The medieval town of Görlitz
When you come to Görlitz for the first time, its architectural variety will likely have you spellbound. The historic city is among the best preserved in Central Europe. Görlitz is deemed to have Germany’s most extensive heritage area with a total of 4000 listed buildings. Most of them have been carefully restored, telling stories of the city’s great wealth of the past.
Welcome to the city which for many is simply the most beautiful in Germany.
The best place to begin a walk through Görlitz would be the historic city centre or the Nikolaivorstadt, both of which are dominated by medieval architecture. The ensemble of historic buildings looks as if copied straight from an old painting. Wherever you turn, you will find late Gothic arcades, lavishly decorated portals, facades painted with acanthus ornaments and splendid courtyards. A Mediterranean influence is unmistakable, and that is not surprising since the master builders from Bohemia learned their craft in Italy.
Around the Untermarkt, you will find several extraordinarily precious old houses and city residences. The Schönhof, for example, is the oldest civil Renaissance building in Germany. It was built in 1526 and today it houses the Silesian Museum.
