Braunschweig travel guide

Braunschweig, Germany

By the Travel Wiki editorial team

Braunschweig

Introduction

Braunschweig, also known as Brunswick, sits in Lower Saxony north of the Harz Mountains, at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker. The Oker links the city to the North Sea through the Aller and Weser rivers, and this position has helped make Braunschweig a major hub within its region — an important regiopolis with many of the characteristics of a metropolitan city on a smaller scale.

The city is one of the most diverse places in the state. A large share of residents have a migration background, with many arriving from other European countries as well as from Asia and Africa, while most German residents have come from elsewhere in the country, particularly North Rhine Westphalia, Hessen and the former East German states. This mix gives Braunschweig a distinctly international character, and it is considered one of the best-integrated cities in the nation.

Before you go

Brunswick is a city whose medieval importance and wartime destruction both shape what you will see today. It grew rich on major trade routes and on the navigable river Oker, which gave it access to the sea port of Bremen, and it was among the last cities to join the Hanseatic League. Its political weight came from Henry the Lion, duke of Saxony and Bavaria, who founded several German cities, married Matilda of England, and had the Lion monument erected in 1166; his son Otto was crowned German emperor in 1209. The Lion still appears in the city's coat of arms. Expect a turbulent history as well: Brunswick is considered to have been one of the most tumultuous cities of late medieval and early modern Europe, with constitutional conflicts that ended in uprisings and civil unrest. Set your expectations for the cityscape accordingly. Allied bombing in World War II destroyed most of the medieval centre, leaving only a small number of the timberframe houses that once stood there, and only a few buildings have been re-erected. Much of the downtown you will walk through is 1950s post-war architecture. If you are coming for research or industry connections, note that the district is an industrial hub, with steel in Salzgitter and Peine and Volkswagen in Wolfsburg, and the region is unusually research-intensive, home to the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt, which handles Germany's time measurement and time signal, along with several universities and numerous research institutes.

Getting there

For arrivals by air, the nearest commercial airport is Hannover Airport, roughly 30–40 minutes away by car or about an hour by train. Braunschweig Airport itself is mainly a research airport used by the Technische Universität Braunschweig and federal aviation bodies, though it does handle seasonal holiday charter flights to destinations such as Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Cyprus, bookable through regional tour operators or directly at the airport.

Getting around

The centre of Braunschweig is compact and easy to cover on foot: the downtown shopping district is a car-free pedestrian zone, and most places of interest lie within walking distance of one another. For anything further out, the city and the surrounding district are served by Braunschweiger Verkehrs-AG, whose trams and buses reach places within the city limits without difficulty. Fares are organised by zones, so what you pay depends on how far you travel. For a visitor, the most useful tickets are the short-hop ticket (Kurzstrecke), valid for up to three stops with no changes; the single ticket (Stadttarif BS) for a standard trip within the city, with a reduced child fare; and the day ticket, which covers one day until the end of services and comes in options for one to five people, so couples, families and groups can share one. Multi-trip packs, the Deutschlandticket and various passes exist for longer stays. Buy tickets from the driver by cash or card, at DB ticket machines, or through mobile apps - the FAIRTIQ and Meine BSVG apps are the handiest for travellers, and the free VRB app provides timetables, mobile tickets and a network map. Tickets issued by the Lower Saxony network and by Deutsche Bahn are also valid within the VRB area, so you do not always need a separate local ticket. For schedules and connections, consult the VRB or the EFA site, which covers all of Lower Saxony and Bremen.

Arriving by train, note that Braunschweig Hauptbahnhof is not very close to the centre and its immediate surroundings hold few sights, so take a bus or tram onward; the station itself is well served by Deutsche Bahn, including high-speed ICE trains, with local trains to Goslar, the Harz Mountains and the Lüneburg Heath. Long-distance buses stop at the Zentraler Omnibus-Bahnhof on Berliner Platz, between the main station and the German Mail building, next to the Steam Locomotive monument, with frequent services to Eastern Europe. Driving is an option - all major car rental companies have branches here, and the city sits on the A2, A39 and city autobahns - but expect gridlock at rush hours and a great many traffic lights; parking garages are numerous and managed by a parking guidance system whose availability, fees and opening hours you can check from your phone. Taxis are comparatively expensive, mostly used by locals at weekends after buses and trains stop, or for hauling luggage to the station. Sharing a cab with strangers is not a local custom, though some can be persuaded if your stop lies on the same route, especially when cabs are scarce in bad weather. Registered taxis carry yellow roof signs and a creamy eggshell colour, and can be phoned or hailed.

