St. Stephen’s Basilica

The largest church in the Hungarian capital was dedicated to the first Hungarian king, whose mummified right hand is considered one of the country’s most sacred treasures. It is also co-cathedral of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Esztergom-Budapest. Since 1987 it has been registered as part of the Danube panorama in the UNESCO World Heritage.

In 1851 the construction of the basilica began according to the plans of József Hild in the classical style, but he died a few years later. After the dome collapsed due to faulty foundations in 1868, the construction management was handed over to Miklós Ybl. He continued to build the church in the neo-renaissance style. This also died a few years later, which led to another change. József Kauser completed the construction.

The church building is approximately 92 m long and 62 m wide and can accommodate up to 8500 people inside.

St. Stephen’s Basilica – Dome Tour

A real highlight is a visit to the dome. From there you have a great panoramic view over Budapest. The dome balustrade is open to visitors. You can either walk up 297 steps or take a modern elevator to get to the dome.

Address

Budapest, Szent István tér 1, 1051 Hungary

Opening hours

Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Saturday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Sunday 1.00 p.m. to 5.00 p.m.

Tickets & tours

The church dome offers a panoramic view of Budapest. If you visit the church, don’t miss this view.

Der Beitrag St. Stephen’s Basilica erschien zuerst auf City Trips & Sightseeing.

St. Peter’s Square in Rome, built between 1656 and 1667, is one of the most important sights of the city with the associated St. Peter’s Basilica. It is part of the Vatican City. The state border between Vatican City and Italy is formed by the colonnades, which consist of 284 fifteen meter high columns of the Tuscan order.

St. Peter’s Square in Rome with the Vatican Obelisk

Pope Alexander VII had the approximately 35,300 m² St. Peter’s Square built in front of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. He commissioned Gian Lorenzo Bernini, who built the square between 1656 and 1667. The square has an elliptical shape and is framed by 284 colonnades, fifteen meters high, Doric columns. The colonnades are arranged in four rows. 140 statues of saints, each 3.2 meters in size, rise on the parapet. The greatest width of the square is 240 meters, the depth 340 meters

In the middle of the square is the Vatican Obelisk (Obelisk Vaticano). The square was laid out in such a way that the paving of the square descends towards the center. The aim was to be able to overlook the assembled crowd. There are also two fountains on the square. The northern fountain in the piazza is the work of Carlo Maderno (1613), the southern one by Carlo Fontana (1675).

Every Wednesday morning the Pope holds a general audience in St. Peter’s Square.

St. Peter’s Basilica in St. Peter’s Square

St. Peter’s Basilica can also be found in the square. It is the largest church in the world and much more than just the most important building in Christianity. The impressive church building not only has an incredible appearance, but also impresses with the pompous interior. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Address

Piazza San Pietro, 00120 Città del Vaticano

Opening hours

If there are no masses on Square, it is always freely accessible.

Entry

Visiting the place does not cost any money.

Tickets & tours

Der Beitrag St. Peter’s Square erschien zuerst auf City Trips & Sightseeing.

One of the most popular in Europe and one of the best sights in Rome is St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City on St. Peter’s Square. The church building impresses every visitor not only with its external appearance but also with the pompous interior. The church is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican City

The Church is called the Basilica of St. Peter and is the memorial church of the apostle Simon Peter. It is one of the seven pilgrimage churches of Rome. It is the sanctuary of Christianity and every year the destination of many tourists, pilgrims and believers of the Roman Catholic Church. The story of St. Peter’s Basilica begins as early as 64 AD with the crucifixion of Peter, one of Jesus’ apostles. Emperor Constantine the Great had the Old Basilica built between 319 AD and 333 AD on the site of the tomb of St. Peter. Today’s St. Peter’s Basilica was not built until the 16th century. This was done at the behest of Pope Julius II.

Architecture of St. Peter’s Basilica

St. Peter’s Basilica is the largest church in the world and much more than just the most important building in Christendom. Construction began in 1506 and lasted for more than 120 years. Completion is dated November 18, 1626. Today it is the symbol of Rome. The famous architects were Michelangelo, Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Raffael.

Interior fittings

The size of the church indicates: The cathedral houses one main and eight secondary domes, 800 columns, 390 statues made of travertine, marble, stucco and bronze as well as 45 altars. There are also countless treasures inside the classic Renaissance building. These include ornate paintings, sculptures, artifacts, and decorated walls.

Dome of St. Peter’s Basilica

The cantilevered dome of the basilica is the largest structure of its kind in the world. The model was the dome of the Pantheon. Those who are not afraid of the 500 steps to the viewing platform will be rewarded with a wonderful and breathtaking view of Rome and the Vatican.

Address

Piazza San Pietro, 00120 Città del Vaticano, Vatican city

Opening hours

Winter: Open every day from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Summer: Open every day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Entry

Admission is basically free. However, the rush of visitors is very large, so a guided tour with preferential access is recommended. To visit the dome, the treasury and the necropolis, you have to pay an entrance fee.

