Xanten

Xanten is a lovely small town on the Lower Rhine. During the summer the streets and lanes are crowded with numerous aficionados. Despite this everybody carries on the good old-fashioned way and the general speed is slow and gentle. Promenaders and cyclists love to go on solitary trips into the idyllic landscape of riverside meadows or around the Xanten North and South Lake. The 110 hectares of water provide everything sunbathers, aquatic athletes and swimmers are looking for. There are two marinas. A new harbour will be opened this summer. The ideal place to take time out.

But there´s more to Xanten than recreation and vacation. It is a paradise for history fans.
The LVR-Archaeological Park Xanten brings antiquity to life. 2,000 years ago the Romans dared to advance into the Lower Rhine and founded the large city of „Colonia Ulpia Traiana“. Archaeologists rejoice in the fact that the colony has hardly been overbuilt since the Middle Ages. Therefore the relics of the Roman town have been able to be protected, researched and presented in the Archaeological Park since 1977. Reconstructions such as those of the harbour temple, amphitheatre, town walls, residential houses and baths communicate a vivid impression of everyday life of the Romans in Lower Germany.
In the newly opened Roman Museum the exhibition displays more than 2,500 exhibits using modern media. The chronological tour focussing on the Roman history of Xanten takes one from Caesar´s time to the period of the Franks.
Tourist Information Xanten
Pressemitteilung
The Roman Museum and the town baths form a unique museum complex. The modern building of steel and glass is situated on the historic site of the Roman metropolis Colonia Ulpia Traiana. It was built on the excavated foundations of the entrance-hall of the public baths. The size and the shape of the modern building correspond to the original.
For the greater part the exhibition is displayed in galleries and platforms suspended from the ceiling. Therefore, inside the museum one can also experience the enormous dimensions of the original architecture. New, astonishing perspectives turn up again and again.
As well as antiquity medieval times are still present, too. The town´s landmarks are the Cleves Gate, where you can spend your holidays, the Krimhild windmill, which is in operation every day, the Gothic House and the impressive St. Viktor´s Cathedral and the cathedral close. The Cathedral, in German Dom, doesn´t owe its name to the status of an episcopal see but to its significance to the Lower Rhine. It forms the town´s centre and is its jewel. Its beauty and richness reflects Xanten´s wealth in the Middle Ages.
In May 2010 the museum of the chapter with its splendid exhibits will be opened. This spring the museum Nibelungen(h)ort will open, too. It will present the history of 1,500 years of a myth centering on Siegfried of Xanten, the dragon-slayer.
The shops and restaurants in the market place and the pedestrian precinct invite one to go for a stroll around town.
Culture plays a major role in Xanten. The annual summer music festival is the top event. It takes place in the unique atmosphere of Xanten´s Roman amphitheatres.