Dresden in 4 days

Morning

• 
  Neumarkt (New Market Square) about 45 minutes

  The reconstructed Baroque square around the Frauenkirche — one of Europe's largest ongoing historic-reconstruction projects.

• 5 min on foot
• 
  Frauenkirche (Church of Our Lady) about 45 minutes · heart of the city

  Dresden's Baroque icon — destroyed in the 1945 firebombing, rebuilt 1994–2005 as Germany's foremost symbol of postwar reconciliation.

Afternoon

• 
  Brühlsche Terrasse (Brühl's Terrace) about 45 minutes · heart of the city

  The "Balcony of Europe" — a raised riverside promenade with Dresden's best Elbe views, built atop the old city fortifications.

• 6 min on foot
• 
  Zwinger Palace (incl. Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister) about 2 hours · heart of the city

  A Baroque pleasure palace of courtyards, pavilions and fountains — home to the Old Masters Picture Gallery, a world-class porcelain collection, and historic scientific instruments.

• 5 min on foot
• Residenzschloss Dresden (Royal Palace) & Grünes Gewölbe about 2 hours and 15 minutes

  The Saxon electors' palace, rebuilt after WWII — home to the dazzling Grünes Gewölbe treasury, an armory, and the Hausmannsturm tower.

Evening

• 
  Fürstenzug (Procession of Princes) about 15 minutes

  A 102-meter mural of 35 Saxon rulers on roughly 23,000 Meissen porcelain tiles — the largest porcelain artwork on Earth.

Route of the day: Google Maps Apple Maps

Morning

• Panometer Dresden about 1 hour

  A 360° panorama museum inside a converted 1920s gasometer — giant immersive artworks by Yadegar Asisi, historically including a Baroque-era Dresden cityscape.

• 25 min by public transport
• 
  Deutsches Hygiene-Museum (German Hygiene Museum) about 1 hour and 45 minutes

  A one-of-a-kind museum of the human body and health, built around the famous “Glass Man” transparent anatomical model, with a dedicated hands-on section for kids.

Afternoon

• Militärhistorisches Museum der Bundeswehr (Military History Museum) about 2 hours

  A former Saxon army arsenal reinvented by architect Daniel Libeskind, who drove a huge steel wedge through the historic building.

Route of the day: Google Maps Apple Maps

Morning

• Großer Garten (Great Garden) about 1 hour and 45 minutes

  A 1.8 km² Baroque park south of the center — palace, zoo, botanical garden and a miniature park railway all in one green space.

Afternoon

• 
  Dresden Zoo (Zoo Dresden) about 2 hours and 45 minutes

  Germany's fourth-oldest zoo (founded 1861), inside the Großer Garten, with well-regarded ape and Africa exhibits.

• 17 min by public transport
• Elbwiesen (Elbe Meadows) & Elberadweg about 1 hour

  The largely undeveloped riverside meadows along the Elbe — a defining feature of Dresden's cityscape, popular for walking, picnics and cycling.

Route of the day: Google Maps Apple Maps

Morning

• 
  Pfunds Molkerei (Pfund's Dairy) about 15 minutes

  Guinness World Record holder for "Most Beautiful Dairy Shop in the World" — floor-to-ceiling hand-painted Villeroy & Boch tiles since 1892.

• 9 min on foot
• Kunsthofpassage (Courtyard of Elements) about 1 hour

  Five interconnected artist-designed courtyards in the Äußere Neustadt — look up for the singing "Hof der Elemente" rain-gutter facade.

Afternoon

• 
  Neustädter Markt & Goldener Reiter (Golden Rider) about 15 minutes

  A gilded equestrian statue of Augustus the Strong marking the start of Hauptstraße, at the Neustadt end of the Augustusbrücke.

• 13 min on foot
• 
  Äußere Neustadt (Outer New Town) about 1 hour and 45 minutes

  Dresden's bohemian, street-art-covered nightlife quarter — one of the few parts of the city that escaped 1945 largely unscathed.

Route of the day: Google Maps Apple Maps