CARNIVAL IN LEVERKUSEN. In the midst of the two carnival strongholds of Cologne and Düsseldorf, a lively carnival culture has developed over the last hundred years. Here, everything is a bit smaller and intimate. People know each other, they celebrate together and - they help each other. The carnival societies are not only active in the fifth season, but also shape social life in other...

LITTLE GETAWAYS. Anyone who has ever walked along the banks of the gentle Wupper River far away from the hustle and bustle of the city, explored the Balkan Route by bike or idly watched ships pass by on the banks of the Rhine in Hitdorf, knows exactly what we mean. Leverkusen is the green gateway to the Bergisches Land and yet lies "close to it...

MASTERS IN CELEBRATION. Anyone who visits a beer exchange in Kaiserslautern or Dresden would never dream that this kind of festival had been invented in Leverkusen-Opladen with the Opladener Bierbörse! But that’s how it is. It started in 1987 with a handful of beer stalls in the Opladen pedestrian zone. Today, unless there is a pandemic, the Beer Exchange in Opladen has up to 20,000...

UP CLOSE. Leverkusen is the city of sports. There is hardly any other city in Germany where you can experience pulsating top-class sport and sport history so close up on almost every weekend. Top sporting performances in and from Leverkusen have been a first-class brand name nationally and internationally for many decades. An above-average number of professional teams rank among the top in their disciplines...

AN INCREDIBLY COLOURFUL CITY WITH A HUGE HEART. And this heart throbs to the beat of people of over 140 nationalities living side by side, as neighbours, friends, teammates, colleagues, and playground companions. Of the almost 170,000 inhabitants, 27,300 have a non-German citizenship. In addition, there are many people, both in the past and the present, with German passports who considerably support and shape this...

LIFELINE & PLACE OF LONGING. In the 19th century, Hitdorf was an important reloading hub for the expanding trade. Goods from the Bergisches Land were loaded onto ships here and, conversely, supplies for the region were landed. Today, Hitdorf is an idyllic part of Leverkusen. If you cruise south along the Rhine from here, you will see the ship's bridge at the mouth of the...

BEST OF. The Leverkusen Jazz Days belong to the Champions League of jazz festivals in Europe and are Germany's largest and most renowned festival. Every year, more than 20,000 visitors make the pilgrimage to Leverkusen to experience the unique atmosphere up close. From Ray Charles to Jamie Cullum, many great names have been on stage in Leverkusen and couldn’t help but become fans of this...

BEST OF. The Leverkusen Jazz Days belong to the Champions League of jazz festivals in Europe and are Germany's largest and most renowned festival. Every year, more than 20,000 visitors make the pilgrimage to Leverkusen to experience the unique atmosphere up close. From Ray Charles to Jamie Cullum, many great names have been on stage in Leverkusen and couldn’t help but become fans of this...

THE ORIGINAL. The Opladener Bierbörse festival, also called the "mother of all beer exchanges", has its home on the grounds with the picturesque chestnut avenue and the large open meadows on the Wupper. This gives the Opladen Beer Exchange its unique flair. An extensive stage programme with live music in the huge Circus Tent rounds off the Festival of 1000 Beers and attracts over 200,000...

BAROQUE JEWEL & MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART. The water feature by Danish artist Jeppe Hein welcomes guests to Morsbroich Palace in summer. The museum and the palace gardens are known and popular beyond the borders of Leverkusen as a cultural and recreational destination. The founding mission of the Museum Morsbroich, which is still influential today, was to counter the barbarism of National Socialism with engaging...

UP CLOSE. Leverkusen is the city of sports. There is hardly any other city in Germany where you can experience pulsating top-class sport and sport history so close up on almost every weekend. Top sporting performances in and from Leverkusen have been a first-class brand name nationally and internationally for many decades. An above-average number of professional teams rank among the top in their disciplines...