Tickets & tours

We recommend taking part in a guided tour of the Vatican or St. Peter’s Basilica. Book tickets in advance through our partner to avoid long waiting times.

Der Beitrag St. Peter’s Basilica erschien zuerst auf City Trips & Sightseeing.

Museum Island Berlin – one of the most important museum complexes in Europe

The Museum Island consists of five museums – the Old museum, the New Museum, the Old National Gallery, the Bode-Museum, the Pergamon Museum. It is one of the most important museum complexes in Europe. The museums house unique collections on the art and cultural history of Europe and the Mediterranean region, mainly archaeological collections and 19th century art. Friedrich Wilhelm IV had the idea for the Museum Island. Today an equestrian statue on the steps of the Alte Nationalgalerie commemorates him.

The Museum Island has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1999.

In addition to the five museums, the Kolonnadenhof and James-Simon-Galerie (entrance building and visitor center) should also be mentioned. The sculptures in the Colonnade Courtyard are part of the National Gallery’s collection and give visitors a first foretaste of other exhibits.

Old museum

The Altes Museum was built between 1823 and 1830 and is the first exhibition building on Museum Island Berlin. It stands directly opposite the City Palace and next to the Berlin Cathedral. The builder was Karl Friedrich Schinkel. It was Prussia’s first public museum.

The magnificent building of the Altes Museum is modeled on the Pantheon in Rome. It houses a collection of antiquities with sculptures, ceramics, weapons, jewelry and equipment from Greek art and cultural history.

New museum

The original Royal Prussian Museum was built between 1843 and 1855. Today it bears the title Neues Museum and was built by Friedrich August Stüler. However, it was badly destroyed in the Second World War and then restored with extensive renovation and restoration work until 2009. Today the Neues Museum houses exhibits from prehistory and early history. In particular, the Egyptian Museum and Papyrus Collection is one of the visitor magnets. The most visited bust of Nefertiti can also be found here.

Old National Gallery

The Old National Gallery is the ancestral home of the collection of the Nationalgalerie, which is exhibited in several locations. Here visitors will find paintings and sculptures in particular, which depict the great movements in art from the time of Goethe to realism. Among other things, works by French impressionists (Manet, Monet, Renoir) can be seen here. You can also find romantic paintings by Caspar David Friedrich and Karl Friedrich Schinkel in the Old National Gallery.

Bode Museum

The Bode Museum contains the Museum of Byzantine Art, i.e. Byzantine works of art from the 3rd to the 15th century, a sculpture collection of Italian and German sculptures and sculptures from the early Middle Ages to the 18th century can also be found there and many other treasures. The neo-baroque museum resembles a moated castle and stands on the tip of the Museum Island Berlin. It was built by Ernst von Ihne.

Pergamon Museum

The Pergamon Museum is a real magnet for visitors to Museum Island. It was designed by Alfred Messel and built between 1907-30 under the direction of Ludwig Hoffmann. It houses among other things archaeological finds as well as Greek and Roman sculptures from the antique collection, the Middle East Museum with 6000 years of history, art and culture of Middle East and the Museum of Islamic Art with art of the Islamic peoples from the 8th to the 19th century.

Visitor numbers

The Museum Island Berlin had a share in the total result of 3.095 million visits in 2019 (2018: 2.487 million, 2017: 2.323 million).

Opening times | Museum Island Berlin

All museums on Museum Island are open from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and on Thursdays until 8:00 p.m.

Except for the Pergamon Museum and the Neues Museum, all museums are closed on Mondays.

Address | Museum Island Berlin

Bodestraße 1-3
10178 Berlin

Tickets & discounts for Museum Island Berlin

With the Berlin WelcomeCard Museum Island, you get free entry to all museums and collections on Berlin’s Museum Island as well as free 72-hour public transport in Berlin and many other discounts.

Der Beitrag Museum Island erschien zuerst auf City Trips & Sightseeing.

The Glienicke Bridge connects the two cities of Potsdam and Berlin on the northeastern edge of Berlin. The bridge became particularly famous during the Cold War. It was the legendary setting for the third and final staged exchange of spies between the United States and the Soviet Union on February 11, 1986, gaining worldwide recognition. Due to its historical significance, it is considered one of the landmarks of both Potsdam and Berlin. Here you can find information about the Glienicke Bridge.

History of the Glienicke Bridge

In 1907, the Glienicke Bridge was constructed on Bundesstraße 1. It spans the Havel River, connecting Berlin and Potsdam. The bridge is named after the nearby former estate of Klein Glienicke, where the Glienicke Palace is now located.

The regional border between Brandenburg and Berlin, as well as the city border with Potsdam, runs directly through the center of the bridge. This led, during the time of the German division, to the bridge being the stage for a spectacularly staged third and final exchange of spies. This event was also portrayed in the film “Bridge of Spies.”

