# Leipzig A day trip from Berlin by ICE: St Thomas and Bach, the church where the fall of the Wall began, the Stasi museum at the Runde Ecke and Auerbachs Keller. Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/germany/saxony/leipzig · Revisado: 2026-11-12 Leipzig is the largest city in Saxony and the easiest day trip from Berlin by train: the ICE takes a little over an hour and a quarter and drops you five minutes from the centre. It is the city of Bach, who was cantor of St Thomas for 27 years; of the Peaceful Revolution of 1989, which began in St Nicholas Church and ended with the Wall; and a city of fairs and shopping arcades, with Auerbachs Keller, the cellar from Goethe's Faust. The whole centre fits inside a ring that you can walk. ## What to see in Leipzig in a day St Thomas and Bach. Start at St Thomas Church, where Bach is buried, and cross the square to the Bach Museum, €14 and free up to age 18 (closed on Mondays). If you go on a Friday or Saturday, save the afternoon for the motet: the St Thomas boys' choir sings on Friday at 18:00 and Saturday at 15:00, and you only pay for the programme, €3. The Peaceful Revolution. St Nicholas Church, with its palm-shaped columns, was the starting point of the Monday demonstrations of 1989. Ten minutes away, on the ring, the Stasi Museum in the Runde Ecke shows the secret police in their own offices, with a Spanish audio guide for €5. Eating in the centre. At Auerbachs Keller, the cellar where Goethe set a scene of Faust, or at the Thüringer Hof, in vaults that have been serving food since 1454. In the afternoon, outside the ring. The Monument to the Battle of the Nations, 91 metres of stone above the field where Napoleon was defeated in 1813, with a viewing platform at the top; or, with children, the zoo and its indoor jungle. Finish with a Gose, Leipzig's sour, salty beer, at the Bayerischer Bahnhof. ## How do you get there from Berlin? By train, the usual way: the direct ICE from Berlin Hauptbahnhof takes between an hour and a quarter and an hour and twenty minutes to Leipzig main station, one of the largest in Europe, five minutes' walk from the centre. By car, about 190 kilometres along the A9 motorway, around two hours. The centre is pedestrianised: leave the car in a car park on the ring. ## One day or one night? A day covers St Thomas, St Nicholas, the Runde Ecke and the monument. With a night, you can watch the Friday afternoon motet at leisure, dine at Auerbachs Keller and the next day continue to Dresden, a little over an hour by train. ## Where to sleep In the old town, the Five Elements Hostel, with beds from €13 and private pods, and the Steigenberger Icon Grandhotel Handelshof, next to the Market Square, with a spa. If you come by car, the Galerie Hotel Leipziger Hof, with 300 paintings from the Leipzig School and parking. ## Dónde está - Cerca: Dessau-Wörlitz (a 55.9 km), Meissen (a 79.0 km), Quedlinburg (a 98.7 km), Dresden (a 100.4 km) ## Qué hacer - **St Thomas Church, Bach's Tomb and the Motet** (45 min · All ages · Free; motet programme €3): What it is Johann Sebastian Bach was cantor of St Thomas from 1723 until his death in 1750, and is buried in front of the altar. The Gothic church, with a very steep roof, is still home to the Thomanerchor, the boys' choir that he directed. The motet Almost every week, on Friday at 18:00 and Saturday at 15:00, the choir sings the motet, a sung service with music by Bach and other composers. There are no tickets: you pay for the programme, €3, at the church doors from 45 minutes before. Arrive early, because it fills up. Opening times The church is open Monday to Saturday from 10:00 to 18:00 and on Sunday from 11:00 to 18:00, except during services and concerts. - **St Nicholas Church, Where the Peaceful Revolution Began** (30 min · All ages · Free): What it is The oldest and largest church in the centre of Leipzig, with a white and green neoclassical interior whose columns open out like palm trees. In autumn 1989, the Monday prayers for peace in this church were the starting point of the demonstrations that filled Leipzig's ring and ended the GDR and the Wall. That is why it is called