Top 3 Must-Visit Attractions in Bremen, Germany

People have often asked why I travel to certain destinations, or what draws me to a certain part of the world. Well, it depends on what I feel like doing. I always travel with a specific goal in mind. If I’m in the mood for a shopping spree, I’ll definitely pick Bangkok, Taiwan and Hong Kong. If I feel too stressed up and need an escape from the city, you’ll most probably find me at beach resorts around the world. However, more often than not, I’m intrigued by the history and culture of a place, and enthralled by the architecture. If you have a similar interest like me, Bremen is a great place to check out. Here are 3 of my favourite spots that I highly recommend if you’re visiting Bremen.

Bremen Marktplatz

Bremen, the archetypal Hanseatic city on the Weser, wears its mercantile heritage with pride. Its history can be traced back to 1,200 years ago. You can still see traces of yesteryear around the city today, most notably with the UNESCO World Heritage Town Hall and Roland Statue. The Town Hall was erected between 1405 and 1410 in Gothic style, but the facade was built two centuries later in Renaissance style. The Town Hall is the seat of the President of the Senate of Bremen. Today, it houses a restaurant in original decor with gigantic wine barrels, the Ratskeller in Bremen, and the wine lists boasts more than 600 exclusively German wines. It is also home to the twelve oldest wines in the world, stored in their original barrels in the Apostel chamber.

You will notice two statues standing to the West side of the Town Hall. The prominent one is the statue Bremen Roland, the city’s protector, Roland, with his view against the Cathedral and bearing Durendart, the “sword of justice” and a shield decorated with an imperial eagle. 

The other statue near the entrance to the Ratskeller is Gerhard Marcks’ bronze sculpture Die Stadtmusikanten (Town Musicians), which portrays the donkey, dog, cat and rooster of the Grimm Brothers’ fairytale. 

Legacies of the city’s trading past in and around the market square also include the Hanseatic Cross and the Schütting, the seat of the chamber of commerce. Every year, illustrious guests are invited to join the traditional Schaffermahl banquet. Other interesting buildings in the vicinity of the Marktplatz are the Rathscafé, Raths-Apotheke, Haus der Stadtsparkasse and the Stadtwaage, the former weigh house with an ornate Renaissance facade, and the nearby Essighaus, once a fine Renaissance town house. The facades and houses surrounding the market square were the first buildings in Bremen to be restored after World War II, by the citizens of Bremen themselves.

St. Peter’s Cathedral also stands tall to the East of the Marktplatz, with sculptures of Moses and David, Peter and Paul and Charlemagne. On Katherinenklosterhof to the Northwest of the cathedral, a few remaining traces can be found of St. Catherine’s Monastery dating back to the 13th century.

Böttcherstrasse

The oldest part of Bremen is the Schnoor quarter, and its expressionist pièce de résistance is Böttcherstrasse. Böttcherstraße was transformed in 1923 to 1931 by the coffee magnate Ludwig Roselius, who commissioned local artists to convert the narrow street used by barrel makers in medieval times into an inspired mixture of Gothic and Art Nouveau. Today, the street is one of Bremen’s most popular attractions, with the Glockenspiel House at No. 4 with its carillon of Meissen porcelain bells.

You will also come across the Fountain of the Seven Lazy Brothers by Bernhard Hoetger which is based on a local legend. They were the sons of a Bremen farmer and not exactly renowned as hard workers. As they could not find any work in Bremen, they went out into the world. Some years later, they returned to Bremen with a wealth of knowledge and experience and began to work in their father’s fields. They dug ditches to drain the fields and constructed a dyke along the river Weser to prevent flooding. They also paved a road and built themselves houses next to it.

Unwilling to believe that the seven lazy brothers could have changed, the people of Bremen continued to pour scorn on them, saying the brothers were simply too lazy to get their feet dirty while working in muddy fields. Now, of course, we know that the seven lazy brothers were not lazy at all but actually very smart. The fountain in the courtyard of the Paula Becker Modersohn House in Böttcherstrasse still depicts the brothers as idle. But have a look at the gables of the Sieben Faulen Haus (Seven Lazy Brothers House) where you can see the industrious brothers standing tall and proud as they look down on the city.

Mühle am Wall

We came across this windmill nestled in flowerbeds in Wallanlagen Park while walking from the main station to the city centre. It’s hard to miss this notable feature! The park is an ideal place for a walk, or simply to wind down and relax. Take a break from exploring Bremen, and treat yourself to a delicious slice of cake at the windmill restaurant. Don’t be deceived by its beautiful outlook as this area used to be where the ramparts once formed an extra line of protection around the city’s boundary walls. Later on, the city’s ramparts were transformed into a green belt after the fortifications were dismantled.

You don’t have to spend a long time in Bremen. Just set aside a day or two for discovering the city, and you can hop onto one of their train services from Bremen Hauptbahnhof to continue your trip around Germany or around Europe. There are Intercity Express services, Regional services, Local services, Bremen S-Bahn services, and even EuroCity services that bring you to Zürich, Switzerland. Hope you’ll enjoy your trip as much as I did!