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Photo: Raimond Spekking, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
One of Germany's oldest continuously used churches, with origins dating back to the Roman era. It is best known for the "Golden Chamber," a historic ossuary, and its significance as a site of pilgrimage. Access for sightseeing is limited to times outside of services; for guided tour schedules and group reservations, please visit the official website.
The Basilica church of St. Ursula is located in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is built upon the ancient ruins of a Roman cemetery, where the 11,000 virgins associated with the legend of Saint Ursula are said to have been buried. The church has an impressive reliquary created from the bones of the former occupants of the cemetery. It is one of the twelve Romanesque churches of Cologne and was designated a Minor Basilica on 25 June 1920. While the nave and main tower are Romanesque, the choir has been rebuilt in the Gothic style.
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St. Andreas
St. Andreas Church is a notable example of the transition from Romanesque to Gothic architecture and contains a 14th-century crypt where the scholar Albertus Magnus is buried. The interior is characterized by a series of contemporary stained-glass windows by Markus Lüpertz and features significant medieval furnishings, including 15th-century choir stalls and the gilded Maccabee Shrine.
Cathedral
A UNESCO World Heritage site, this monumental cathedral took 632 years to complete, finally being consecrated in 1880. Cologne's Dom is the first thing you will notice when leaving through the main exit of the central station. If you don't see it, you've likely taken the back exit. If you are in good shape, you can climb the 509 stairs to the top of the south tower. The round trip takes about an hour and requires comfortable shoes, but the panoramic view is well worth the hike. Touring the cathedral is forbidden during Mass; to ensure the doors are open for visitors, check the liturgical calendar: koelner-dom.de.
Kölnisches Stadtmuseum
Shows exhibits and works of art on the history of the city of Cologne from the Middle Ages to the present day.