Germany & Austria 1945
Cologne — cathedral and Hohenzollern bridge
City
The story
The city 506th men saw on passes in April 1945: the cathedral standing over 90 % destruction. Climb the tower for the view the Americans had from the west bank.
What to look for
Compare the photographs in the NS Documentation Centre (EL-DE Haus, ten minutes' walk) with the square today.
Plan your visit
Cathedral daily; EL-DE Haus Tue–Sun.
- Open
- Cathedral 06:00–20:00 (prayer area). Visits Mon–Sat 10:00–17:45, Sun/holy days 13:30–16:30. Tower Mar–Oct 9–18, Nov–Feb 9–16
- Price
- Since 1 July 2026: €12 adults for visiting; €6 reduced; under-14s free; services and north-transept prayer free
Checked September 2026 from official sources: koelner-dom.de, koelner-dom.de. Things change, so check before you travel.
Nearby sites
- Zons — the walled town on the Rhine · 22 km
- Stürzelberg — the Rhine dike · 24 km
- Ludendorff Bridge, Remagen — Peace Museum · 45 km
- Nuremberg — Documentation Centre & Zeppelinfeld · 340 km
- Hurlach — Kaufering IV camp site · 422 km
- Torgau — Elbe Day · 426 km
All 26 sites in Germany & Austria 1945 →
Easy Company: Germany & Austria
A free field guide for your phone: the route, the maps and the stories built in, even with no signal. The places of the last months of the war in Europe: the Rhine, Bavaria with Landsberg, Dachau and Munich, Berchtesgaden and the Eagle's Nest, and Austria, where Easy Company ended its war at Zell am See and Kaprun.
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