3 days in Cologne

Day by day

1. Day 1: Cologne Cathedral and Hohenzollern Bridge

   Cologne Cathedral, Hohenzollern Bridge and Museum Ludwig, then Belgian Quarter in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Cologne Cathedral

      Begun in 1248 and finished only in 1880, the Gothic cathedral has twin spires of about 157 metres and one of the largest church façades in the world.

   2. Late morning

      Hohenzollern Bridge

      Cross at dusk and sit on the Rheinboulevard steps in Deutz to watch the cathedral light up.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Kölsch

      Traditional brewhouses in the old town and around the cathedral, and pubs across the city.

   4. Afternoon

      Museum Ludwig

      Next to the cathedral, Museum Ludwig is one of Europe's leading modern-art museums, with a large Picasso collection, Russian avant-garde works, German Expressionists and one of the most important Pop Art collections outside the United States, including Warhol and Lichtenstein.

   5. Evening

      Belgian Quarter

      Come in the late afternoon to shop, then stay for drinks around Brüsseler Platz.

2. Day 2: Cathedral south tower climb and Kolumba

   Cathedral south tower climb, Kolumba and Wallraf-Richartz Museum, then Old Town in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Cathedral south tower climb

      Climb in the morning before it gets crowded, and skip it if you are uncomfortable in tight, steep stairwells.

   2. Late morning

      Kolumba

      The archdiocese's art museum is a building by Peter Zumthor that rises over the ruins of the Gothic church of St.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Halve Hahn

      Every brewhouse menu in Cologne.

   4. Afternoon

      Wallraf-Richartz Museum

      Do not skip the medieval Cologne School rooms, which are unique to the city.

   5. Evening

      Old Town

      Brewhouses and pubs around the Alter Markt and Heumarkt, busy every evening.

3. Day 3: Old Town and Alter Markt and Great St. Martin Church

   Old Town and Alter Markt, Great St. Martin Church and Farina Fragrance Museum and 4711 House, then Zülpicher Straße in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Old Town and Alter Markt

      The Alter Markt and Heumarkt squares, the historic City Hall with its Renaissance loggia and the lanes running down to the river form Cologne's old town.

   2. Late morning

      Great St. Martin Church

      Use it as a starting point for a walk to other Romanesque churches, such as St. Maria im Kapitol nearby.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Heaven and earth

      Brewhouses and traditional restaurants throughout the city.

   4. Afternoon

      Farina Fragrance Museum and 4711 House

      Eau de Cologne was created here: the Farina house opposite the City Hall has made it since 1709 and offers guided tours of its fragrance museum.

   5. Evening

      Zülpicher Straße

      The student bar strip in the Kwartier Latäng, crowded at weekends and during carnival.

Before you go

If it rains

• Swap in Chocolate Museum (Rheinauhafen): Go on a weekday morning; weekends and rainy afternoons bring long queues.
• Swap in EL-DE Haus (NS Documentation Centre) (Innenstadt): Allow time for the basement cells, which are the most powerful part of the visit.
• Swap in Schnütgen Museum (Innenstadt): Combine it with the neighbouring Rautenstrauch-Joest Museum of world cultures in the same complex.

Where to stay for this itinerary

With 3 nights, Cathedral and Hauptbahnhof keeps most of this route within easy reach. For a calmer or cheaper base, Old Town (Martinsviertel) ($$$) suits first-timers, nightlife and couples. Compare every area.

Pace and daylight

The sights in this plan add up to roughly 12–16 hours of visiting over 3 days, before meals and getting between them. Daylight runs from about 7.9 hours in December to 16.5 hours in June, so in winter start early and keep museums for the afternoon.

More or fewer days

• One day in Cologne
• 2 days in Cologne

Questions travellers ask