the cradle of the Peaceful Revolution. How to see it It is on Nikolaikirchhof, two minutes from the Market Square. Outside, a column identical to those inside commemorates 1989. On Saturdays at 14:00, the Runde Ecke museum runs a guided tour of the sites of the revolution that starts from here. - **Leipzig Bach Museum** (1 h 30 · Adults and teenagers · Desde 14 € per person): What it is The Bach Archive museum is in the Bose House, opposite St Thomas Church. It tells the story of Bach's life in Leipzig and his music with original objects, recent research and rooms where you listen to his works and play with them. Opening times and tickets Open Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 18:00. Entry costs €14 (€9 reduced) and under-18s do not pay. With the Bach virtual experience, €25. On the first Tuesday of each month entry is free. It is at Thomaskirchhof 15/16. - **Stasi Museum in the Runde Ecke** (1 h 30 · Adults and teenagers · Desde 5 € per person, with audio guide): What it is The Runde Ecke, the round corner, was the headquarters of the Stasi, the GDR's secret police, in Leipzig. In December 1989 citizens occupied it, and the exhibition "Stasi, Power and Banality" is seen in its original offices: listening devices, disguises, letter-opening machines and files. Opening times and tickets The exhibition is open daily from 10:00 to 18:00, with no booking, although right now it announces reduced hours of 11:00 to 16:00: check its website first. It costs €5 (€4 reduced) and includes a Spanish audio guide. On Saturdays at 16:00 there is a guided tour inside the former headquarters (€7.50), in German. It is at Dittrichring 24. - **Monument to the Battle of the Nations** (1 h 30 · All ages who can climb stairs · Desde 12 € per person): What it is In October 1813, on the outskirts of Leipzig, the allied armies defeated Napoleon in the Battle of the Nations. A hundred years later, in 1913, this 91-metre monument of concrete and porphyry was inaugurated here, which inside is an enormous crypt of stone figures. At the top there is a platform with views over the whole city. Opening times and tickets From April to October it is open daily from 10:00 to 18:00; from November to March, from 10:00 to 16:00. Entry costs €12 (€10 reduced). There are guided tours in English on the first and third Wednesday of each month at 14:00. How to get there It is south-east of the centre: tram 2 or 15, or S-Bahn S1, S2 or S3 to the Völkerschlachtdenkmal stop. By car, parking in front of the monument. - **Leipzig Zoo and the Gondwanaland Indoor Jungle** (4 h · Families with children of all ages): What it is Leipzig Zoo is on Pfaffendorfer Straße, a walk north of the centre. Its star attraction is Gondwanaland, an enormous covered tropical hall with plants, animals and paths from three continents under the same roof; in cold or rain, it is the perfect plan with children. Opening times and tickets Open all year; in November, from 9:00 to 17:00. Buy tickets on its website, where it also publishes the hours for each season and the special events, such as the Gondwanaland tropical nights in Advent. ## Dónde comer - **Auerbachs Keller** (Restaurant, Leipzig, €€€). Qué pedir: a Saxon dish from the menu in the Großer Keller - **Gasthaus & Gosebrauerei Bayerischer Bahnhof** (Restaurant, Leipzig, €€). Qué pedir: an Original Leipziger Gose with a dish from the brewery - **Thüringer Hof** (Restaurant, Leipzig, €€). Qué pedir: the seasonal dish; in winter, goose ## Car-free: Leipzig without a car Leipzig makes a perfect train trip from Berlin: the ICE drops you five minutes from the centre, which you can cover entirely on foot inside the ring. For what lies outside, there are trams and the S-Bahn. Presupuesto orientativo: 60–200 € por persona y día. ### Dónde dormir without a car - **Steigenberger Icon Grandhotel Handelshof** (Hotel): In the very centre The Handelshof is a grand hotel on Salzgässchen, a few steps from the Market Square and the Old Town Hall, in a building that was built for Leipzig's trade fairs. It has 161 rooms and 16 suites. What it offers An à la carte French and Mediterranean restaurant with a wine