Essen
The Ruhr's biggest city, where the coal mine that closed in 1986 is now a UNESCO site and the best day out in it. The Krupp family's villa and a very good art museum are the rest.
Essen in eight slides
Wikipedia · 3 Sep 2026
Things to do in Essen
Where to stay in Essen
Essen in a day, two days, three
Landmarks in Essen
The Aalto Theatre is a performing arts venue in Essen, Germany, and is home to the city's opera company Aalto-Musiktheater and the ballet company Aalto Ballett. The Essener Philharmoniker serve as the venue's orchestra. The theatre opened on 25 September 1988 with Richard Wagner's opera Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and is mainly used for opera and ballet, but also for concerts and galas.
Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 3 Jul 2026
Thomas Robbin · CC BY-SA 3.0
Essen Minster, since 1958 also Essen Cathedral, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Essen, the "Diocese of the Ruhr", founded in 1958. The church, dedicated to Saints Cosmas and Damian and the Blessed Virgin Mary, stands on the Burgplatz in the centre of the city of Essen, Germany.
Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 11 Aug 2026
Essen_2011_66.jpg: Gryffindor derivative work: Hic et nunc (talk) · Public domain
The Grugapark is a central park in the city of Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was first opened in 1929 as the first Big Ruhrland Horticultural Exhibition. Adjacent to the Grugapark is the Grugahalle concert hall and the Messe Essen exhibition centre.
Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 14 Jun 2026
Tuxyso · CC BY-SA 3.0
Museum Folkwang is a major collection of 19th- and 20th-century art in Essen, Germany. The museum was established in 1922 by merging the Essener Kunstmuseum, which was founded in 1906, and the private Folkwang Museum of the collector and patron Karl Ernst Osthaus in Hagen, founded in 1902.
Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 9 Jul 2026
Vincent van Gogh · Public domain
The Old Synagogue is a former Reform Jewish congregation and synagogue, located at Steeler Straße 29, in Essen, in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The former synagogue was repurposed in 1960 as a Jewish museum.
Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 30 Jul 2026
Tuxyso · CC BY-SA 3.0
The Villa Hügel is a 19th-century mansion in Bredeney, now part of Essen, Germany. It was built by the industrialist Alfred Krupp in 1870–1873 as his main residence and was the home of the Krupp family until after World War II. More recently, the Villa Hügel has housed the offices of the Kulturstiftung Ruhr, an art gallery, the historical archive of the Krupp family and company, and a concert venue.
Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 12 Aug 2026
Dr.G.Schmitz · CC BY-SA 3.0
The Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex is a large former industrial site in the city of Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The first coal mine on the premises was founded in 1847, and mining activities took place from 1851 until 23 December 1986.
Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 13 Aug 2026
Thomas Wolf, www.foto-tw.de · CC BY-SA 3.0 de
The Aalto Theatre is a performing arts venue in Essen, Germany, and is home to the city's opera company Aalto-Musiktheater and the ballet company Aalto Ballett. The Essener Philharmoniker serve as the venue's orchestra. The theatre opened on 25 September 1988 with Richard Wagner's opera Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and is mainly used for opera and ballet, but also for concerts and galas.
Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 3 Jul 2026
Thomas Robbin · CC BY-SA 3.0
Essen Minster, since 1958 also Essen Cathedral, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Essen, the "Diocese of the Ruhr", founded in 1958. The church, dedicated to Saints Cosmas and Damian and the Blessed Virgin Mary, stands on the Burgplatz in the centre of the city of Essen, Germany.
Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 11 Aug 2026
Essen_2011_66.jpg: Gryffindor derivative work: Hic et nunc (talk) · Public domain
The Grugapark is a central park in the city of Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was first opened in 1929 as the first Big Ruhrland Horticultural Exhibition. Adjacent to the Grugapark is the Grugahalle concert hall and the Messe Essen exhibition centre.
Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 14 Jun 2026
Tuxyso · CC BY-SA 3.0
Museum Folkwang is a major collection of 19th- and 20th-century art in Essen, Germany. The museum was established in 1922 by merging the Essener Kunstmuseum, which was founded in 1906, and the private Folkwang Museum of the collector and patron Karl Ernst Osthaus in Hagen, founded in 1902.
Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 9 Jul 2026
Vincent van Gogh · Public domain
The Old Synagogue is a former Reform Jewish congregation and synagogue, located at Steeler Straße 29, in Essen, in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The former synagogue was repurposed in 1960 as a Jewish museum.
Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 30 Jul 2026
Tuxyso · CC BY-SA 3.0
From the airport
When to go to Essen: May or Jun or Sep
Guides about Essen
Munich has the best day-trip network in Germany and one famous trap. Six trips ranked, the Bayern ticket that changes the maths, and the castle rule.
Josefin Bakke · 2 Sep 2026
A litre is about 15 euro and the good tables never reach the public. The 2027 dates, how reservations actually work, and the morning that beats the evening.
Mara Vance · 2 Sep 2026
Berlin has no single centre because of where the Wall ran, so you pick a neighbourhood instead. The five that work, and the 7.5% tax with no cap on nights.
Josefin Bakke · 2 Sep 2026