Where to stay

Brunswick has a large number of excellent hotels, many of them in or near the city centre, so you can base yourself within easy reach of the sights. If you prefer somewhere quieter, there are options in the suburbs: a B&B hotel north of the centre with rooms that are on the small side but include a substantial breakfast, free WiFi in the public rooms and free parking, and a Best Western in a quiet southern suburb, housed in a former hospital, with a small restaurant and breakfast room. A small family-run hotel to the east offers cosy rooms, a house restaurant, a garden that becomes a beer garden in summer, and welcomes pets on request. Closer in, a hotel near the city centre occupies a building over a century old, tastefully modernised, with its own Italian-style restaurant, a wine bar and a terrace looking out onto the Cathedral Square. Chain hotels are well represented: one mid-range option sits a short walk from the Cathedral and the main railway station, with air conditioning, a sauna and fitness centre, a solarium and a bar, and can provide a packed lunch if you are heading into the Harz Mountains for the day. For a splurge, a modern hotel with individually designed rooms, a restaurant, sauna and small fitness centre is available, as is a smaller hotel on the edge of the pedestrian area, a short walk from the Cathedral, with a bar and a shuttle to the main railway station and airport. Note that parking, WiFi and pets often cost extra at the more central properties.

Food & drink

Brunswick's medieval past shows up on your plate: the city is known for Mumme, a malt extract often called the oldest man-made nonperishable food, and you can shop for Mumme specialities around town. Bakeries still sell Eulen und Meerkatzen (owls and guenons, or Ulen un Apen in local dialect), the pastries legend credits the trickster Till Eulenspiegel with baking to prank the people of Brunswick. Sausages and cakes are a local strength, and seasonal eating matters here: asparagus from the Brunswick district, curly kale served as Braunkohl, and local chanterelles are all regional specialities. For a broad taste of it all, head to the Christmas market in December, where vendors sell plenty of local food and you can share dishes without sitting down to order.

For everyday eating, doner kebab shops are everywhere, with the Bohlweg, Tandir near the Merz nightclub, and the so-called Donerreieck between the shopping district and the red light district among the most renowned. Fast options in the centre include the pizza restaurant in the Burg Passage and the Dutch French fries stand near Karstadt. Budget choices range from Tiziano, serving homemade Italian ice cream at three parlours, to the traditional pizza parlour Stresa on Bohlweg and the one-room Pizza Room on Sophienstrasse. Kim-Kim, on the party mile, is an Asian eatery popular with the nightlife crowd, while Zu den Vier Linden in the Ostliches Ringgebiet keeps a laid-back, bohemian kitchen open past midnight and Schalander offers rustic surroundings and inexpensive German cooking. For very typical Braunschweig cuisine, try Mutter Habenicht behind the Brunswick State Museum, or Schadt's, a city classic known for its home-brewed beer. Beer gardens worth seeking out include Fried'rich am Magnitor, where you drink under chestnut trees in summer, and Stadl am Kohlmarkt serves generous portions of Bavarian food in an old timber-framed house. Schnitzel comes in many variations at Schnitzelhaus, and William's Dorfklause out in Timmerlah serves Germany's largest. Fischer is a chic, artsy spot with excellent Flammkuchen and cakes, and El Gaucho is an Argentinian steak house. At the higher end, Tandure is an upscale Anatolian restaurant near the Volkswagen Arena, OX steakhouse occupies the Haus zur Hanse, Naske serves an international menu alongside its own Naske Dunkel beer, and the Gewandhaus Restaurant plates German cuisine in Northern Germany's oldest vaulted cellar. For drinks, the Wild Geese is an Irish pub popular with English-speaking expats, Bolero is a bar and Mexican restaurant, and Okercabana is an artificial beach with downtempo, jazz and occasional live music. Clubs include Brain for reggae, drum'n bass, electropunk and funk, and DAX Bierborse in the centre. Kaufbar mixes bar, cafe, restaurant and cabaret theatre with live bands, readings and comedy, while Nexus draws an alternative crowd for punk, ska, indie and alternative acts.

