Discover Magdeburg: Experience the cathedral, green parks, and the Elbe River: Sachsen Anhalt Tourismus

Magdeburg is located on the Elbe - in the middle of Saxony-Anhalt and in the middle of history. The city is one of the oldest in Germany, was an imperial city under Otto the Great and still dominates the cityscape today with its Gothic cathedral.

At the same time, Magdeburg is modern: with the Green Citadel by Hundertwasser, innovative museums, a lively cultural scene and plenty of space for movement - whether in the extensive Elbauenpark, along the river promenade or in everyday life between students, families and city explorers.

A city of contrasts that invites you to arrive, look around and discover.

HIGHLIGHTS CULTURE YOUNG MAGDEBURG ELBE PARKS AND NATURE RAIN TIPS

Eulenspiegel Fountain in front of Magdeburg Town Hall

6 Highlights in Magdeburg

Magdeburg Cathedral

Gothic landmark with a view

Over 800 years old and still a landmark: the cathedral is the oldest Gothic cathedral in Germany. The cathedral has its origins in the 10th century, when Otto I founded the Mauritius Monastery. Today's Gothic building, however, was erected from 1209 - made of light-colored stone, with filigree towers. Inside: Sculptures, axes of light, a room of silence. If you like, climb the north tower - over 433 steps up to the view over the city and river. Directly in front of it is the cathedral square - a wide, open space between the old city and the new center. Markets, concerts and festivals take place here, sometimes festive, sometimes everyday.

Find out more

Green Citadel

Architecture by Hundertwasser

Magdeburg's most playful address: The Green Citadel is the last project by artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser and was completed in 2005 - full of colors, odd lines, golden domes and planted balconies. Inside there are apartments, small stores, restaurants, a café and a theater. If you walk through the courtyards, you will experience a piece of art you can touch - and architecture that radiates joie de vivre.

Find out more

Aerial view of the Hundertwasser House in Magdeburg

Elbauenpark

Gardens, stage, millennium tower

The site of the former Federal Garden Show is now a park full of possibilities: Themed gardens, water features, sports areas and the lakeside stage for open-air concerts. The centerpiece is the Millennium Tower - a walk-in museum in the shape of a spiral that tells the story of 6,000 years of knowledge. If you like, you can climb right to the top - to the zipline that leads from the tower into the countryside. A summer toboggan run, a climbing park and a slide tower also make the park an adventure park for families.

Find out more

Monastery of Our Lady

Silence and contemporary art

One of the oldest preserved buildings in the city - with Romanesque round arches, barren walls and a quiet inner courtyard. Today the monastery is an art museum and concert venue. In changing exhibitions, international contemporary art meets old walls - with plenty of space for nuances and clear thoughts.

Find out more

Sculpture "Island of Dolls" in front of the art museum Kloster Unser Lieben Frauen Magdeburg

Two cyclists on the Elbe cycle path in front of the cathedral in Magdeburg

Cycling along the Elbe

Experience the city on the move

The Elbe cycle path leads through the middle of Magdeburg - past parks, bridges and the cathedral. The paths are well developed, mostly flat and family-friendly. Along the way, cafés, viewpoints and picnic areas invite you to linger. If you don't have your own bike with you, you can hire one on site - and simply set off.

Find out more

Waterway junction

Where technology shapes the landscape

North-east of the city, the Elbe meets the canal - in a spectacular construction of locks, bridges and lifts. The waterway junction shows how technology and landscape interact. Anyone cycling along the Elbe cycle path will pass right by. The panorama can be viewed from vantage points - or you can take part in a guided tour of the waterway system.

Find out more

Aerial view of the Magdeburg waterway junction

Experience Culture in Magdeburg

Magdeburg tells its story - in museums, on stages, between pictures and documents. If you want to understand the city's history, start at the Dommuseum Ottonianum: here you can go back to the 10th century, to Otto the Great and to the time when Magdeburg was shaped as an imperial residence.

