Visit Leipzig and you will be amazed how green this former GDR industrial site is. From Scheuditz in the north to Markkleeberg in the south and straight through the town there is a line of about 25 km of Floodplain Forest. You can explore this unique biotope on foot, by bike and also by boat.

Surrounding the old town is the Promenadenring, under a preservation order and the oldest urban landscaped park in Germany. You can take a wonderful walk on cosy paths under the crowns of majestic trees and passing by many monuments. Once you are through you will find the Clara-Zetkin-Park,south west of the centre. With its generous meadows, winding paths; a stage in the park, a music pavilion and the Galopprennbahn Scheibenholz (horse racing track) it is the favoured meeting place for families, sportsmen and day-trippers. A little to the north east of the old town there is the historical park Rosental, measuring 118 hectares, flanked on one side by the Zoologische Garten housing the world’s largest collection of apes “Pongoland”. Other worthwhile trips include the Botanical Gardens with their butterfly house, and the Wildpark at Connewitzer Holz. You can view about 250 animals right up close in an area of about 42 Hectares, and entry is free.

Hardly any of the many visitors to Leipzig realise that the town can also be well observed from the water. Numerous canals, rivers and Elster and Pleiße tributaries flow through the west side of the town. Take a paddleboat from the tidal basin of the Elster along the harbours of the floodplain forest right up to the banks of the Clara-Zetkin-Park. Or via the Karl-Heine-Canal through the former industrial town section and the present bespoke Plagwitz quarter, past romantic backyards, disused industrial buildings and chic loft apartments. It is worth making a rest break at one of the many small cafes and restaurants at the water’s edge, for example at the Café Weiße Elster directly under the picturesque Könneritz bridge. A map of the waterways can be obtained from the boat hirers or the tourist information office at the main station. If paddling should be too strenuous for you: the excursion ship MS Weltfrieden travels several times per day in the summer months along the complex canal network.

Coffee and Leipzig fit together like day and night, as thick as thieves. Since the very first coffeehouse in Leipzig opened its doors at the beginning of the 17^th century, the “little bowl of the hot stuff” has remained one of the favourite drinks of the locals to the present day. This is reflected in the nickname “Coffee-Saxonians”, which they were christened with by the Prussian monarch Frederick the Great during the seven-year war. Coffee was a rare commodity at that time, and without it the moral of the troops was dampened dramatically – so much indeed that they as good as refused to up arms, arguing, “without coffee we can’t fight”. Visitors to Leipzig today can rediscover the old coffeehouse tradition in numerous magnificent coffeehouses.

The most famous of these is the oldest one in Germany “Zum arabischen Coffe-Baum” with its Café Français, the Arabian Café and the Vienna coffeehouse. Since it was opened over 300 years ago, many famous people in world history met up here, including Goethe, Bach, Wagner und Napoleon. True Vienna coffeehouse flair can be found in the Kaffeehaus Riquet with its homely corner seating and a huge selection of cakes. People also meet for coffee and cakes at the Café Grundmann with its original Art-Deco chic, or in the historical Café Corso.

Drallewatsch, that is the typical Saxonian expression for “have a great experience”. And that’s what you really can do here. – Without official closing times! Famously notorious is the trendy spot of the same name in the heart of the town. In the area around the historical Barfußgässchen (barefoot alley) pubs, cafes, restaurants and bars huddle together, interspersed by neat Wilhelminian style houses and magnificent Renaissance villas. The mother of all Leipzig’s in pubs is the “Bar Fusz” in the Barfußgässchen 9. The oldest coffeehouse in Germany ”Zum Arabischen Coffe Baum” in the Kleine Fleischergasse 4 has rewritten gastronomic history. Only a few metres further on at Hainstraße 1 the cosy lounge bars and beautiful court terraces of “Barthels Hof” attract many guests. One of the most original historical taverns with typical “Saxonian cosiness” is “Zills Tunnel” at Barfußgässchen 9. The oldest one in Leipzig is the “ThüringerHof” at Burgstraße 19, which is over 450 years old.

By the way: no Drallewatsch-pub crawl without trying the famous Gose! This slightly sour tasting beer speciality, similar to white beer, is only available in Leipzig. Its special taste is attributed to a mixture of cooking salt and coriander. If you should find it too sour, it can be pepped up with cherry liqueur. But pure lovers drink it neat. It is not for nothing that there is a famous saying “What the rose is among flowers the Gose is among beers”.

Other large towns also have covered shopping arcades, but nowhere else will you find such an enclosed system in so many different architectural styles as in Leipzig. Long thoroughfares, flooded with light and attractive interior courtyards characterise the terrace, much of it having originally been constructed as fair buildings.

The grandest of the Leipzig city arcades is the historical Mädlerpassage in the heart of the town. No other emits so much metropolitan flair as this most gentrified shopping mile of Leipzig. Expensive boutiques, international designer shops and luxury stores line up harmoniously here. One of the most famous sights in Leipzig can be found here in the basement, the history filled Auerbachs Keller, which gained worldwide renown through Goethe’s “Faust”. Pure shopping enjoyment is also offered in the Hauptbahnhof-Promenaden (main station promenades) in the largest railway terminus in Europe. There are over 140 boutiques, cafes and shops, open every day until 10.00 pm, to be found on three levels.

Other well known arcades are the grand glass covered Speck´s Hof, the oldest preserved shopping arcade of the town, the Strohsackpassage and the StädtischeKaufhaus, the first sample fair building in the world.