Before the current bridge was built in 1907, there were earlier bridges at the same location. The first wooden bridge, connecting both cities, existed between 1660 and 1777. However, it was exclusively used by the nobility to travel between the Potsdam palaces and hunting grounds on the opposite side of the Havel. Almost 100 years later, the bridge was opened for general carriage traffic, and a permanent postal connection was established. In 1777, the bridge had to be renewed to accommodate the increasing traffic. A new wooden drawbridge with railings was constructed, featuring guardhouses on both sides.

The third bridge was designed by Karl Friedrich Schinkel and inaugurated on September 30, 1834. It remained in use until the completion of the present bridge. However, in 1906, it was decided that Schinkel’s bridge was inadequate for the growing motorized traffic. Additionally, on June 2, 1906, the Teltow Canal was opened, and the inland waterway ended at the existing bridge. Therefore, the bridge had to be replaced by a permanent structure. The truss bridge with a steel framework was completed in 1907. Initially named Kaiser Wilhelm Bridge, this name did not stick, leading to it being known as the “Glienicke Bridge.” Over the years, the bridge was modified, destroyed at the end of World War II, and rebuilt in 1947.

From 1952, the bridge was closed to private car traffic and only reopened to the public on November 10, 1989, one day after the fall of the Berlin Wall.

During the Cold War, the Glienicke Bridge served as a location for the exchange of individuals between the United States and the Soviet Union. From 1962 to 1986, three exchange operations took place involving a total of 40 people on the Glienicke Bridge. This earned it the nickname “Bridge of Spies” in the media.

Glienicke Bridge as a Landmark

The Glienicke Bridge, with its spectacular history, is a must-visit historical site during a trip to Berlin. Two shades of green, a lighter one on the Potsdam side and a darker one on the Berlin side, now commemorate the bridge’s history. A visit to the bridge can be easily combined with a trip to Potsdam. Babelsberg Park with Babelsberg Palace and the New Garden, as well as Glienicke Palace, Hunting Lodge Glienicke, and many other attractions on the Berlin side, are located near the bridge and invite exploration. The cultural landscape around the bridge has also been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Annual Visitor Numbers

No data is available so far.

Address

Königstr. 36, 14109 Berlin

Opening Hours

The bridge is accessible at all times.

Ticket Prices

Visiting the bridge is free.

Tickets

Der Beitrag Glienicke Bridge erschien zuerst auf City Trips & Sightseeing.

The Sanssouci Palace in the Sanssouci Park in Potsdam is the highlight of every trip to Potsdam. Let yourself be enchanted by the summer palace of Frederick II.

Sanssouci Palace | the summer palace of King Frederick II.

The castle was built from 1745-1747 according to the ideas of King Frederick II and plans by Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff and is the center and highlight of the entire park. The castle is located northwest of the then city of Potsdam and is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Frederick the Great wanted to spend his summer months without any worries (Sanssouci: (from French sans souci ‘without worry’) “).

The Sanssouci Palace is a single-storey, elongated palace. Originally it was only intended as a summer palace, but Frederick II spent most of the year there. The castle was built after a model of a French “maison de plaisance”. The famous garden view of Sanssouci that goes with it was created after Frederick the Great’s decision to create a terraced vineyard on the southern slope of the Bornstedter ridge. There used to be oaks on the hill.

After Frederick the Great had the mountain terraced in 1744, wine was grown there. On top of the vineyard, he had the palace built in the baroque style. Frederick and Knobelsdorf were in a violent argument before the building was erected. Because the builder wanted to build a basement under the castle, but Friedrich did not. For this purpose, the castle should be built at ground level. Knobelsdorf bowed to Friedrich and so the palace was built according to his wishes. It was inaugurated on May 1, 1747 by Friedrich II with a banquet.

The castle has several interiors. These include the entrance hall, the ballroom (marble hall), the royal apartment and five guest rooms.

“Old Fritz”, as he was popularly known, died on August 17, 1786 in the armchair of his study in Sanssouci Palace. According to his own instructions, he wanted to be buried in a crypt next to his favorite dogs. However, it was not until midnight on August 17, 1991 that the coffin of Frederick the Great was buried in a solemn ceremony on the terrace of the Sanssouci Palace.

Address

Maulbeerallee, 14469 Potsdam

Opening times of the Sanssouci Palace

April to October (summer season)

• Tuesday – Sunday: 10:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
• Closed on Mondays

November to March (winter season)

• Tuesday – Sunday: 10:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
• Closed on Mondays
• Christmas Eve: Closed
• Christmas Day: Closed
• Christmas Day: 10:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
• New Year’s Eve: 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
• New Year: 11:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Tickets & tours for the Sanssouci Palace

Further information on tickets for the Sanssouci Palace is available on our partner website.

Der Beitrag Sanssouci Palace erschien zuerst auf City Trips & Sightseeing.