bar, a bar in the atrium and the Spa World Premium, on two floors, with a sauna, steam bath, gym and treatments. Free wifi throughout the hotel. Pets are accepted on request, for a supplement. Getting there and parking From the main station, about 10 minutes on foot. If you come by car, there is a valet parking service for €55 per 24 hours. Check-in is from 15:00 and check-out is until 12:00. - **Galerie Hotel Leipziger Hof** (Hotel): Sleeping among paintings The Leipziger Hof is a gallery hotel: more than 300 works by painters of the Leipzig School and the New Leipzig School hang in its corridors, lounges and rooms. It has 73 rooms and suites, all with bathroom, television and free wifi. Getting there and parking It is on Hedwigstraße, about 1,300 metres east of the main station, a short walk; trams 1 and 3 stop 150 metres away. It is convenient if you arrive by car: there is covered, supervised parking in the courtyard, with charging points, for a small fee, and free public parking with no time limit about 30 metres away. Breakfast It is not included in the rate and is paid separately, as a buffet breakfast or a bread-roll service. - **Five Elements Hostel Leipzig** (Hostel, desde 13 € / bed): A hostel in the historic centre Five Elements is on Kleine Fleischergasse, in the old town, a few steps from the Market Square and five minutes from St Thomas's. It has mixed dorms of 4, 6 and 8 beds with bathroom, one 4-bed dorm for women only, private pods for one or two people, single, double, triple and quadruple rooms with bathroom, and apartments with a kitchen. Prices and facilities Dorm beds from €13 a night; pods from €19.90; rooms with bathroom from €35. There is a fully equipped guest kitchen, a bar with happy hour from 18:00 to 19:00, breakfast from 8:00 to 11:00 for €10, luggage storage, a games room and towel and padlock hire. Wheelchair-accessible rooms are available and are requested by email. Arrival Check-in is from 16:00 and reception is open 24 hours. From the main station it is about a 15-minute walk through the centre. ### Servicios - **Leipzig Hauptbahnhof, main station**: One of the largest stations in Europe, five minutes from the centre; direct ICE trains to Berlin in a little over an hour and a quarter. ## By plane: Fly to Berlin and take the train to Leipzig For Leipzig the usual route is to fly to Berlin, with direct flights from Madrid, Barcelona and other Spanish cities, and continue by ICE: from Berlin Hauptbahnhof it is a little over an hour and a quarter. From BER airport, the FEX takes you to Hauptbahnhof in 23 minutes. ### Dónde dormir if you're flying - **Steigenberger Icon Grandhotel Handelshof** (Hotel): In the very centre The Handelshof is a grand hotel on Salzgässchen, a few steps from the Market Square and the Old Town Hall, in a building that was built for Leipzig's trade fairs. It has 161 rooms and 16 suites. What it offers An à la carte French and Mediterranean restaurant with a wine bar, a bar in the atrium and the Spa World Premium, on two floors, with a sauna, steam bath, gym and treatments. Free wifi throughout the hotel. Pets are accepted on request, for a supplement. Getting there and parking From the main station, about 10 minutes on foot. If you come by car, there is a valet parking service for €55 per 24 hours. Check-in is from 15:00 and check-out is until 12:00. - **Galerie Hotel Leipziger Hof** (Hotel): Sleeping among paintings The Leipziger Hof is a gallery hotel: more than 300 works by painters of the Leipzig School and the New Leipzig School hang in its corridors, lounges and rooms. It has 73 rooms and suites, all with bathroom, television and free wifi. Getting there and parking It is on Hedwigstraße, about 1,300 metres east of the main station, a short walk; trams 1 and 3 stop 150 metres away. It is convenient if you arrive by car: there is covered, supervised parking in the courtyard, with charging points, for a small fee, and free public parking with no time limit about 30 metres away. Breakfast It is not included in the rate and is paid separately, as a buffet breakfast or a bread-roll service. - **Five Elements Hostel Leipzig** (Hostel, desde 