the Ständehaus, the city’s former state parliament building, which is now part of the K21 Kunstsammlung (art collection). And Her Majesty reportedly enjoyed herself so much in Düsseldorf that she quite forgot the times she was supposed to visit each destination in her schedule.
Düsseldorf, seen by many as the fashion capital of Germany, oozes style and sets trends. Have a wander along tree-lined Königsallee and you’ll pass outposts of all the major fashion labels.
Incurable fashion fans will also find plenty of shopping opportunities for hip, alternative designs: trawl Lorettostrasse, in the distinctly untouristy Unterbilk district, for chic independent boutiques. The old blue-collar borough of Flingern is just the ticket for second-hand gear and atmospheric neighbourhood cafes.
Matching Düsseldorf’s fashion offering is the funky architecture – admire, for example, Frank Gehry’s delightfully drunken-looking Dancing Houses by the waterside MedienHafen complex, which also features the work of another stellar architect, David Chipperfield. That should put you in the mood for beers and Japanese food in the much-loved Little Tokyo quarter. To find it, make for Immermannstrasse, and prepare for oodles of delicious noodles.
DÜSSELDORF
© Düsseldorf Tourismus –
Foto U. Otte
The picturesque grounds of Benrath Palace are a backdrop for festivals in the summer months
A
lmost four decades separate the Queen’s first
and last visits to Düsseldorf, the commercial
and financial hub of North Rhine-Westphalia. It formed part of her itinerary on the 1965 state tour of West Germany; and she was back in 2004, to help strengthen economic ties between Britain and Germany.
In 1965, the Queen was welcomed to Benrath Palace by a sea of onlookers – and a huge display of roses, orchids, carnations and lilies. She was there for a celebratory breakfast of some 60 guests and, according to reports, was so keen to mingle that she took her coffee standing up. Visit today and you will likewise get to roam the interiors, which look out over world-class topiary-decorated grounds and parkland – the venue for summer festivals of music and light. This rococo confection, famed for its ice cream-pink walls, was built as a pleasure palace and hunting château in the 1700s. Instagram the vibrant Living Quarters (Corps de Logis) and the lime trees lining the park avenues, some dating from the 18th century.
Fast-forward almost 40 years and, in a speech on her 2004 visit, the Queen said: “I leave Germany this afternoon at the end of this visit with a real sense of opportunities ahead for those in both our countries who can grasp them.” Not for nothing had her schedule included attending a fashion show at
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It’s Germany’s fashion capital – but hosts a chic-looking 18th-century pleasure palace, too
© Düsseldorf Tourismus – Foto U. Otte
The picturesque grounds of Benrath Palace are a backdrop for
festivals in the summer months
It’s Germany’s fashion capital – but hosts a chic-looking 18th-century pleasure palace, too
lmost four decades separate the Queen’s first
and last visits to Düsseldorf, the commercial
and financial hub of North Rhine-Westphalia. It formed part of her itinerary on the 1965 state tour of West Germany; and she was back in 2004, to help strengthen economic ties between Britain and Germany.
In 1965, the Queen was welcomed to Benrath Palace by a sea of onlookers – and a huge display of roses, orchids, carnations and lilies. She was there for a celebratory breakfast of some 60 guests and, according to reports, was so keen to mingle that she took her coffee standing up. Visit today and you will likewise get to roam the interiors, which look out over world-class topiary-decorated grounds and parkland – the venue for summer festivals of music and light. This rococo confection, famed for its ice cream-pink walls, was built as a pleasure palace and hunting château in the 1700s. Instagram the vibrant Living Quarters (Corps de Logis) and the lime trees lining the park avenues, some dating from the 18th century.
Fast-forward almost 40 years and, in a speech on her 2004 visit, the Queen said: “I leave Germany this afternoon at the end of this visit with a real sense of opportunities ahead for those in both our countries who can grasp them.” Not for nothing had her schedule included attending a fashion show at the Ständehaus, the city’s former state parliament building, which is now part of the K21 Kunstsammlung (art collection). And Her Majesty reportedly enjoyed herself so much in Düsseldorf that she quite forgot the times she was supposed to visit each destination in her schedule.
Düsseldorf, seen by many as the fashion capital of Germany, oozes style and sets trends. Have a wander along tree-lined Königsallee and you’ll pass outposts of all the major fashion labels.
Incurable fashion fans will also find plenty of shopping opportunities for hip, alternative designs: trawl Lorettostrasse, in the distinctly untouristy Unterbilk district, for chic independent boutiques. The old blue-collar borough of Flingern is just the ticket for second-hand gear and atmospheric neighbourhood cafes.
Matching Düsseldorf’s fashion offering is the funky architecture – admire, for example, Frank Gehry’s delightfully drunken-looking Dancing Houses by the waterside MedienHafen complex, which also features the work of another stellar architect, David Chipperfield. That should put you in the mood for beers and Japanese food in the much-loved Little Tokyo quarter. To find it, make for Immermannstrasse, and prepare for oodles of delicious noodles.
