Dresden · Innere Altstadt · Germany

Dresden Zwinger

palacebaroquemuseumgoogle verified

easy

9/10

best: morning, spring

grand, festive, baroque

A local would say...

It was meant to be a dungeon — 'Zwinger' means just that — but became one of Germany's most joyful baroque spaces instead.

One of the most ravishing baroque buildings in all of Germany, a sprawling palace complex designed by Matthäus Pöppelmann as a party palace for royals. Several charming portals lead into a vast fountain-studded courtyard framed by lavishly baroque sculpture. Atop the western pavilion stands Atlas; opposite is a carillon of 40 Meissen porcelain bells.