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Duisburg represents a side of Germany that most people rarely see — and one that is worth seeing. As a current industrial powerhouse (and former coal town), Duisburg isn’t known for cute cobblestone plazas or perfectly manicured streets (though it has them). But this city of a half-million people is one of the country’s most entertaining, authentic, and visually striking. And it is definitely worth a trip!
Duisburg: A City of Industry
People forget sometimes that Germany’s status as a global economic powerhouse doesn’t come just from döner kebap shops and castle visits. The country produces a lot of steel, for instance. And Duisburg contains some of the biggest steel producers in Europe.
It comes by this industrial status honestly. Duisburg was also once part of Germany’s thriving Ruhr coal region, which stopped thriving about six decades ago. And while few people would ever claim that the former coal country is straight-up beautiful, there can be something almost magical about seeing old industrial areas that have been reimagined as parks, museums, and cultural bastions that remind us of humanity’s collective capacity to create and then change course. And Duisburg does that just as well as any city anywhere.
Turning Grit to Gold: Landscape Park Duisburg-Nord
There is something amazing — hopeful, almost — about gritty post-industrial places that are still functional but don’t produce heavy, polluting stuff anymore. Duisburg’s Landschaftspark falls firmly into that category. As a bonus, it is an absolute blast to visit.
What was once an iron works (basically, an ol’ big factory where thousands of workers labored to produce iron, complete with a smoke-belching furnace and giant tower) is now an explorer’s paradise. Visitors can climb the 200+ foot blast furnace tower and wander through the site – which is actually pretty incredible, and makes you appreciate the engineering that goes into building any kind of factory. You’re also free to cycle, climb (there are climbing walls inside the old ore bunkers), and even dive (the park has the largest indoor diving pool — more than 40 feet deep — in Europe).
The park also hosts a fun array of summer festivals. Duisburg’s three-day Traumzeitfestival (Dreamtime Festival) attracts major rock, pop, and jazz artists from around the world, and takes place this year from June 20-22. The park also has an open-air cinema that offers movies basically every evening during the summer.
The Landschaftspark really shines on weekend evenings, though, when a light installation turns a once pretty gritty place into a place that is simply pretty. Open year-round, admission to the park is free.
Tiger & Turtle: A Walkable Roller Coaster
Duisburg also offers one of the more genius ways to spend an hour that I’ve seen. Erected in 2011 on the site of a former slag heap (another homage to the city’s industrial past), the Tiger & Turtle – Magic Mountain is a twisting, looping, metal, walkable, roller coaster-esque sculpture that is made for the Insta era.
Adults and kids alike love it, and it offers remarkable views of the surrounding area on clear days. Open day and night (and beautifully lit at night), admission is free.
Duisburg’s Inner Harbor: Culture and Nightlife
Situated at the confluence of the Rhine and Ruhr rivers, water has always played a big role in Duisburg. Nearly a hundred years ago, the city’s inner harbor was a bustling hive of industrial activity. As with many places in the Ruhr region, however, the end of the coal era in the early 1960s ushered in a period of decline.
No longer, though. Duisburg’s inner harbor shines for multiple reasons. Following a long gentrification process that began in earnest in the 1990s, the inner harbor area offers shops, restaurants, nightlife, and museums. For a fun two-fer, book a table at the amazing Küppersmühle Restaurant and then hit the just-next-door Küppersmühle Museum of Modern Art afterward.
The Inner Harbor area also offers a plethora of festivals. A children’s culture festival is offered every year in May, and a huge three-day regatta follows in June.
Getting to Duisburg
By car, Duisburg is approximately 3 hours from Kaiserslautern, 2.5 from Wiesbaden and 4 hours from Stuttgart. Check with Deutsche Bahn for train options.
