Dortmund’s much more than a festive wonderland – as we found out with a tour of the German city’s year-round attractions
From a 'health and safety' exhibition that's' fun' to a winning tour of the German Football Museum, Dortmund has plenty more to offer than the world's largest Christmas tree
WE all get a little over-competitive on Christmas decorations but in Germany, one city takes this to ridiculous extremes.
Dortmund has one of the biggest Christmas markets in the world. Stalls spread all the way through the pedestrianised city centre, selling trinkets, sausages and mulled wine.
But the centrepiece of all this festive merriment is the world’s largest Christmas tree.
This gigantic showstopper is 45 metres (almost 150ft) tall, and made up of 1,700 separate fir trees cleverly stacked together to make it look like just one.
You’ll need an impressive camera lens to fit it all in shot.
But if you’re heading to Dortmund for a spot of last-minute Christmas shopping, what else is there to do there?
Well, it’s a city packed with some rather unusual attractions, including…
The DASA Working World Exhibition
Potentially the most boring museum on Earth. It’s essentially about workplace health and safety – and yes, there is a section on how to lift boxes properly.
But somehow, the DASA Working World Exhibition manages to be really good fun. That’s largely because there are a lot of toys to play with.
You can drive a lorry simulator, get behind the controls of a helicopter, and pretend you’re in command of air traffic control. There are also plenty of cool, high-tech robots to gawp at.
German Football Museum
If you want to learn about the beautiful game from the perspective of the current world champions, this new addition to the Dortmund cultural scene is a winner.
There’s plenty on the history of football in Germany – and lots of memorabilia.
But it’s at its best when letting you loose on the interactive touch screens. One allows you to play ref, blowing the whistle when you think you’ve spotted an infringement.
Another lets you play video replays of Geoff Hurst’s controversial goal in the 1966 World Cup Final.
Did the ball cross the line? Not that they’re bitter about it or anything.
Signal Iduna Park
Footie fans can extend the theme by visiting Signal Iduna Park, home of Borussia Dortmund.
It holds 81,000 fans – making it the biggest football stadium in Germany.
Tickets for matches are hard to come by, but there are English language stadium tours available for €12 (£10.50).
Zollern
The whole Ruhr region, which Dortmund is a part of, has done an extraordinary job with its industrial heritage sites.
The most impressive is in the neighbouring city of Essen, where the Zollverein complex has repurposed what was once the world’s largest coal mining facility.
There’s a design museum in the old boiler house, plus an ice skating rink and Ferris wheel in the coking plant.
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But Dortmund has its own version.
The Zollern was designed to be the most beautiful coal mine in the world.
It has now been transformed into a huge cultural centre, with exhibitions on the industries that made the region one of the world’s great industrial powerhouses.