The German city known today as Wuppertal was formed in 1929 by merging the small towns of Barmen, Elberfeld, Vohwinkel, Ronsdorf, Cronenberg, Langerfeld, and Beyenburg. The name given to the township was initially Barmen-Elberfeld, and after 1930, it was changed to Wuppertal, or the "Wupper Valley". Wuppertal is located on the Wupper river south of the Ruhr area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It has a population of 363,000 inhabitants on an area of 168 sq km. Two thirds of the total municipal area is green, a short walk from any section of Wuppertal. It is also a major industrial centre including such industries as textiles, metallurgy, chemicals, medicine, rubber, vehicles and printing equipment. Aspirin, was invented here in Wuppertal by the German pharmaceutical giant, Bayer
How to Get There:
Wuppertal has no airport. The closest airports are Düsseldorf or Cologne/ Bonn airports. Getting to Wuppertal from Cologne takes only 30 minutes by regional train, with
frequent departures every hour. From Düsseldorf, you have to travel by road to Wuppertal, either by Taxi or car. You could also catch a bus to the Hauptbahnhof, from where you could take a train for Hagen, getting off en route at Wuppertal.
The "ICE" stops only at the Wuppertal Hauptbahnhof. S-Bahn (Schnell-Bahn) and RE (Regional Express) trains stop at almost all stations. The city is well connected all across Germany. One autobahn links to the city.
The Schwebebahn: Wuppertal Eugen Langen Monorail Suspension Railway (Wuppertal Einschienige Hängebahn System Eugen Langen) or the Schwebebahn, is a suspended monorail opened in 1901 and which is still in use today as a local transport system in the city. The
oldest such system globally, it travels along a 13.3 kilometres route Oberbarmen and Vohwinkel. The entire trip takes about 30 min. The Schwebebahn runs 25 million passenger annually.
What to See:
Ölberg (“Oil mountain”), the German word for Mount of Olives), Germany’s
largest working class district, protected as a historic monument; Brill, one of Germany’s largest districts of Gründerzeit villas, i.e. bourgeois mansions, built in the second half of the 19th century; The clock museum; Die Hardt, a nice wide park located on a Hill in the heart of Wuppertal, where you can also see the Botanischer Garten (botanical garden); Wuppertaler Zoo;
Historische Stadthalle Wuppertal (the historical city hall). Nowadays the Stadthalle is a concert hall, host to many cultural events; A performance by the Pina Bausch dance company, if you are lucky, since Pina Bausch is a Wuppertalite. Performances are held most of the time in the Wuppertaler Theatre.
Where to Eat: Of the 240 odd restaurants in Wuppertal catering to every taste, some names may be recommended: Maredo, Restaurant Am Husar, Restaurant Am Husar, Haus Hohenstein and
Karparthen.
Where to Stay:
Wuppertal has no dearth of hotels, with over 30, ranging from the lavish Art Fabrik & Hotel to the average City-Hotel. It also has a Youth Hostel.