The Museum of Cultural History continues the journey - from the development of the city to industrialization and the present day. The Forum Gestaltung opens up studios, exhibition halls and spaces for debate.

Culture can also be seen on the stages in Magdeburg - diverse and in the heart of the city. The opera house on Universitätsplatz brings many facets of musical theater to the stage - with classical opera, ballet, concerts and musicals. At the Schauspielhaus am Friedensplatz, a modern ensemble takes a look at the present and history - with plays that touch, challenge or inspire further thought. There are also independent stages, concert halls, the puppet theater and smaller formats in the countryside - often surprising, often accessible, always part of the city.

People at the River Night in the Swiss milk spa

People at a concert as part of the River Night at the Mückenwirt Magdeburggdeburg

Three teenagers in the outdoor area of the Mückenwirt in Magdeburg

View of the Magdeburg Puppet Theater from the street

Young Magdeburg

Magdeburg is changing - young people are shaping the city and looking for their own free spaces. In Buckau, open studios and theater projects are being created in former factory buildings. The Datsche invites you to dance under fairy lights, while werk4 becomes a meeting place for crafts, sport and subculture. Life pulsates between the Elbe meadows and the city park: at concerts on the Island of Youth or in the Moritzhof cinema, which is so much more than just a place to watch a movie.

Magdeburg plays out its tranquillity on the water: on the Elbe swing on the listed lift bridge, pedal boating in the city park or on the Elbe steps, where you can sit comfortably by the water. And in the evening? It gets crowded around Hasselbachplatz - with bars, clubs and students from all over the world. In the Geheimclub, techno sets drive the night into the morning. The Prinzzclub brings house and black music to the dance floor. And for those who want to alternate between bar and club, MoaBeat offers both - music, drinks and open doors until late into the night.

Experience Magdeburg along the Elbe

Star bridge in Magdeburg with boat in the foreground

Magdeburg is a city on the water. The Elbe runs through the cityscape - not as the edge, but as the center. Paths lead along the banks, over bridges, through small parks, past cafés, footbridges and stairs to the water. Anyone out and about here will experience the city in motion - by bike on the Elbe cycle path, on foot or with the White Fleet on the water. At the Petriförder, leisure time mixes with a view: at the camper van site, at a concert at the marina or with a cocktail overlooking the water - for example at Café Treibgut, the beach bar, the Mückenwirt beer garden or the Culinaria.

Discover parks and nature in Magdeburg

Magdeburg is a city with plenty of green space. The Rotehorn city park lies between the old town and the Elbe - an island in the river, with old avenues, wide meadows and views of the cathedral. If you walk around here, you will come across fountains, the Albinmüller Tower, the town hall and the listed Hyparschale, which has been revived as an event venue. In between: plenty of space for picnics, walks or a break in the shade.

Green spaces also open up on the other side of the Elbe: in the Klosterbergegarten, garden history meets urban nature, while the Herrenkrugpark offers both retreat and space. The Elbauenpark completes the picture - with generous open spaces, playgrounds and family facilities.

Young people in the Rotehorn city park in Magdeburg

Exterior view of Gruson greenhouses in Magdeburg Buckau

Young people in a rowing boat on the Adolf-Mittag-See in the Rotehorn city park in Magdeburg

When It Rains in Magdeburg

Even when the sky is gray, there is plenty to discover in Magdeburg.

In the Natural History Museum children can experience animals up close - from fossils to live lizards.
The Gruson greenhouses invite you into tropical plant worlds - warm, fragrant and full of unusual shapes.
The family pool NEMO provides room for movement - with a slide, swimming pool and sauna for the grown-ups.
Those who prefer tinkering can visit the hands-on exhibitions in the Millennium Tower or the technology museum with its historic locomotives.
And if you want a quiet end to the day, there are cafés with play areas, small bookshops or a family movie at the cinema.