Frankfurt Airport to Cologne: Private day trip

Miraculously, while most of the city’s Old Town was turned to rubble, the Cathedral survived, and today this utterly magnificent masterwork of medieval Gothic architecture still hovers above the roofs of the city. Begun in 1248 and the finishing touches only put to its gigantic twin towers in 1880, after an interval of over two centuries, this UNESCO-protected building is overwhelming in its scale and beauty. A whole host of church treasures dating back to the 4th century is on view in the medieval sacristan crypt, while behind the high altar the Shrine of the Three Kings, the relics of the Biblical Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar rises up in medieval golden splendour. The Church of Great St. Martin and the Old Town Hall in the Old Town have their riches too. As do many of Cologne’s forty-odd museums, such as the City Museum or Museum Ludwig dedicated to modern art.