What's on in Leipzig
 

1 1/2 days in Leipzig...What's good to do (no car, public transport).

Cultural sightseeing is a plus, and good local restaurant recommendations are welcomed.

Danke.

• City Center with the old churches and Bach's tomb,
• the museum of modern history (Haus der Geschichte) is a MUST to understand German post war history,
• Auerbach's Keller (Restaurant, close to this museum) is the location Goethe's Faust took place,
• the Voelkerschlachtsdenkmal (memorial of the nation's battle, easily to be reached by tram).

If you have not booked a hotel yet, take the "Fürstenhof" (Starwood's Luxury Collection).

Check out http://www.moritzbastei.de for concerts etc.

I agree 100% with this recommendation - very nice property, excellent value, very good food (at breakfast) - and it's a short, easy walk from the Hauptbahnhof (you only have to cross one major thoroughfare, but there is a traffic signal). Ask the staff to show you the magnificently-restored "Serpentine Room" meeting hall.

For culture, the renowned Gewandhaus Orchestra plays in their own Hall, and are also often in the pit for the Leipzig Oper (the two buildings are across the street from each other). Well worth attending, especially if Music Director Riccardo Chailly is conducting.

Mein Gott!!! Keine preiswert!!!

310 Euros / night compared to the 72 Euro / night rate I've got at the Renaissance Leipzig. Is the Renaissance a good hotel (or good enough at that price?)

The Fürstenhof has only 92 rooms, so it can fill up sometimes - I barely got in a couple of years ago, as an IOC delegation studying Leipzig's (ultimately unsuccessful) bid for the 2012 Olympics had taken up most of the hotel.

But I've gotten rooms there in the Eur. 118-140 range over the last couple of years. Staying with Starwood, there's also the Westin (very close by, and even closer to the Hbf), which now has the Heavenly Beds and is perfectly fine (I stayed there on my last trip as the Fürstenhof was sold out). Good views, since the rooms occupy floors 15-27 (IIRC) of the building that houses the hotel.

They must be more or less fully booked (the hotel is quite small, less than 100 rooms). I had a stay there last week for 82 Euros and got a nice *-Wood Platinum upgrade to a suite.

The Renaissance and the Marriott are good value for money either, but both are pretty new and without any continental flair and style.