicknamed the "Balcony of Europe". It's the walk I'd do at dusk.

6. Cross the river for Pfunds

Pfunds Molkerei opened in 1880, lined with hand-painted Villeroy & Boch tiles. Guinness World Records named it the most beautiful dairy shop in the world in 1997.

7. Find the bridge that cost UNESCO

The Elbe Valley was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 2004 and removed in June 2009 because of the Waldschlößchenbrücke.

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Eierschecke, Sauerbraten and Advent Stollen

1. Order Eierschecke with coffee

Eierschecke is a layered cake of yeast dough, quark and egg custard. It belongs with an afternoon coffee.

2. Eat Sauerbraten at least once

The beef is marinated for days in vinegar, spices and red wine, then slow-roasted. Saxony also does a pork version.

3. Try Quarkkäulchen

These are hand-rolled curd-cheese pancakes, a Saxon classic.

4. Buy Stollen at the Striezelmarkt

Dresdner Stollen is a rich yeast cake with dried fruit, peel and almonds, baked for Advent. Buy it at the Striezelmarkt.

5. Taste cheese and wine beyond the Altstadt

Pfunds Molkerei sells cheese under its tiles. Schloss Wackerbarth, Saxony's state winery in Radebeul, has a restaurant and tastings.

I'd drive to Wackerbarth only with a designated driver.

Striezelmarkt 2026 opens on 25 November

1. Mark 25 November to 24 December

The 592nd Striezelmarkt fills the Altmarkt, daily 10:00–21:00, and 10:00–14:00 on 24 December. Opening day starts at 16:00 on the market's site and 16:30 in the city's tender text.

2. Park at the Messe in Advent

In 2024 the city recommended the free P7 car park at the Messe and Pieschener Allee, with trams 10 and 20 every six minutes. On Messe event days the kerb on Messering and Pieschener Allee costs €2.40 an hour.

3. Expect Wilsdruffer Straße closures

In 2025 the city closed Wilsdruffer Straße from Postplatz towards Pirnaischer Platz from 17 November to 2 January. The 2026 dates aren't out yet.

4. Keep 13 February in mind

Saturday 13 February 2027 is the bombing anniversary. The city's programme isn't published yet.

A 1434 market, a firestorm and a bridge

1. Date the market to 1434

The Striezelmarkt began as a one-day market in 1434 and is often called the first genuine Christmas market.

2. Remember 13–15 February 1945

Allied bombers hit the city over three days. In 2010 a historians' commission put the dead at 22,500 to 25,000.

3. Read the 2009 delisting as a choice

UNESCO had warned in 2006 that the Waldschlößchen bridge would destroy the landscape. Dresden built it anyway and lost the title.