Trier Travel Guide

The Porta Nigra (Latin for black gate) is a large Roman city gate in Trier, Germany. It is the largest Roman city gate north of the Alps and has been designated a World Heritage Site. The modern appearance of the Porta Nigra goes back almost unchanged to the reconstruction ordered by Napoleon. At the south side of the Porta Nigra, remains of Roman columns line the last 100m of the street leading to the gate. Positioned where they had stood in Roman times, they give a slight impression of the aspect of the original Roman street that was lined with colonnades.

The Porta Nigra, including the upper floors, is open to visitors. In summer, guided tours are also offered by an actor dressed up as and portraying a centurion (a Roman army officer) in full armor.

Over 1600 years ago, the Romans built one of the grandest and most impressive baths in the world: the Imperial Baths in Trier. Today you can visit this gigantic bathing facility: go back in time to the Roman era, descend into the subterranean labyrinth and get a feel for history.

Hours: April - September: 9am - 6pm, October: 9am - 5pm, November - February: 9am - 4pm, March: 9am - 5pm.

Admission: 2.10 € Adults, 1 € Children under 18, 1.60 € Concessions, 5.10 € Family Card.

When you enter the premises you walk through the ruins of the entrance gate. This was used as a quarry in the Middle Ages. The arena itself is surrounded by a protective wall with openings for animal cages. The arena, built in the 2nd century A.D. for cruel games with gladiators and animals, had a seating capacity of about 20,000. With its crystal-clear acoustics, the Amphitheatre serves as a venue for the Antiquity Festival and is used today for occasional open-air concerts.

Hours: April - September: 9am - 6pm. October: 9am - 5pm. November - February: 9am - 4pm. March: 9am - 5pm.

Admission: 2.10 € Adults, 1 € Children under 18, 1.60 € Concessions, 5.10 € Family Card.

Karl Marx's birthplace is one of the most beautiful burgher's houses in Trier with the 1727 front section, an inner courtyard, an addition from the 1860's, and a surprisingly large garden.

The museum contains three main exhibitions: the history of early Communism and Socialism with a display of rare early editions of Marx's writings (like the first editions of the Communist Manifesto from 1848 and Das Kapital from 1867; a research library (the Karl-Marx-Studienzentrum a few houses down the street with more than 70,000 volumes); and a collection of original photos, documents, and manuscripts.

Hours: April - October: daily 10am - 6pm ; November - March: Mon 2pm - 5pm, Tue - Sun 11am - 5pm.

Admission: Adults 3 €, Students: 2 €, Admission free on the 1st Sunday of each month (May - October).

The Cathedral of Saint Peter is the oldest cathedral in Germany and the seat of the Roman Catholic Archbishop Bishop of Trier. The edifice is notable for its extremely long life span under multiple different eras, each contributing some elements to its design, including the center of the main chapel made of Roman brick laid under the direction of Saint Helen, resulting in a cathedral added on to gradually rather than rebuilt in different eras. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Cathedral Information Office offers tours through the Cathedral and the Church of Our Lady or through the excavations under the Cathedral Information Office.

Hours: April 1 to October 31: daily 6:30am - 6pm. November 1 to March 31: daily 6:30am - 5:30pm.

The Roscheider Hof Open Air Museum offers folklore exhibitions ranging from wine-growing to dentistry and a museum of forestry and wood, a tin figure and toy museum, acres of open grounds with the Hunsrück village, a Moselle village that is currently being reconstructed, a rose garden, several country gardens, a restaurant with beer garden and a large nature-oriented children's playground. The museum is about 8km from Trier.

Hours: Tuesday - Friday 9am – 6pm; Saturday, Sunday and public holidays 10am – 6pm; museum closes one hour earlier November – March. Last admission is one hour before closing.

Admission: Adults 4 €, Concessions 3 €, Children 6 - 14 2 €, Children under 6 free. Family Card 10 €.

The Archaeological Museum has the richest collection of Roman finds in Germany. The collections are grouped into four sections: Prehistoric; Roman; Franconian-Merovingian; and medieval to contemporary. The Roman collection dominates, with excellent artifacts ranging from tombs to mosaics to daily objects.

Numerous reliefs from funerary monuments show daily life in Roman times. The museum's most popular exhibit is the Mosel Ship, a sculpture of a wine-bearing vessel crowning a big burial monument from 220 AD. Other popular exhibits include a magnificent mosaic of Bacchus from the dining room of a Roman villa,and a scale model of Roman Trier, which provides a good overview of the city and thus makes a good starting point for sightseeing.

Hours: Tuesday - Sunday 9:30am-5:30pm, Closed Mondays.

Admission: 5 € Adults, 3 € Concessions, 10 € Family Card.

First, it's just the Christmas music, climb a little later the alluring scents of sausages, mulled wine and roasted almonds on the nose. And then when you get near the imposing cathedral of Trier, one stands in the middle of one of the most beautiful Christmas Markets of the Moselle.

Within the old city of the oldest city in Germany waiting for the visitors nearly 100 small wooden houses decorated for Christmas.

The historic buildings of the medieval Trier create a romantic backdrop for the traditional Christmas market.

In these small huts traditional wooden toys from the far-off Erzgebirge , glittering ornaments for the Christmas tree, candles and handmade crafts from the region will be offered.

But all the culinary delights of the holiday season will be sold: Christmas cookies, all kinds of roasted nuts, fruit cakes, spices for Christmas cookies and a very old-fashioned delicacy, candied fruits, with or without chocolate icing.

In the midst of the market, two children's carousel with wooden horses turn next to a huge Christmas pyramid and also provide for children's eyes shining like the Punch and Judy show.

And if we are honest - why visitors flock there each day? Surely not just to buy gifts - correctly - these are all 'the delicacies like sausage in a bun, sweet cakes, colorful cotton candy, candied apples and the Regional Schwenkbraten - a roasted pork filled with onions from an open fire. Most popular of course are the "Kröbbelsche" .- crispy potato pancakes with apple sauce.

A particular specialty is the white mulled wine from the Mosel, served in the small colorful Santa boots - hot, sweet and spicy.

And if it still seems a little snow, the bells of the numerous churches in the Trier inner city ring and spread its warm light the candles - then comes guarantees the right mood for Christmas.