A Unesco World Heritage Site since 1986, Trier is home to an outstanding assortment of Roman monuments as well as architectural gems from later ages. Its proximity to both Luxembourg and France can be tasted in the cuisine and felt in the local esprit. Abou 18,000 students do their part to contribute to the lively atmosphere.
Trier was founded by the Romans as Augusta Treverorum in 15 BC, becoming capital of the Western Roman Empire by the 3rd century AD. A second heyday arrived in the 13th century, when its archbishops acquired the rank and power of prince-electors. In the following centuries, the city seesawed between periods of prosperity and poverty. Karl Marx (1818–83) lived here until age 17.
In 2007 the Luxembourg region, including Trier, will serve as a European Capital of Culture (
luxembourg2007.org - luxembourg 2007 Resources and Information. This website is for sale!). Local events include a major exhibition (
Konstantin der Große - Konstantin Ausstellung), held from June to November, on the Roman emperor Constantine the Great (AD 275–337) and his role in European history, to be held at the city’s leading museums. Trier is an excellent base for day trips along the Moselle River and to Luxembourg, where quite a few locals, attracted by higher pay, have found employment.
Orientation
The Hauptbahnhof, in a rather seedy area, is about 600m southeast of the landmark Porta Nigra (Black Gate) and the adjacent tourist office. From there, the pedestrianised Simeonstrasse leads southwest to the Hauptmarkt. The Olewig (oh-leh-vig) Wine District is about 2km southeast of the centre.
Information
- ATMs Several are situated at Am Kornmarkt and in the Hauptbahnhof. ES-Telecom (Bahnhofplatz 1; per hr €1; h9am-10pm) Internet access next to the Hauptbahnhof.
- Internet-Café (Karl-Marx-Strasse 32; per hr €1; h10am-10pm Mon-Fri, 11am-9pm Sat & Sun)
- Mehrfachkarte (adult/child/senior & student/family €6.20/1.50/3.10/14.80) A discount card good for the Porta Nigra, Kaiserthermen, Amphitheater and Barbarathermen. Sold at the tourist office.
- Post office (Bahnhofplatz) Just north of the Hauptbahnhof.
- Tourist office (%978 080; www.trier.de; An der Porta Nigra; h9am-6pm Mon-Thu, to 7pm Fri & Sat, to 5pm Sun May-Oct, 9am or 10am-5pm or 6pm Mon-Sat, 10am- 1pm or 3pm Sun Nov-Apr) Has a hotel vacancies board outside and sells Moselle-area walking maps.
- Trier-Card (individual/family €9/15) For three consecutive days this card will get you 50% off museum and monument admissions, unlimited use of public transport and various other discounts. It’s only sold at the tourist office.
- Waschsalon (Brückenstrasse 19-21; h8am-10pm) Self-service laundry.
Sights & Activities
Top billing among Trier’s Roman monuments goes to the Porta Nigra (%754 24; Porta-Nigra-Platz; adult/child to 18yr/senior & student/family €2.10/1/1.60/5.10; h9am-6pm Apr-Sep, to 5pm Mar & Oct, to 4pm Nov-Feb), a brooding 2nd-century city gate that’s been blackened by time (hence the name, Latin for ‘black gate’). A marvel of engineering and ingenuity, it’s held together by nothing but gravity and iron rods. In the 11th century, Archbishop Poppo converted the structure into St Simeonkirche, a church named in honour of a Greek hermit who spent a stint holed up in its east tower.
The church spawned a monastery whose erstwhile home is now the Städtisches Museum Simeonstift (%718 1459; An der Porta Nigra). Set to reopen in May 2007 after extensive renovations, it illustrates eight centuries of city history and also has collections of Coptic textiles and East Asian sculpture.
