Ar­chi­tec­tur­al high­lights in Nieder­sachsen

The phaeno is a science centre and offers a world of experience for the whole family. You can conduct experiments and marvel at all manner of phenomena.

The building itself is also very impressive. It was designed by Zaha Hadid, a star architect originally from Iraq. The building was designed in an avant-garde idiom, can be used flexibly and was completed in 2005. Its construction was exceptionally technologically demanding, using special state-of-the-art materials such as self-compacting concrete and specially developed glass façades. The building structure stands on conical feet and is elevated high above the street. Underneath the structure, a sort of artificial landscape opens up with gentle hills and valleys. The building is multifaceted and embodies a certain dynamism. Inside, at a height of seven metres, an adventure land of craters, caves and plateaus opens up. The British daily newspaper The Guardian described the phaeno as ‘one of the twelve most significant modern buildings in the world’.

Experience the impressive building when visiting Wolfsburg and get to know the phaeno from a different angle!

The Hundertwasser train station in Uelzen, which was designed by Friedensreich Hundertwasser, is one of the ten most beautiful railway stations in the world. The project was completed in 2000 during the EXPO and is one of the last works by the Viennese artist. The painter and architect Hundertwasser remodelled the old brick building into a very colourful work of art. His aversion to straight lines is easy to recognise: all the shapes are individual, fantastic and rounded. From the outside, you can admire brightly coloured columns and golden globes. Inside, you can marvel at imaginative mosaics, dazzling colours and the typical rounded corners.

The building now combines art, ecology and modernity in a special way: the largest roof-integrated photovoltaic system in Lower Saxony generates environmentally friendly electricity using solar power.

The Harz mountains contain the most significant architectural monument from the time of the Salian dynasty: the Imperial Palace of Goslar (Kaiserpfalz). The magnificent Romanesque building sits enthroned above the roofs of the city of Goslar and contains wonderful paintings and historical treasures.

In the 10th century, the city of Goslar became very rich through mining and Emperor Heinrich II decided to build his imperial palace here. At 54 metres long, it was to be the longest building of its time. In the 13th century, the building was appropriated for other purposes, and in 1819 it was almost entirely demolished. At the end of the 19th century, the site was completely restored. Since 1992, the Kaiserpfalz has been a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Originally a Gothic building, the Welf Castle burnt down in 1560 and was rebuilt by Duke Erich I in the style of the Weser Renaissance. Two Renaissance chambers have been preserved in their original state. They are adorned with beautiful, extensive murals which are unique in this form in Germany. 

Herrenhausen Castle was originally a Baroque building built in the 17th century. From 1819 to 1821, it was remodelled by the court architect of the time, Georg Ludwig Friedrich Laves, in the Classicist style. It was used as a summer palace for the Welf family. After being destroyed during the Second World War, the castle was rebuilt in 2012 at its former location. It restores the architectural point of reference to the famous Royal Gardens of Herrenhausen.

Oldenburg Castle is the former residence of the counts, dukes and grand dukes of Oldenburg in the capital and imperial seat of Oldenburg.

Oldenburg Castle stuns visitors in light yellow; its appearance frequently changed over the centuries. At the beginning of the 17th century, Count Anton Günther had his residential seat built in the Renaissance style. Later, the castle façade was endowed with rococo elements. At the end of the 18th century, the library wing was erected, and the castle interior was remodelled in the Classicist style. Some of the historical state rooms are still almost completely preserved today. Large parts of the façade, however, are unmistakeably from the Baroque period.

Since 1921, part of the Landesmuseum für Kunst und Kulturgeschichte (state museum for art and cultural history) has been housed in the castle.

The Felix-Nussbaum-Haus boasts spectacular architecture: it is a forged steel Holocaust memorial which also serves as a museum. It houses over 200 works by the Jewish painter Felix Nussbaum, who was born in Osnabrück and was murdered by the Nazis. The building was designed by the American star architect Daniel Libeskind. Built using wood, concrete and zinc, the Felix Nussbaum House was opened in Osnabrück in 1998.

In the market square of the city of Goslar in the Harz mountains is the Kaiserworth hotel. This is the historical guildhall of Kaiserworth, which was built in 1484 and has been used as a hotel for almost 200 years. The impressive building with its arcades and corbel figures testifies to the wealth of the merchants and the city of Goslar at that time. It is a two-storey, late Gothic building with a gabled roof. The façade was overbuilt several times over the course of the centuries. This has resulted in a melange of historical styles, which gives the building a certain charm. The façade combines decorative gothic and Baroque details.

Would you like to stay overnight in this historical house? Experience the bustle of the market square from a box seat.

The Fagus Factory is a Bauhaus building by the architect and Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius. Built in 1911, it was designated a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site in 2011 and is viewed worldwide as a seminal building of Modernism. Light, air and clarity are orchestrated functionally in the building’s architecture. Above all, the cantilevered, completely glazed corners lend the building a weightless elegance. This was very unusual for factories at the time.

Fagus shoe lasts have been produced in this living monument for over 100 years. Guided tours provide an insight behind the scenes of this World Cultural Heritage site. 

The main building of Leuphana University of Lüneburg is a futuristic construction. During his part-time professorship here, the architect Daniel Libeskind developed the design for the main building together with students at Lüneburg University. The architect placed great importance on creating places for encounters, reflection and exchange. It is regarded as a milestone on the path towards a future-oriented campus. A significant element of the building is the Libeskind auditorium, which seats up to 1,100 people.