Berlin to Leipzig: Private day trip

Leipzig is Germany's most creatively vital city — Bach's church, the street where the 1989 peaceful revolution began, a network of belle époque covered arcades and one of Europe's most celebrated contemporary art scenes.

What to see

• The Thomaskirche (St Thomas Church) — where Johann Sebastian Bach served as cantor from 1723 until his death in 1750
• The Nikolaikirche (St Nicholas Church) — where the Monday Demonstrations of 1989 began, the peaceful candlelit protests that brought down the East German government within weeks
• The Völkerschlachtdenkmal (Monument to the Battle of Nations) — a colossal granite memorial completed in 1913 to mark the centenary of the 1813 battle in which Napoleon was decisively defeated
• The Mädler-Passage — Leipzig's most celebrated covered arcade

What to do

• Walk the full arcade network — Leipzig's system of covered Passagen connecting the inner city blocks is the most extensive in Germany
• The Spinnerei — a former cotton spinning mill converted into the largest artists' studio complex in Europe, housing over 100 artists