What to see and do

Start at the Burgplatz, where the Brunswick Lion stands in front of Dankwarderode Castle and Brunswick Cathedral. The lion, built by Henry the Lion in the 12th century, gives Brunswick its nickname, Lion City; the monument on the square is a replica, and the original bronze is kept in the castle's basement museum. Note that Dankwarderode Castle, the neo-Romanesque palace of Henry the Lion with its restored Knights' Hall, is closed until further notice. Nearby on Schloßplatz, Brunswick Palace was rebuilt as a façade with a shopping mall inside and the public library; you can climb to the top to see the quadriga Brunonia up close, and two equestrian statues of dukes stand in front. Elsewhere, the Literaturzentrum in the Raabe-Haus is the home where author Wilhelm Raabe lived and now serves as a museum and literary venue, while the Rizzi-House is a colourful office building designed by pop artist James Rizzi. In the Bruchstraße historic district, known locally as the "Gurke", well-preserved medieval timber-framed houses can be viewed from outside the gates, though the area itself is closed to the public and off-limits to minors.

For museums, you can visit the Herzog Anton Ulrich Museum, the Braunschweigische Landesmuseum with its Jewish Museum, the Museum für Fotografie, the Naturhistorisches Museum, the Museum of Agricultural Engineering at Gut Steinhof, and the Cistercian Museum at Riddagshausen Abbey. Churches include Brunswick Cathedral, Ägidienkirche, St. Magni, Jakobskirche, St. Andreas and St. Katharinen. Outdoors, Prinz-Albrecht-Park is a good spot where many people barbecue in summer, and Riddagshausen has a nature reserve and arboretum. You can go canoeing around the city, with a rental place at Kennedyplatz, or join a tour with "Hugo the Nightwatchman" through medieval Brunswick; other tours cover Carl-Friedrich Gauss and Renaissance Brunswick, and you should phone ahead for tours in English. For sport, watch Eintracht Braunschweig play football, the Braunschweig New Yorker Phantoms play basketball, and the New Yorker Lions play American football in the same stadium as the football team. Festivals fill the calendar: the Schoduvel carnival parade on the Sunday before Rosenmontag, the Braunschweig Classix Festival, the Schützenfest with the Braunschweiger Masch each June, a Medieval Market Fair over the Pentecost weekend, the Sparkassen Open tennis tournament, Kultur im Zelt in August and September, the Magnifest in the Magniviertel on the first September weekend, the Braunschweig International Film Festival in November, and the Braunschweiger Weihnachtsmarkt, which serves Glühwein, Feuerzangenbowle, Met and Mummebier along with specialities such as Braunkohl, Meterbratwurst, Heideschinken and Prillecken.

When to go

Braunschweig has an oceanic climate, so you can expect mild, wet conditions throughout the year rather than sharply defined seasons. July is the warmest month, but it is also the wettest, meaning summer visits often pair warm days with rain. This is nonetheless the busiest period for outdoor sightseeing, since the days are at their longest.

Festivals & events

Braunschweig's calendar is anchored by a handful of recurring events spread across the year. In February, the city holds Schoduvel, its carnival celebration. Spring brings the Braunschweig Classix Festival in May, followed by the Brunswick Schützenfest in June.

Later in the year, Kultur im Zelt takes place in August, and the Braunschweig International Film Festival follows in November. If your visit coincides with one of these, plan around it, as the city's attention turns to the event.

Three days in Braunschweig

Day one: Start in Braunschweig itself, the city also known as Brunswick, and get your bearings in its historic core. As you walk, look for the legacy of Henry the Lion and Matilda, and of Otto, whose connections reached as far as England. The city was heavily damaged by Allied bombing in World War II, so expect a mix of reconstructed and surviving architecture rather than an untouched old town. The Oker runs through the city, and following it on foot is an easy way to see how the centre is laid out.

Day two: Use Braunschweig as your base for the wider region of Lower Saxony. The Harz Mountains lie to the south, and the surrounding lowlands are drained by rivers including the Aller and the Weser. If you prefer to stay closer, the towns of Salzgitter and Peine are within reach, and Volkswagen has a presence in the area. Bremen, a Hanseatic League city, is another option if you want a longer day out.

Day three: Take a slower day and think about what the city's position has meant over time. Braunschweig sits in a part of Germany shaped by its links to Saxony, Bavaria, North Rhine Westphalia and Hessen, and by the old divide between East German and western regions. The North Sea is not close, but the rivers and the flat country around the city give a sense of the northern German landscape. End with a walk along the Oker and a meal of German cooking before you move on.

About this place