Düsseldorf – Nordrhein-Westfalen

Düsseldorf has it’s own airport connected to the city by the S Bahn plus local and Inter City trains, a journey of five to ten minutes. Ryanair serve Weeze on the Dutch Border, Niederrhein, which due to the infrequency of the train service, can mean taking longer getting to Düsseldorf than arriving at Köln Flughafen. Despite the pleasure boats on the Rhein being branded Köln-Düsseldorf, there is no river service between the two cities.

First visited in 1997, Düsseldorf as a tourist destination baffled, yet it became one of Hector’s favourite cities in Deutschland. The Altstadt, on the east bank of the Rhein, is the magnet. Outwith this, one could be in any German city. Stadtgraben, the canal /water feature on Heinrich-Heine Alle, on the eastern edge of the Altstadt, does have some charm. For many years this was the only part of Düsseldorf that Hector was familiar with.

Arriving at the Hauptbahnhof, it is three stops on the U-Bahn to Heinrich-Heine Alle, what lies between remained a mystery until the first visit with Marg in the noughties. Walking between the two is not onerous, one then realises the remarkable similarity this city’s layout has to Koblenz.

Oststraße lies between the Hauptbahnhof and the Altstadt, many a day has therefore begun or concluded with a stop off at Schumacher. If one is not having a Düsseldorf Curry, then Frikadellen is a fine way to start the day.

Altbier is the attraction, traditionally gravity poured, and served in 0.25l glasses. Top fermented, Altbier is classed as an – Ale. The dry, bitter, hoppy flavours can take getting used to. Altbier is a fine alternative to Kölsch which is served in Köln, thirty minutes by train upriver, to the south.