Market forces in Dusseldorf

Dec 12 2008 By Roger Clarke

Roger Clarke finds a German city with plenty to shout about.

MENTION you are off to Dusseldorf for the weekend and the reaction is similar to announcing a trip to Rotherham or Ellesmere Port – a sort of quizzical expression of “why?”

To the businessman, the city is well-known as the centre of a huge industrial region of 20 million people. One-third of all Germany’s top companies are located there, served by the third-largest airport in Germany where Lufthansa has built a huge new hub. But businessmen go where the business is, so once again, why a weekend break?

The city doesn’t have the mass appeal or snob value of a Berlin, a Rome or a Paris, but it does have a fair bit to shout about. Writer and poet Heinrich Heine was born there, and Mendelssohn was the city’s musical director, as was Schumann who spent his last years in the city. The Kom(m)ödchen political cabaret, a particularly German institution, was founded and thrives there.

It has more art galleries than you can shake a brush at, ancient, open squares and some fine architecture, including dramatic examples of modern design from Frank O. Gehry. It is a media centre and fashion centre as well as being the gateway to North Rhine-Westphalia.

Nearby are Cologne, Essen, Dortmund and magnificent Aachen, while in easy reach is the Eifel region with its forests and national parks.

At this time of year, the area is awash with Christmas markets which date back to medieval times. Dusseldorf centre has six, which supposedly are different but all offer mulled wine, egg nog and fast food with long German names full of apples, potatoes, pork and sausage, as well as crafts and gifts.

The fairs also manage to remember that it is a celebration of a Christian festival and not just a secular spendfest.

Dusseldorf can also offer shopping to die for – if you can afford it – with names such as Prada, Tiffany and the like lining the Königsallee which is a sort of Higher than just plain old High Street. BOGOF is a rare visitor there.

It might have passed under the radar of most people but Dusseldorf is an international city with fine hotels and eateries. We plumped for one of the brew pubs in the old town, the Uerige, with delicious roast pork and sliced potatoes baked in cream and a system of beer drinking which should be adopted worldwide – as soon as your glass nears empty it is replaced by a full one automatically.

From there we visited Schloss Dyck, a 17th-century baroque palace surrounded by a wide moat. It is now run much like a National Trust property, but with space available perhaps had a wider range of Christmas offerings than town markets.

Next on the festive tour was Aachen.

Aachen and Cologne are 40 minutes apart by train and each can boast a cathedral which is a world heritage site.

Aachen’s dates back to 792 when it was started by Charlemagne who was buried there on the day he died in 814. The magnificent structure was spared when it was hit by a bomb in the war which passed through without exploding. It also contains the four great Aachen relics: St Mary’s cloak, Christ’s swaddling clothes, St John the Baptist’s beheading cloth and Christ’s loincloth which are on display every seven years for the Great Aachen Pilgrimage – the next is 2014.

The Christmas market in Aachen is set in the old town around the ancient cathedral and the Rathaus, the imposing gothic Town Hall completed in 1349. Cobbled streets, crowds, Christmas music and shops selling printen, the spicy gingerbreads reputedly originating in the city, and all manner of delicacies and gifts create a festive wonderland.

The town hall is home to Ratskeller Aachen, a splendid restaurant in the cellars which did us proud and where booking is essential.

The last fair in our whistle-stop tour was south to Monschau, a medieval town deep in a valley in the Eifel. With no real strategic significance and well away from the industry of the Ruhr to the north, the village escaped the war unscathed so you wander among half-timbered houses 300 years or more old.

With a dusting of snow, carols, and Christmas card views, Monschau attracts tourists like bees to honey – a coach from Redditch was in the car park when we arrived – but somehow the crowds, far from being threatening, just seem to add to the jollity.

The area might not be well-known but it has a lot to offer for a weekend, or short break at any time, while Christmas just adds a little magic.

We stayed at the Dusseldorf Airport Sheraton, a large, spacious, single-floor and luxurious hotel on the roof of a multi-storey car park across the road from arrivals. I found it on the internet at a very reasonable £92 a night for a double room including a rather excellent breakfast based on two sharing.

If you stay there ask about the turtle sanctuary in one of the gardens. Also within walking distance of arrivals is the Maritim hotel which opened a year ago next week. Both are about 10 minutes from the city centre by taxi or excellent public transport links.

We also stayed at the Mercure Aachen City, a three-star hotel within walking distance of the city centre with room-only prices ranging from £137 to £175 for two nights on the internet.

We flew with Lufthansa direct from Birmingham where economy flights start at £49 or £94 return with business class starting off at £694.