In English the title of this site gives the impression that it is the Elbe which is the main site, limited to that part which is at Dresden! In fact it includes the whole of the historic centre of Dresden together with some of the delights of the “classical” Elbe river trip – as far as the magnificent Palace of Pillnitz 15kms upstream from the city centre. (The river trip then continues along a most attractive part of the Elbe in “Swiss Saxony” as far as Bad Schandau and is neither part of this WHS nor on Germany’s Tentative list)

The city of Dresden alone fully justifies a WHS inscription – one of the great cities of Europe/The World for architecture, fine art and music. The rest is a wonderful icing on the cake. In Stockholm, Berlin and Paris palaces on the outskirts all get separate nominations – here you get them all for the price of 1 with a superb excursion on an old paddle steamer (photo) to get between them! Designed as a Capital City and with public buildings appropriate to that status Dresden actually has a population of only around half a million (smaller than eg Hannover, Bremen or Dortmund). Even the drab hand of the GDR with its normal signature blocks of “soviet” flats doesn’t impinge on the historic centre. The destruction of wartime has largely been erased (at least to the casual eye). Berlin lies less than 200kms away by road but is a world away in temperament and style.

Actually the idea of including the river as part of the site is a successful one. The river is an essential part of the city – you can’t spend time looking at it from the Terrasse without wanting to travel along it. We fitted in both an opera (way cheaper than in UK!) and a river trip in our 2 days but there are so many different kinds of visits you could pay to this fine city that anyone should find plenty to do – even a couple of “city cynics” like ourselves!