The capital of the North Rhine-Westphalia state, Dusseldorf is an established tourist destination that has been luring visitors for several decades, using its interesting sightseeing attractions, plethora of cultural venues, excellent shopping areas, lively festivals and vibrant nightlife as its chief draw cards. With easy access from across Europe and from some transatlantic destinations also, it’s not difficult to see why Dusseldorf boasts such impressive tourist figures.

The city appeals to visitors of all ages and backgrounds, offering theme parks for families with children, museums for those interested in arts and culture, and various landmarks and interesting buildings for history and architectural buffs. The museum category is especially impressive and covers a broad range of themes and topics, with the arts featuring fairly significantly.

Dusseldorf's dining scene comes highly recommended, whether you are a budget traveller or one in a position to splurge. Venues offering the tasty local cuisine are abundant, while those offering the cuisines of other nations are not in short supply either. With one of the largest Japanese communities outside of Japan itself, Dusseldorf is home to an excellent selection of Japanese restaurants.

Shopping enthusiasts will be in their element in Dusseldorf, with the Altstadt offering numerous retail outlets and the highly chic Königsallee presenting an equally chic selection of boutiques and up-market establishments. Prices for consumer goods are, generally speaking, pretty favourable by European standards so there’s definitely good opportunity to lighten the wallet or bump up the credit card balance significantly during your stay.

With a solid visitor infrastructure already in place, the city has no shortage of accommodation options, with hotels to suit all budgets. Visitors favouring international chains will find branches of the Hilton, Best Western, Holiday Inn, Novotel and Marriot located in the downtown area. At the other end of the scale are cheap and cheerful establishments.

Dusseldorf is not difficult to get to, with its own international airport providing the major gateway and the means by which most foreign visitors arrive. If you are coming from Belgium or the Netherlands, it’s possible to cross the border in a rental or private vehicle then to drive the remaining distance to the city. There are buses and trains also providing connections from neighbouring countries.

Back in the days of the Roman Empire, some of the area we now know as Dusseldorf was home to Germanic tribes, then later in the 7^th and 8^th centuries some small fishing and farming settlements were established at the point where the river Düssel meets the Rhine. It was the latter settlements that eventually grew into a village and formed the foundations for what was later to become the city of Dusseldorf.

It was the 14^th of August, 1288 when the village was finally elevated to city status, with Count Adolf V of Berg granting it the necessary rights in the wake of his defeat of the Archbishop of Cologne at the Battle of Worringen. Until then, a violent power struggle for control of the area had taken place over a lengthy period. The city’s ‘Stadterhebungsmonument’, located in the Old Town, serves as a visual reminder of the events that led to the granting of Dusseldorf’s charter.

The city saw steady development under the control of the Bergs and by the 14^th century it had constructed a market square for the purpose of trading and official proceedings. This was seen as key step in the city’s rise in status, and this was consolidated by its instatement as the Duchy of Berg’s regional capital.

The trend towards development continued into the 16^th century with the building of a castle by Duke Wilhem becoming one of the defining events of this era of prosperity. In the same century, the Town Hall was constructed. Displaying typical Lower Rhine Renaissance influences, the building is still a feature of the city today and although it’s experienced some inevitable weathering by the hands of time, it is relatively well preserved.

Into the 20^th century, WWII saw the city sustain some heavy damage under the weight of air raids. Restoration projects in the years following have seen many of its greatest buildings returned to their former glory. Along the city’s skyline, the old architectural treasures were gradually joined by newer buildings and Dusseldorf’s transformation into a modern metropolis was well under way by the latter decades of the century.

Nowadays, the city is a thriving commercial centre that benefits not only from many large companies choosing it as their base of operations but also from the annual trade fair known as the Messe, which has helped make it a successful international business player. The city has a cosmopolitan ambience and its residents enjoy a high standard of living and access to both modern amenities and cultural attractions.

Dusseldorf experiences a moderate climate which produces four distinct seasons. Summers are warm but not scorching, winters are cold but not excessively so and spring and autumn are somewhere in between with cool nights and mornings and mild to warm daytime temperatures.

Winter begins around late November or early December and lasts until early March at least, during which time, temperatures rarely reach above 10ºC but also rarely drop below zero, so even early mornings are never bitingly cold. December sees the most rain of any of the winter months.

Summer is the best season to visit Dusseldorf as daytime temperatures during July and August can climb into the mid 20s (ºC) making for some pleasant conditions in which to enjoy sightseeing or relaxing in the city’s parks. June can also be pleasantly warm but is the second wettest month of the year so you’ll need to pack an umbrella should you choose to visit at this time.