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Hiskia Wiesner, Head of Conventions, Leipzig Tourismus und Marketing GmbH
My favourite spots: Top three restaurants:
One very beautiful place in summer time is the beer garden of the brewery inn at the Bavarian Railway Station (Bayerischer Bahnhof) only few steps from the city center. People love to sit beneath big old plane trees with the typical refreshing drink, the Leipziger Gose, a regional beer speciality, in their hands.Those who find original Gose a little too tangy might like to try one of the flavoured types available containing a dash of concentrated cordial (the "Sonnenschirm" or sunshade), my favorite, or a dash of cherry liqueur (the "Frauenfreundlicher" or "women's friend"). In addition to its refreshing qualities many people swear by Gose as an aphrodisiac.
Right at Leipzig’s market square the restaurant Weinstock is a hidden jewel. From inside the guests have a beautiful view on the bustling city life, the tourists and inhabitants strolling around on sightseeing or shopping tour. The sheer diversity of Leipzig specialities reflects the high standard of living enjoyed for centuries by the people of Leipzig. The best-known delicacy is a hearty vegetable dish known as "Leipziger Allerlei". Unlike the pre-cooked frozen versions available in many German supermarkets, the traditional recipe calls for morels, prawns and bread dumplings along with various baby vegetables like carrots, kohlrabi, asparagus and cauliflower.
The Kiwara Lodge at Leipzig Zoo surprises its guests not only with an African styled cuisine but with the impressive scenery of the African Savanna right in the middle of the city. A culinary safari through the world of exotic spices and fruits and fresh culinary delights will open up wonderful perspectives for every guest. From the terrace they have the best view over giraffes, scimitar-horned oryx, Thomson gazelles and zebras as well as lesser flamingos, ostriches and other species of bird. Spotted hyenas live next to the savannah, only separated by a ditch. Another spectacular project of the Leipzig Zoo is the giant tropical world of “Gondwanaland”. Visitors can experience the sensitivity of the ecological system.
Top three bars
After a successful shopping day you can enjoy the multitude of nightlife and entertainment offers in Leipzig to round off an unforgettable travel experience! One of the most exclusive bars in Leipzig is the Falco bar in the hotel Westin Leipzig. The breathtaking view over Leipzig from the 27th floor and the elegant room setup as well as the wide choice of drinks leave nothing to be desired.
If you happen to be nocturnal, there is plenty to get enthusiastic about – theatres, concert halls, variety shows and casinos. The Chocolate bar is only one example of the large number of trendy bars and pubs featuring international cuisine, tasty "after work" cocktails and regular live music in the Gottschedstraße. Just across the street from St. Thomas Church and the beating heart of the city centre this place has a warm and cosy atmosphere. In the summer Leipzig’s typical “al fresco culture” lends it an Italian flair. People love to sit outside or party in the streets.
When the visitors finally arrive in one of the many clubs or bars, they will realise that Leipzig is always wide awake and that the term “closing time” is not in our vocabulary. The leipzigbar is more a café by day, when you can drink a cup of coffee or read fashion and music magazines. By night, it turns into a lounge and bar. The list of beverages is long and includes a big choice of fruit cocktails, many of them non-alcoholic. A long bench seat with tables allows you to get in touch quickly with your neighbour and can be the beginning of a lively conversation about all the world and his wife.
Top three hot spots
One third of Leipzig is covered in a green belt. Its core, the Auenwald, a wide strip of floodplain forest running all the way through the city, is unique in Europe. On a boat trip along the canals or rivers the visitor will discover more than the green lung of Leipzig. When you take a gondola tour you’ll quickly get a Mediterranean feel. Anyone who loves boating can go on a trip in a rowing boat, motorboat or canoe and discover unusual angles on the attractive industrial brick architecture. The district grew up in the mid-19th century when Karl Heine ordered the construction of a canal which was to link Leipzig with the North Sea. After the decline of industry in the 1990s, visions for the area became reality: renovated factory buildings and residential blocks were put to creative use.
Since 1989 many streets have been developed in the city centre specialising in restaurants and pubs – each with its own special charm. Just a few yards to the south, in Karl-Liebknecht-Straße, there is good food from all four corners of the globe available from early in the morning till late at night. In the early 1990s this was a meeting place for squatters and clubbers, tucked between the district of Südvorstadt and the alternative left-wing heartland of Connewitz. All around the Karli, as it's affectionately known by the locals, there are colourful cafes, restaurants and bars where people swap city gossip, recall the wild days of their youth, or even attempt to relive them: the night life in this part of town is legendary!
In Leipzig you can feel the fascinating power of music everywhere – in the streets and squares, in churches and concert halls and in the many authentic places where more than 500 famous composers and musicians lived and worked, such as Johann Sebastian Bach, Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, Clara and Robert Schumann, Richard Wagner. To make Leipzig’s rich music heritage visible and tangible is the aim of Leipzig’s Music Trail Initiative. Therefore a music and guidance system with three forays is going to be finished by May 2012: “Leipziger Notenspur”, a 5.1 km long walking trail, will then connect the most significant historic sites in the city centre, marked by curved stainless steel elements which are embedded in the ground.
Photo: Leipzig Christmas Market / LTM-Brzoska
Leipzig Tourismus and Marketing GmbH promotes Leipzig as a travel, conference and meetings destination. The CVB offers accommodation, social programs, guided tours, free venue finding service, brochures and advice. “Feel the spirit” that is the slogan of the Leipzig congress initiative with 47 partners. The initiative's service portal on www.do-it-at-leipzig.de boasts unique search functions for meeting planners.