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The city of Wuppertal is situated in the federal state of North-Rhine Westphalia. It is located in the South of the Ruhr area and it belongs to the Bergisches Land. The city is characterised by its nickname “the large city in the countryside” because 50% of the urban area is green spaces, parks and areas that are used for agriculture. Part can even be described as hilly landscape with valleys. Wuppertal also has the nickname “cradle of industrialisation in Germany”, which can be attributed to the many elegant residential areas and houses from the Wilhelmina period. The Universität Wuppertal offers you a highlight with the cable car which is not the case in most other cities.

Journey to Wuppertal

Wuppertal is very well integrated into the transport network. Over 11 motorway junctions are distributed across the urban area. The main railway station is situated in Wuppertal-Elbersfeld and the long distance trains regularly call here. The journey by plane can take place via the airports in Düsseldorf or in Cologne. From both airports you will arrive in Wuppertal in a good hour of driving time.

The City Structure in Wuppertal

Wuppertal is split up into 10 urban districts. These districts can be then divided further into quarters, for mainly statistical reasons. Oberbarmen-Schwarzbach is one of the most densely inhabited quarters. It belongs to the district of Oberbarmen und it lies in the North East of the city. Today, the quarter has a bad reputation which is most certainly linked to the high proportion of immigrants. It is the district for the workers who can find cheap accommodation here.

In the quarter Blutfinke it is a totally different story. The quarter is situated right in the South of Wuppertal and it borders on to a forest region in the West. It has a comparatively low percentage of migrants.

Wuppertal is Rich in Tourist Attractions

Although Wuppertal was heavily bombed during the World War ́s, today there are more than 4500 architectural monuments in the urban area for you to admire. Back then, it was considered to be the second richest city in North-Rhine Westphalia. A landmark of the city is the Schwebebahn „Cable Car“. The construction of the cable car in Wuppertal was completed in the year 1901. It extends over a length of 13,3 kilometres. At the end of the 20th Century, the cable car, which is used daily by many several thousand people, was renovated and modernised. As a result, some stations have been modernised to such an extent that the building structure had to be removed. However, it has retained its historical style. In Wuppertal, the cable car is deemed as a means of local transport that is used by many local inhabitants in order to get from A to B.

One of the many buildings dating back from the classical period is the Barmer Ruhmeshalle “Barmer Hall of Fame”. The building was constructed between 1897 and 1900 as the hall of fame for Emperor Wilhelm I and Emperor Friedrich III. What the Wuppertal citizens erected there, was a symbol of money. During the Second World War, the building was destroyed and it stood empty for many years afterwards. After its reconstruction, it is the Haus der Jugend that can now be found here.

In many districts, there are still some well-preserved residential buildings from former times for you to behold. Thus you can take a stroll through Villenviertel and you will see several opulent buildings next to one another. Most of them originate from the Wilhelmina era and they are listed buildings and this enables Wuppertal to remain a historic city.

Cultural Institutions in Wuppertal

The Tanztheater Pina Bausch is well-known on a worldwide scale. It presents plays, modern dance and musicals which merges into a new style. The dance ensemble was founded in the year 1973. The former choreographer ran it and also gave the theatre its name. She died in 2009 but the theatre lived on under new management. You can go and watch the performances onstage at the Elberfelder theatre and the opera house in Barmen.

If you want to go visit a museum in Wuppertal, you should opt for the Von der Heydt-Museum. With a surface area of approx. 6500 square metres, works of art are exhibited that date back from the 16th Century to our contemporary era. Works from Pablo Picasso were already exhibited here and it was here where they were awarded a prize for the very first time. In addition to the permanent exhibition, you can also expect to see interesting temporary exhibitions time and again. International audiences were also inspired of late by its exhibition on Monet.

The Wuppertaler Zoo is also worth taking a look at, with its more than 4500 animals, it is not only children who will be delighted here. It is deemed to be one of the most beautiful and species-rich zoos and it has around 450 different species of animal.

Eating and Drinking in Wuppertal

You can get good German cuisine in the Parkschlösschen. The building in itself is older than 100 years and even the history of the gastronomy in this place can be traced back 50 years. It was only recently that the restaurant was newly opened after having been freshly renovated. Alongside German, fresh and seasonal fare, you can also expect a range of rustic dishes from the Bergisch region. Examples of this are the brawn or potato pancakes. You can also choose from the alternating daily menu where you can get dishes such as the stuffed beef roulade with side orders for 14, 90 euros.