Dessau-Roßlau offers a range of options for a stay: Bauhaus architecture and collections, palaces in various styles, maritime history and trails through the floodplain landscape. To help plan your trip, first decide whether you want to focus more on architecture and museums or on nature experiences. This way, you can organise your days around your interests instead of trying to fit every topic into a single itinerary.
Bauhaus architecture and collection
Bauhaus Dessau includes the Bauhaus Building, the Masters’ Houses and the Arcade Houses in the Dessau-Törten housing estate. The different buildings give the subject architectural breadth. The Bauhaus Museum Dessau has a permanent display of the collection of the Bauhaus Dessau Foundation, complementing the architecture with a collection-focused perspective. So if you want to make Bauhaus the focus of your visit, you can treat the buildings and museum as distinct highlights. Check the museum’s visitor regulations before your trip.
Palaces and maritime history
The historic sites also offer contrasting highlights. Luisium Palace is a Neoclassical palace built between 1774 and 1778 in the northeastern landscaped garden of Dessau. Mosigkau Palace and Park are among Germany’s few Rococo ensembles largely preserved in their original state. Comparing the two takes you from the Neoclassical period of Luisium to a Rococo ensemble whose largely original condition is particularly distinctive.
The Maritime Museum in Roßlau offers a different subject: it is dedicated to the history of Elbe shipping and shipbuilding in Roßlau. Ship models and maritime equipment bring this focus to life. At Dessau Zoo, a petting enclosure with Harz goats is one of the special animal experiences. These subjects complement architectural history with maritime technology and an encounter with animals, without repeating the same focus for your visit.
The Elbe, floodplains and trails
Near Dessau-Roßlau, the Elbe flows largely unaltered through one of Central Europe’s last major floodplain forest complexes. Cycling and hiking trails run through the core zone of the Middle Elbe Biosphere Reserve; check local conditions before setting out. The Auenhaus Visitor Centre provides information about the landscape and offers the opportunity to observe beavers outdoors in their natural habitat. Access and visitor arrangements may change, so it is advisable to check the latest conditions in advance.
You can also go paddling on the Elbe near Dessau-Roßlau: the banks are close to nature and boat traffic is light. Check water conditions and local regulations before setting out. Trails through the core zone, the opportunity to observe wildlife at Auenhaus and paddling offer different experiences, so you can choose between activities on land and on the water during your stay.
The two longer routes can be distinguished by their focus. The 68-kilometre Garden Realm Tour of Prince Franz leads around Dessau, connects palaces and parkland in the Dessau-Wörlitz Garden Realm and passes through the floodplain landscape. By contrast, the 62-kilometre circular route through Dessau-Roßlau connects outlying parts of the city north and south of the Elbe and showcases the floodplains and the Vorfläming region. The first route links the Garden Realm and its buildings, while the second focuses on the landscapes and urban areas on both sides of the Elbe.
Getting there and finding accommodation
Dessau-Roßlau has rail connections to Berlin, Leipzig, Magdeburg, Halle, Lutherstadt Wittenberg and Köthen. As timetables may change, check the latest connections before your trip. This will help you tailor your search to the itinerary that matters most for your trip.
Discover more destinations: Kochstedt, Roßlau, Mildensee.
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