Travel

24 Hours In Dresden: A Visual Guide For Culture Lovers In A Hurry

Follow me as I attempt to see as much of Dresden as possible in a day. This isn’t one of those nice, curated 24 guides, this is for the museum lovers who are willing to put in the miles.

Let’s Get A Few Things Straight

I love to travel. Often before I go somewhere new, I read a couple of ’24 Hours In XXX’ or ’48 Hours in YYY’ guides for inspiration. They’re lovely, but for me they are more aspirational than realistic. I’d love to be someone who goes to the trendiest spots for brunch or cocktails. But I’m not.

Instead, I am someone who, left to their own devices, will try to pack far too many cultural activities into a day. I will squeeze in just one more museum or one more church, and wear myself out in the process. The thing is, I can’t be the only one. So after a recent weekend trip to Dresden (which really meant one full day in Dresden) I thought it might be useful to create a different kind of ’24 Hours’ guide. What does 24 hours in Dresden look like if you love museums, arts and culture, and are willing to pack as much as possible into those hours? You will find out by the end of this post. Firstly, a few overall pointers:

  • The main issue in trying to fit in a lot of activities is that the hours for practically all visitor attractions are 10-6. Museums? 10-6. Church tower climb? 10-6. Panometer? 10-6. So fitting a lot in means working out how much you can do between 10-6.
  • I was in Dresden in April. I would like to go back in the summer months, and I would do things differently. I decided to save a trip on a steamboat for when it’s warmer and sunnier.
  • Book the Grünes Gewölbe (Green Vault) ahead of time if you’re planning to visit. There were no day tickets available when I was there. I recommend the 10 AM slot to maximise your 10-6 possibilities and also because it’s quieter.
  • Public transport is relatively easy to use, and I got a tram to one destination by buying a ticket on board with a contactless card. No Uber in Dresden though, which was a bit of a pain.
  • You don’t have to speak German, but it probably helps a little to have a few phrases.

So let’s take a look at what you can do in 24 hours in Dresden if you’re culture-mad and willing to put in 30,000 steps. I don’t recommend it unless you also suffer from FOMO and have never met a museum you didn’t like. And don’t subject any friends or partners to this itinerary unless they’re on the same page: best for solo travellers.


8.30 AM: An Early Morning Walk And Breakfast












10 AM: Dresdner Residenzschloss (Dresden Royal Palace)









12 PM: Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister (Old Masters Picture Gallery)








1.30 PM: Time For Lunch



2.30 PM: The Panometer Dresden







3.30 PM: A Walk Through The Grosser Garten





4.15 PM: Deutsches Hygiene-Museum (German Hygiene Museum)






5.30 PM: A Quick Bite To Eat




7 PM: Night Watchman Tour






I will leave you with this final image of Dresden, spotted on my way back to my hotel and to bed. Good night!


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