Germany is the perfect tourist destination for people who enjoy culture, spectacular sights and experiencing art. The country has a wealth of historical monuments, best known for its history around World War II.

Germany houses the most beautiful castles and most gorgeous cathedrals in the world. You will be overwhelmed by their stunning size, the beauty of the constructions, and their surroundings.

No wonder UNESCO has recognized 51 World Heritage Sites in the country, of which 48 are cultural treasures. Magnificent castles, monasteries, industrial relics, prehistoric settlements, and historic towns comprise this significant list. A trip to Germany must include sightseeing of most of them, or at least the most important ones.

Cologne Cathedral (Kölner Dom in German) is one of these cultural treasures, recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996.

Location

This cathedral is located in the central part of the city of Cologne, near the river Rhine. Its location beside Köln’s train station makes it an easy spot to visit. More than 20,000 people go to admire this site each day, meaning there are more than seven million visitors every year.

It is considered the largest Gothic church in Northern Europe, the second tallest in Europe, and the highest twin-spired church in the world.

The towers are 515 ft tall, only exceeded by the Colonius telecommunications tower at 872 ft high. To be precise, the North Tower is 515.68 ft, and the South Tower is 557.81 ft high.

History

Cologne Cathedral’s official name is Cathedral Church of Saint Peter. It was dedicated to St. Peter and St. Mary. It has a long construction history, since it took more than 600 years to make the whole construction.

In the 4th century, Christians celebrated religious services in a small church where the Cathedral is situated nowadays. By 1164, Archbishop Rainald von Dassel brought the relics of the Three Wise Men (The biblical Magi) to Cologne, and it was necessary to build a bigger church to hold this important piece.

The previous small church was then demolished (or burned according to some histories), and on August 15th, 1248, Archbishop Konrad von Hochstaden laid the first stone of the construction.

The Cologne Cathedral’s plan was created by the master mason Gerhard of Reil, renowned for the Gothic style in French church architecture. The building process started very fast, but by the 16th century, the lack of funds caused the construction to cease for nearly 300 years.

In the 19th century, the Central Cathedral Building Society (Zentral-Dombau-Verein in German) was created by the initiative of the King of Prussia, Frederick William IV. The objective of the society was to create a fund for completing the Cathedral. Finally, on October 15th, 1880, the Cologne Cathedral was officially inaugurated.

The Cathedral was severely damaged by heavy bombing during World War II. It took many years to restore it, making it look like a construction site during many years.

Nowadays, Cathedral Cologne has some maintenance work mostly to restore deterioration caused by weather and pollution.

Things to do

This site is the greatest expression of German Gothic architecture. Cologne Cathedral is a stunning tourist attraction worth visiting. There, you can climb the 533 steps conforming to the spiral staircase of the south tower. This climbing will let you to the 330 ft-platform to enjoy the most awesome views.

Guided tours to Cologne Cathedral, the Cathedral Treasury, the roof, and the excavation area are the main activities. Visitors can get detailed information on the medieval history of the site.

These tours allow you to see the Central Nave, the Shrine of the Three Kings, the colorful stained glass which portrays biblical figures, the Towers, and Cologne´s Treasury.

Where to stay

In Cologne, you can find a lot of accommodation options. Most of them are more expensive in the summer and Christmas periods. If you want to get reasonable prices, you should search for promotions in some hotels.

By this time, some hotel chains offer good deals on their room rates. For example, at https://www.barcelo.com/en-us/offers/black-friday/ you will find excellent discounts on the hotel prices at some of the Barceló group hotels.

In the city, they offer 14 hotels with outstanding services and strategic locations. You can choose the one that best suits your needs.

Art treasures of Cologne Cathedral

Cologne Cathedral houses varied well-conserved art treasures. They include artworks made of gold, silver, or bronze; manuscripts, chalices, reliquaries, wards, and liturgical vestments. There are also several holy relics, the most relevant being the Shrine of the Three Kings built in massive gold.

The stained glasses are also considered the most beautiful treasure of the entire cathedral. They display the figures of saints and other biblical images performing relevant events of the Church. They are best appreciated in the late morning, on a sunny day, when the range of lights is in its full glory.