13 € / bed): A hostel in the historic centre Five Elements is on Kleine Fleischergasse, in the old town, a few steps from the Market Square and five minutes from St Thomas's. It has mixed dorms of 4, 6 and 8 beds with bathroom, one 4-bed dorm for women only, private pods for one or two people, single, double, triple and quadruple rooms with bathroom, and apartments with a kitchen. Prices and facilities Dorm beds from €13 a night; pods from €19.90; rooms with bathroom from €35. There is a fully equipped guest kitchen, a bar with happy hour from 18:00 to 19:00, breakfast from 8:00 to 11:00 for €10, luggage storage, a games room and towel and padlock hire. Wheelchair-accessible rooms are available and are requested by email. Arrival Check-in is from 16:00 and reception is open 24 hours. From the main station it is about a 15-minute walk through the centre. ### Servicios - **Leipzig Hauptbahnhof, main station**: One of the largest stations in Europe, five minutes from the centre; direct ICE trains to Berlin in a little over an hour and a quarter. ## As a family: Leipzig with children Leipzig is easy with children: a pedestrian centre, short distances and an excellent zoo next to the centre. Mix a little music and history with the zoo or the climb up a huge monument. ### What works best Leipzig Zoo and the tropical hall of Gondwanaland The climb up the Monument to the Battle of the Nations The motet by the St Thomas boys' choir, on Fridays and Saturdays The Bach Museum, free up to age 18, with rooms for listening and playing ### Where to stay Galerie Hotel Leipziger Hof, with parking if you are travelling by car ### Where to eat Bayerischer Bahnhof, with a terrace and plenty of room Auerbachs Keller, with the Faust figures at the entrance ### Worth knowing The Bach Museum is closed on Mondays For the motet, arrive early: the programme goes on sale 45 minutes beforehand and it fills up ### Qué hacer as a family - St Thomas Church, Bach's Tomb and the Motet - Leipzig Bach Museum - Monument to the Battle of the Nations - Leipzig Zoo and the Gondwanaland Indoor Jungle ## With teenagers: Leipzig with teenagers Leipzig is the city where the end of the GDR began: it tells teenagers about 1989 in the very places where it happened, with a Stasi you can see in its own offices. And it is a young city, with plenty of life on the streets. ### What works best The Stasi Museum in the Runde Ecke, with an audio guide in Spanish St Nicholas's Church, where the Peaceful Revolution began The Monument to the Battle of the Nations and its viewing platform The Bach Museum, free up to age 18 ### Where to stay Five Elements Hostel, right in the centre ### Where to eat Bayerischer Bahnhof Thüringer Hof ### Worth knowing The Runde Ecke is currently open reduced hours, from 11:00 to 16:00 The guided revolution tour, on Saturdays at 14:00, is in German ### Qué hacer with teenagers - St Thomas Church, Bach's Tomb and the Motet - St Nicholas Church, Where the Peaceful Revolution Began - Leipzig Bach Museum - Stasi Museum in the Runde Ecke - Monument to the Battle of the Nations ## Consejos ### Go on a Friday or Saturday To hear the motet by the St Thomas choir. ### Bach Museum, first Tuesday of the month Entry is free that day. ### Order a Gose Leipzig's beer: sour, with salt and coriander. ### Stop by the tourist office On Katharinenstraße they sell the Leipzig Card, with transport included. ## Preguntas frecuentes ### How do I get from Berlin to Leipzig? On a direct ICE from Berlin Hauptbahnhof, a little over an hour and a quarter. By car, about two hours along the A9. ### When does the St Thomas choir sing? At the motet, usually on Friday at 18:00 and Saturday at 15:00; the programme costs €3. ### What should I see in Leipzig in a day? St Thomas and the Bach Museum, St Nicholas, the Runde Ecke and the Monument to the Battle of the Nations, with a meal at Auerbachs Keller. ### What is Gose? Leipzig's typical beer, a wheat beer, sour and slightly salty; it is brewed at the Bayerischer Bahnhof. ### Can you combine it with Dresden? Yes: Leipzig and Dresden are a little over an hour apart by train. With two nights you can do both.