A block southwest is the 13th-century Dreikönigenhaus (Simeonstrasse 19; closed to public), a late Gothic residence with a geometrically painted façade. Originally, the entrance was up on the 1st floor, reachable by stairs that could be retracted in case of danger. Two blocks further on is the Hauptmarkt, where a farmers’ marketis still held daily except Sunday. Anchored by a festive fountain dedicated to St Peter and the Four Virtues, it’s hemmed in by medieval and Renaissance architectural treasures such as the Rotes Haus (Red House) and the Steipe, a former banqueting hall that’s now the home of the Spielzeugmuseum (Toy Museum; %758 50; adult/youth 11-18yr/child €4/2/1.50; h11am-6pm Apr-Oct, 11am-5pm Tue-Sun Nov-Mar), a major draw for fans of miniature trains, mechanical toys, dolls and other childhood delights. The Gothic St- Gangolf-Kirche (hdaily) is reached via a flowery portal.
A block east of Hauptmarkt looms the fortresslike Dom (h6.30am-6pm Apr-Oct, 6.30am-5.30pm Nov-Mar), built above the palace of Constantine the Great’s mother, Helena. The present structure is mostly Romanesque with some Gothic and baroque embellishments. To see some dazzling cclesiastical equipment and peer into early Christian history, head upstairs to the Domschatz (cathedral treasury; adult/child €1.50/0.50; h10am-5pm Mon-Sat, 2-5pm Sun & religious holidays, to 4pm Nov-Mar) or go straight to the Bischöfliches Dom- und Diözesanmuseum (%710 5255; Windstrasse 6-8; adult/student €2/1; h9am-5pm Tue-Sat, 1-5pm Sun & religious holidays, also open Mon Apr-Oct), just north of the Dom. The prized exhibit here is a 4th-century ceiling fresco from Helena’s palace that was pieced together from countless fragments.
Just to the south is the Liebfrauenkirche (h7.30am-6pm Apr-Oct, to 5.30pm Nov-Mar), one of Germany’s earliest Gothic churches. The cruciform structure is supported by a dozen pillars symbolising the 12 apostles and, despite its strict symmetry, has a light, mystical quality. Liebfrauenstrasse leads south to another architectural masterpiece, the brick-built Konstantinbasilika (Konstantinplatz; h10am-6pm Mon-Sat, noon-6pm Sun & holidays Apr-Oct, 11am-noon & 3-4pm Tue- Sat, noon-1pm Sun & holidays Nov-Mar), built in AD 310 as Constantine’s throne hall. Its dimensions (67m long and 36m high) are truly mindblowing considering how long ago it was built. Later part of the residence of Trier’s rinceelectors, it is now a Protestant church.
The adjacent prince-electors’ residence, a pink rococo confection, looks south over the lawns, pools and fountains of the formal Palastgarten (palace garden), in the middle of which stands the Rheinisches Landesmuseum ( Roman Archaeological Museum; %977 40; Weimarer Allee 1; adult/child incl audio-guide €5.50/1.50; h9.30am-5pm Mon-Fri, 10.30am- 5pm Sat, Sun & holidays, closed Mon Nov-Apr). The rich collections provide an extraordinary look at local Roman life – highlights include a scale model of 4th-century Trier and rooms filled with tombstones, mosaics, rare gold coins and some fantastic glass. Renovations of parts of the complex are set to be completed by June 2007.
From the museum, it’s just a coin’s toss south to the Kaiserthermen (%442 62; Weimarer Allee 2; adult/child to 18yr/senior & student/family €2.10/1/1.60/5.10; h9am-6pm Apr-Sep, to 5pm Mar & Oct, to 4pm Nov-Feb), a vast thermal bathing complex created by Constantine. The striped brickand- stone arches, once part of the Caldarium, may make you feel like you’re at the Forum in Rome. You can get a sense of the layout from the lookout tower.
A 700m walk southeast is the Roman Amphitheater (%730 10; Olewiger Strasse; adult/child to 18yr/senior & student/family €2.10/1/1.60/5.10; h9am-6pm Apr-Sep, to 5pm Mar & Oct, to 4pm Nov-Feb), once capable of holding 20,000 spectators during gladiator tournaments and animal fights. The dank cellars were once used to keep prisoners, caged animals and corpses. For more Roman baths, head to the Viehmarktthermen (%994 1057; Viehmarktplatz; adult/ senior/student €2.10/1.60/1; h9am-5pm, closed 1st work day of each week). Found by accident in the 1980s during the construction of a parking garage, the excavations are sheltered by a dramatic glass cube designed by the Cologne architect Oswald M Ungers.
