Book a Flight to Dresden from €235

Frauenkirche: An exquisite example of Baroque architecture, the Church of Virgin Mary became the symbol of the city's historic bombing in 1945, when it was destroyed to the ground. Today, fully restored based on the original 18th century designs it dominates the centre of the old city. 
Address: Neumarkt, 01067 Dresden, www.frauenkirche-dresden.de

Semper Oper: Built in 1841 in Italian renaissance style with baroque and classical elements, the Opera of Dresden is one of the most beautiful opera buildings in the world, with excellent acoustics and a legendary past. The premières of some of the most flagship pieces of Wagner and Strauss were hosted here.
Address: Theaterplatz 2, 01067 Dresden, www.semperoper.de

Zwinger: If there is a building exalting the baroque splendour of Dresden, then this is Zwinger (1719). The gigantic palace complex with the impressive interior courtyard featuring ornate fountains, sculptures and gardens was built as a recreational royal palace. Nowadays it houses leading art museums, such as the “Old Masters Picture Gallery”. 
Address: Sophienstrasse, 01067 Dresden, www.der-dresdner-zwinger.de

Old Masters Picture Gallery: One of the most famous galleries in the world, with priceless works of art, where any art lover on the planet should make a stop. Italian Renaissance stands in the heart of the collection, with works by Raphael, Titian, Botticelli, Parmigianino, Veronese and Tintoretto and more. Among them Raphael's masterpiece, Madonna Sistina.
Address: Theaterplatz 1, 01067 Dresden, www.skd.museum.de

Procession of Princes: Furstenzug (The Procession of Princes) is the world's largest porcelain mural and decorates the walls of Dresden Castle. 25,000 tiles with a total length of 120 meters, portraying the parade of 35 kings and dukes of Saxony. 
Address: Augustusstrasse, 01067 Dresden

Albertinum: With two leading collections, of paintings (New Masters) and sculptures (Sculpture Collection), from the 19th century Romantic Period to this day, the Albertinu, is one of the most impressive modern art museums in the world. Here you will admire works by important representatives of German Romanticism, such as Caspar David Friedrich to Van Gogh, Rodin and Gerhard Richter. 
Address: Georg-Treu-Platz 2, 01067 Dresden, www.skd.museum

Residenzschloss: The royal palace of Residenzschloss, with its dazzling Renaissance architecture and its 500 halls, was the home of Saxon rulers from 1485 until 1918. Today it operates as a museum complex, housing treasures from the state art collection of Dresden. Among them, the “Historic Green Vault”, a priceless collection of 3,000 objects made of precious stones. 
Address: Taschenberg 2, 01067 Dresden, www.skd.museum 

Brühl Terrace: The nicest point to enjoy a panoramic view of the city is a route across Brühlsche palace (1737) by Elba river, known as the “Balcony of Dresden”. Under the balcony lies the Fortress of Dresden, the oldest renaissance structure in the city. Here you can see the only surviving entrance gate (400 years old) in old Dresden and wander in its mysterious vaults. 
Address: Eingang Georg-Treu-Platz 1, 01067 Dresden

Dresden Cathedral: Dresden Catholic Cathedral was built in the period 1739-1755 in baroque style by Italian Architect Gaetano Chiaveri and it is the largest church in Saxony. Its vault contains the sarcophagi of 49 rulers of Saxony and the heart of August II the Strong. 
Address: Schlossstrasse 24, 01067 Dresden
 
Grosser Garten: The largest and most beautiful park in Dresden dates back in the 17th century and it includes a large variety of gardens, an early baroque style palace, a lake for boating, a Botanical Garden and Zoo and many open air stages for cultural events. From 1950 to this day, a small railway gives visitors the chance to take an interesting tour. 
Address: Haiptallee 8, 01219 Dresden, www.grosser-garten-dresden.de

The traditional “shopping mile” of Dresden is a track starting from the Central station of the city, runs Prager Strasse and Altmarkt (old market) and ends to Wilsdruffer Strasse. All large department stores are found here, as well as the popular shopping centre Centrum-Galerie with 120 shops and restaurants in its 4 floors. Nearby Altmarkt-Gallerie is deemed as the Mecca of shopping. In its three floors you will find more than 200 shops and exclusive boutiques, restaurants and cafés.
 
For a more special shopping experience, visit the arcades around Neumarkt Square where you will find excellent small shops and boutiques. In the baroque district, glamorous Königstrasse Avenue with the romantic internal yards and the restored mansions, is home to some of the most expensive art galleries and antique shops. Nearby you will find bohemian Neustadt, where hip shops for music, fashion and jewellery are based. 

The largest food open air market is held every Friday at Lingner-Allee, in the city centre. In December, keep an eye for the famous and romantic Christmas market Striezelmarkt, a tradition dating back to 1434.

From baroque Alstadt to cool and alternative Newstadt, Dresden has a very interesting fusion of culinary and night-life hot spots to demonstrate. Here, you will find old fashioned bars, traditional pubs, bistros, ethnic restaurants with exotic cuisine and elegant Michelin starred restaurants with gourmet local or international cuisine. 

In the Old City, the focus of culinary action is at Weisse Gasse and Muenzgasse, two tasty destinations with many creative cuisine restaurants, old pubs and bars to suit any taste. However, the heart of night life beats at hip Neustadt, where you will find the best restaurants of the city, the hippest clubs and of course the coolest crowd of Dresden. The most popular addresses unravel along Alaunstrasse and Louisenstrasse. If you visit the area, do try a doner kebab or currywurst, two of the favourite local snacks.

• Dresden International Dixieland Festival: One of the greatest and most important European music festivals for jazz, boogie and blues, with an air of New Orleans and the original feeling of Dixieland in the heart of Saxony. One of the best moments in the three day festival that attracts artists and audience from around the world is the Riverside Shuffle, the greatest musical parade of steamboats by the banks of Elbe. 
• Dresden Music Festival: Top soloists, orchestras, ensembles and choruses from around the world meet in the leading classical music festival in Dresden. The festival has a 3 weeks duration (May and June) and has a different theme every year. 
• Filmnächte (Film nights): At an idyllic setting, by the banks of Elbe river, the largest movable cinema screen in the world offers thousand of film lovers open air nights of cinema magic. The two months event (June - August) also include concerts by important names of the international music scene.

Getting to and from the Airport in Deauville

Aegean Airlines lands on Dresden International Airport, 9 km north of Dresden centre. Here you will find a variety of duty-free shops, restaurants, cafés, bars, ATMs, foreign exchange offices, postal services, a children's play area, a recreation room offering massage and shiatsu services, a chapel for prayer and Wi-Fi for a fee (free access for the first 30 minutes). Passengers interested to spend their time on gaming, the airport's casino offers a wide variety of computer games and internet kiosks for surfing the web.

The fastest and cheapest way to get to the city centre is to take the S2 line of the S-Bahn train. The S2 line connects the city's two largest stations (Dresden Neustadt and Dresden Hauptbahnhof) with the airport's subway station.