Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf: history & character

Düsseldorf, capital of North Rhine-Westphalia since 1946, has established itself as one of Germany's leading financial and trade-fair centres (headquarters of Eurex Clearing, the E.ON utility group, and host of the world's largest yachting fair, Boot Düsseldorf). The 13th-century medieval town village became from the 19th century onwards one of Europe's major art centres — the Kunstakademie trained Joseph Beuys, Anselm Kiefer, and Andreas Gursky. The Königsallee, opened in 1804, is today the most expensive luxury avenue in continental Europe. The city is also home to the largest Japanese community in continental Europe (8,000 permanent residents, the 'Little Tokyo' clustered around Immermannstraße). For travellers with a dog, Düsseldorf is one of Germany's most practical cities: 21 official fenced Hundewiesen, dog-friendly Rheinbahn U-Bahn and trams, two official lake-bathing zones (Unterbacher See and Elbsee), a Hausbrauerei culture (Schumacher, Füchschen, Uerige, Schlüssel) that accepts dogs indoors year-round, and the large 24/7 Tierärztliche Klinik in Stockum.