Bus from Dresden to MARIBOR

DRESDEN

The city of Dresden is the state capital of the Free State of Saxony and, with its population of over 500,000, is one of the medium-sized German cities. The history of the settlements dates back to the Stone Age, the city was founded in 1206. Today, Dresden is both the cultural and economic center of Saxony. The city has become famous through the Dresden Christstollen, which enjoys a great popularity during the Christmas season.

Dresden is famous for its sightseeing spots that attract a great number of tourists every year:

 The Dresden Frauenkirche (The Church of Our Lady): The Dresden Frauenkirche is the symbol of the Saxon state capital and was built within 17 years and completed in 1743. In the Second World War the impressive church was almost completely destroyed by a huge fire. After the reconstruction, which lasted from 1994 to 2005, it now shines again in its new splendor and is a popular excursion destination of Dresden. Especially from the air-balloon over Saxony, the Frauenkirche looks particularly beautiful!

Dresden Residence Castle: The Dresden Residence Castle is one of the historical buildings of the city whose history dates back to the 14th century. Visitors can visit the Green Vault and the New  Green Vault, where valuable art treasures are exhibited.

Military History Museum of the Bundeswehr: The Military History Museum of the Bundeswehr is one of the largest museums of the German military and was opened in 1877. Here, visitors can learn everything about German military history from its beginnings to modern days. Well-known exhibit is the Brandtaucher (Fire Diver), the first German submarine which Dreiller Wilhelm Bauer developed and built in 1850.

Ufa Crystal Palace: The Ufa Crystal Palace is a Cinema center in the city center, which has an extraordinary architectural design with a glass exterior facade. It is located in the Prague street and was opened in March 1998. The Cinema center has 8 cinemas with 2,700 seats for relaxation.

The Blue Miracle: The Blue Miracle is the Loschwitz Bridge and one of the most famous bridge structures in Dresden. The bridge was built in 1893 and connects the noble districts of Blasewitz and Loschwitz with a length of 280 meters.

The Transparent Factory: itis the production facility for Volkswagen's top-class car VW Phaeton. The publicly accessible Autowerk at the Großen Garten is home to the hotel and was opened in 2002. There is a restaurant and a bar for the culinary delights.

The Neue Kugelhaus is located directly at Dresden's main railway station and is an attractive shopping center in the form of a glass ball. There are over 30 shops on 4 floors, which offer a special shopping experience.

The Semper Opera House: The Semper Opera is the court and state opera of the Saxony, whose history dates back to the year 1841. Regular concerts and operettas are held there, including performances by well-known artists such as Richard Wagner.

Maribor is the second-largest city in Slovenia with about 95,500 inhabitants, it's also the largest city of the traditional region of Lower Styria and the seat of the City Municipality of Maribor.

Maribor was first mentioned as a market near the castle Castrum Marchburch ("March Castle") in 1204, and received town privileges in 1254. It began to grow rapidly after the victory of Rudolf I of the Habsburg dynasty over King Otakar II of Bohemia in 1278. Maribor withstood sieges by Matthias Corvinus in 1480/1481 and by the Ottoman Empire in 1532 and 1683.

Maribor has a humid continental climate, bordering on oceanic climate. Average temperatures hover around zero degrees Celsius during the winter. Summers are generally warm. Average temperatures during the city's warmest month (July) exceed 20 degrees Celsius, which is one of the main reasons for the Maribor wine tradition.

Many historical structures stand in Maribor. Of the remains of city walls surrounding the old downtown, the most prominent are the Judgement Tower, the Water Tower, and the Jewish Tower. Maribor Cathedral was built in the Gothic style in the 13th century. Maribor Synagogue was built in the 14th century, and is the second oldest synagogue of Europe. Today it serves as a centre for cultural activities. Other prominent Medieval buildings are Maribor Castle, Betnava Castle, and the ruins of Upper Maribor Castle on Pyramid Hill. Town Hall was constructed in the Renaissance style, and the Plague Column in the Baroque style.

The city hosts the University of Maribor, established in 1975, and many other schools.

Every June, the two-week Lent Festival (named after the waterfront district called Lent) is held, with hundreds of musical, theatrical and other events. Every year the festival attracts theatre, opera, ballet performers, classical, modern, and jazz musicians and dancers from all over the world, and of course many visitors. There is also mime, magic shows are being held and acrobats perform during the festival.

Maribor is known for wine and culinary specialities of international and Slovene. There are also many popular restaurants with Serbian cuisine. The Vinag Wine Cellar (Vinagova vinska klet), with the area of 20.000 m2 and the length of 2 kilometres, keeps 5,5 millions litres of wine. The house of the oldest grapevine in the world (Hiša stare trte) at Lent grows the world's oldest grapevine, which was in 2004 recorded in Guinness World Records. The grapevine of Žametovka is about 440 years old.