Nordkirchen moated castle, view from garden, © Oliver Franke, Tourismus NRW e.V.

Ar­chi­tec­tur­al mas­ter­pieces


Towers, high­lights and de­light­ful parks

A few of the palaces and castles in North Rhine-Westphalia stand out as architectural masterpieces: Sometimes they are exemplary of a specific epoch such as the Baroque or the Renaissance periods, sometimes they are the highlight of an entire region. Set against an idyllic natural backdrop, magnificent towers stretch up into the sky and stand out from their surroundings. In the middle of expansive parks, beautifully designed flower gardens highlight enchanting pond and water landscapes, designed by the hands of artists. Complimentary forms and colours create a harmonious overall picture before magnificent backdrops. Opulent stucco work and splendid wall decorations are guaranteed jaw-dropping eye-catchers. The tour can begin.

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Schloss Anholt gilt als eines der größten und schönsten Wasserschlösser des Münsterlands, © Andreas Lechtape

An­holt Castle and Park An­holt


The castle is deemed one of the most beau­ti­ful moated castles in the Mün­ster­land. The main castle has out­stand­ing art col­lec­tions wait­ing to be dis­covered by its vis­it­ors. The out­door area beck­ons to take a stroll through the baroque gar­dens and the sprawl­ing Eng­lish land­scape park.

Das Düsseldorfer Schloss Benrath wurde 1775 erbaut, © Stiftung Schloss und Park Benrath

Ben­rath Palace and Castle Park Düs­sel­dorf


The ‘Kö’ (König­sallee) is not the only place to find pomp in Düs­sel­dorf: Schloss Ben­rath is con­sidered to be the most im­port­ant ar­chi­tec­tur­al syn­thes­is of the arts in the state cap­it­al. Every room in the palace faces out onto the gar­dens. The im­pos­ing palace park serves as a ven­ue for en­ter­tain­ment events.

Schloss Nordkirchen & Schlosspark, © Johannes Höhn

Nordkirchen Castle Nordkirchen


The park is one of the most beau­ti­ful gar­dens in Europe and, to­geth­er with the mag­ni­fi­cent palace, is known in Mün­ster­land as the “West­phali­an Ver­sailles”. Vis­it­ors can ad­mire the op­u­lent stucco work, won­der­ful ceil­ing paint­ings and fine wood carving.

The Brühl Palaces from a distance, © Horst Gummersbach

The Brühl Palaces Brühl


Vis­it­ors find the baroque splend­our of the Brühl palaces simply breath­tak­ing. Any­one who stands in the stair­way will un­der­stand why oth­er roy­al courts can only look at Brühl with envy. Today, both struc­tures and their gar­dens and parks are lis­ted as Un­esco World Her­it­age sites.