Diehard thermal bath devotees still have the Barbarathermen (cnr Südallee & Friedrich-Wilhelm- Strasse), closed for renovations until at least 2008. In the meantime you can look over the fence at the foundations, cellars and floorheating system, all of which survived a 17thcentury raid for stones to build a school.
Two blocks northwest is the Römerbrücke, successor to a 2nd-century bridge, five of whose original seven pylons are still extant. The respectable bourgeois townhouse in which the author of Das Kapital was born and, quite comfortably, grew up is now the Karl-Marx-Haus (%970 680; Brückenstrasse 10; adult/ concession €3/1.50; h1-6pm Mon, 10am-6pm Tue-Sun Apr-Oct, 10am-1pm & 2-5pm Tue-Sun Nov-Mar), whose exhibits take a look at the man and his oeuvre. Interestingly, early 19th-century Trier was no Dickensian industrial nightmare but rather a small town with just 10,000 residents.
Eating & Drinking
- Weinhaus Becker has an excellent restaurant. Cubiculum (%451 27; Hosenstrasse 2; light meals €2.50-6.50; h7pm-1am or 2am) This beer hall and restaurant, in a medieval cellar, serves light meals such as casserole but the unique speciality here is Pizzasalat (€5.50) – you guessed it, a pizza topped with a pile of salad. Occasionally has live music on Friday or Saturday.
- Astarix (%722 39; Karl-Marx-Strasse 11; pizza from €5) Popular student hang-out with good pizza and casseroles (€4.20 plus €0.30 for each added ingredient). Extra-cheap on Monday. Enter through the arcade.
- Textorium (%474 82; Wechselstrasse 4-6; meals from €6) A very popular, industrial-chic restaurant with outdoor seating and daily specials. Located inside the TuFa cultural events venue.
- Zum Domstein (%744 90; Am Hauptmarkt 5; mains €9.50-18.50, Roman dinner €15-33) A German-style bistro where you can either feast like the ancient Romans or dine on more conventional German and international fare. A cookbook printed in Venice in 1498 is on display downstairs.
- Simplicissimus (Viehmarktplatz 11; h10am-2am Mon-Sat, 2pm-2am Sun & holidays) An unpretentious café-bar with interesting old photos on the walls, rock on the PR system and waiters who’ve been known to get sloshed. Several other places to drink are right nearby.
- SchMIT-Z (%42 514; Das Schwul-lesbische Zentrum SCHMIT-Z e.V. in Trier in German; Mustorstrasse 4; h8pm-midnight Thu, 9pm-2am Sat, 4-8pm Sun) A mellow gay and lesbian information centre with a bar.
- Picnic supplies are available at the Kaufmarkt supermarket (Brückenstrasse 2; h8am-8pm Mon-Fri, 8am-4pm Sat).
Entertainment
Click ‘events’ on the tourist office website (
Stadt Trier - City of Trier - La Ville de Trèves) for details on concerts and other cultural activities.
TuFa (%718 2412; Wechselstrasse 4-6) This vibrant cultural events venue, housed in a former Tuchfabrik (towel factory) – thus the name – hosts cabaret, live music of all sorts, theatre and dance performances. It is home to the Textorium (see above ).
Getting There & Away
Trier has several hourly train connections to Saarbrücken (€13.40, one to 1½ hours) and Koblenz (€17, 1½ to two hours). There are also frequent trains to Luxembourg (€8.40, 50 minutes), with onward connections to Paris.
Regional buses to the Eifel and Hunsrück Mountains leave from the bus station outside the Hauptbahnhof.
Getting Around
Trier has a comprehensive bus system (%01801- 993366;
Verkehrsverbund Region Trier (VRT): Home, in German) but the city centre is easily explored on foot. Single tickets/day passes, sold by drivers, cost €1.55/4.25. The Olewig Wine District is served by buses 6, 16 and 26.
Bikes can be rented at Radstation Bahnhof (%148 856; per day €7.50-10; h9am-7pm Apr-Oct, 10am- 6pm Mon-Fri Nov-Mar), inside the Hauptbahnhof next to track 11.
