Baroque Capital of Europe

Each town or city has something unique about it—something that comes to mind when one hears the name or sees it on the map. For me, such a thing about Dresden is in its uniformity, especially when it comes to architecture. Many cities with long and prominent histories are more often than not a mixture of various styles, from Romanesque to modernist. Dresden has kept faithful to one—the baroque.

This is why, when I think of Dresden, I think of a lavishly decorated and harmonious ensemble and not of a mix-and-match of styles. Why, what I call the main sightseeing triangle is a fine case-in-point. I can not recollect three buildings more suited to each other than the Opera House (known as the Semper Opera, after the surname of its architect), the Zwinger (now home to the Gallery of the Old Masters), and the Catholic cathedral, or the Dom—and they stand right next to each other.

I have already touched in passing on two other major attractions Dresden holds for me. First is its Opera House. Typically, you get first-class theatres only in capitals and/or major cities—Dresden is neither and still has been home to one of Europe’s finest opera theatres for what seems like ages. It has an exceptional cast of its own, and guest performances are a well-known feature.

The second attraction is the plethora of museums. Apart from such prominent pillars as the Gallery of the Old Masters and Gallery of the New Masters, as well as the ‘Green Vault’ jewelry museum, there are many curious smaller ones, with subjects ranging from sanitation to coaches, from arms and armory to clocks, from instruments of torture to those of navigation.

Having written this, I now realize that there is a third major attraction about Dresden. I am talking about the great number of day trips to neighbouring locations that one can make with Dresden as one’s base: the china city of Meissen, the imposing fortress of Koenigstein, the more than charming region of the Saxon Switzerland. Why, you can even visit some of the pretty border towns in the Czech Republic (just over an hour’s drive away), provided you have the required documents to cross the border, of course.

Quick Tips:

Best Way To Get Around:

Local tram and bus system is efficient and runs on-time. Furthermore, it is absolutely essential, if (for example, like yours truly on one of the trips) you stay in a residential suburb and do not drive, in order to get into the sightseeing/shopping hub of things.

As long as I can remember myself, my ideal, no, really my dream home, has always been something like an English country manor set in splendid gardens. Why am I mentioning this old dream of mine in a tip about Dresden hotel? Simply because this hotel was in a way a realization of it – if only for 1 week.

The first – and probably most positive – feature of the Westin Bellevue Hotel in the eyes of any traveler keen on sightseeing is its central location right on the banks of the river Elbe. You can literally see the Semper Oper (the Dresden Opera House); Zwinger, the city’s famous palace turned into museum; and the Dom (or Catholic cathedral) from your own bedroom, provided your windows are facing in the right direction. As a consequence, it’s within a stone’s throw to all the major sights; quite near to both railway terminals; has more than reasonably easy access to a splendid dining and entertainment experience, the elegant baroque Konigstrasse pedestrian shopping mall; and is not very far from another shopping hotspot of Pragerstrasse.

If I were to sum the Westin Bellevue in a short phrase of only a few words, I would say “old modern luxury.” This is because Westin’s interior designers have managed to blend seamlessly the classic elegance of an 18th-century manor with all the modern appliances and conveniences. The room decorations may seem a touch faceless in a sense that rooms have little of typical Dresden about them, but that is what one comes to expect from a multinational hotel chain. Needless to say, minibars, luxurious bathrooms with all the fittings and fixtures, a TV with satellite channels, the ability to hook up your computer, and all the similar gadgets are present in every room. A congress centre for conferences and banquets for up to 750 guests, a business centre, boardrooms for smaller conferences, recreational salons, two restaurants, a café-bar, and a summer terrace with views of the Dresden skyline are all there.

The only – and rather predictable, I am afraid – downside is the price, but that’s to be expected from description. However, even for such a hotel booking through a web service shaved some 45% (or was it 51%?) off the standard rates. You can pay via all the major credit cards. If you simply come to dine here, advance reservations are mandatory, and rooms can be scarce if a major event or an opera’s first night is scheduled.