You will receive the full meeting point details and a map after you finalize your booking, in a confirmation email.
Do I have to book my Free Tour?
Yes, it's necessary to book your Free Tour in order to receive the full meeting point details via email on time. This helps ensure an enjoyable experience and good coordination between guides and tour guests. Booking is free, quick, and easy!
Can I contact my guide?
Yes, you will be able to message your guide with any questions that you might have after making a reservation, up until the start of the tour.
Can I make a booking for a larger group?
Maybe! In order to keep the group sizes manageable, each guide sets their own limit of guests per booking and departure. Choose the Free Tour you want to book, select the number of people in your group, and see if there are any departures available that suit your needs.
Are Free Tours really Free?
Yes, with Free Tours, there's no set price; instead, the guides rely on the tips of participants to sustain their livelihoods. By contributing a fair amount that reflects the value you receive from the tour, you not only support the guides but also express your appreciation for their expertise and dedication.
[{"title":"EL-DE Haus (Gestapo headquarters)","wiki_title":"EL-DE Haus","description":null,"wiki_description":"EL-DE Haus, officially the NS Documentation Center of the City of Cologne, located in Cologne, is the former headquarters of the Gestapo and now a museum documenting the Third Reich.","day_image":"87e32779-e3d3-4165-f1a7-5b018d827e00","address":"","latitude":50.94083333,"longitude":6.95027778,"wiki_latitude":50.94083333,"wiki_longitude":6.95027778,"place_id":"10476c1ce62cf0217a52c076d926b027","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]},{"title":"Fragrance Museum in Farina House","wiki_title":"Fragrance Museum","description":null,"wiki_description":"The Farina Fragrance Museum is situated across from Cologne City Hall, and near the famous Wallraf-Richartz-Museum in the Obenmarspforten in Innenstadt, Cologne. Founded in 1709, John Maria Farina opposite the J\u00fclichs Place is the eldest fragrance factory still standing and houses the registered office since 1723.","day_image":"b9f09314-2eda-4c23-81f2-a49e72c83900","address":"","latitude":50.938,"longitude":6.958,"wiki_latitude":50.938,"wiki_longitude":6.958,"place_id":"1e0bccd3dd03bcbd86e0d7945fb42617","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]},{"title":"Philharmonie","wiki_title":"K\u00f6lner Philharmonie","description":null,"wiki_description":"The K\u00f6lner Philharmonie is a symphonic concert hall located in Cologne, Germany. It is part of the building assemble of the Museum Ludwig and was opened in 1986. The K\u00f6lner Philharmonie is located close to the Cologne Cathedral and the Cologne Main Station. The ensemble was designed by the architects Busmann + Haberer in the 1980s.","day_image":"b6e936c5-1d39-422a-65b0-de1a91763300","address":"","latitude":50.9406,"longitude":6.9608,"wiki_latitude":50.9406,"wiki_longitude":6.9608,"place_id":"2073c3a9a9e00c46a08add683824d37a","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]},{"title":"Great St. Martin Church","wiki_title":"Great St. Martin Church, Cologne","description":"The Great Saint Martin Church is a Romanesque Catholic church in Cologne, Germany. Its foundations rest on remnants of a Roman chapel, built on what was then an island in the Rhine. The church was later transformed into a Benedictine monastery. The current buildings, including a soaring crossing tower that is a landmark of Cologne's Old Town, were erected between 1150-1250. The architecture of its eastern end forms a triconch or trefoil plan, consisting of three apses around the crossing, similar to that at St. Maria im Kapitol. The church was badly damaged in World War II; restoration work was completed in 1985.","wiki_description":"The Great Saint Martin Church is a Romanesque Catholic church in Cologne, Germany. Its foundations rest on remnants of a Roman chapel, built on what was then an island in the Rhine. The church was later transformed into a Benedictine monastery. The current buildings, including a soaring crossing tower that is a landmark of Cologne's Old Town, were erected between 1150-1250. The architecture of its eastern end forms a triconch or trefoil plan, consisting of three apses around the crossing, similar to that at St. Maria im Kapitol. The church was badly damaged in World War II; restoration work was completed in 1985.","day_image":"5dcab188-6617-4e8e-b270-61acb7778900","address":"50667 K\u00f6ln","latitude":50.9386,"longitude":6.9618,"wiki_latitude":50.9386,"wiki_longitude":6.9618,"place_id":"2fb39e0f517ee83391a2de7762d07dea","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]},{"title":"Kolumba Museum","wiki_title":"Kolumba","description":"The Kolumba is an art museum in Cologne, Germany. It is located on the site of the former St. Kolumba church, and run by the Archdiocese of Cologne. It is one of the oldest museums in the city, alongside the Wallraf-Richartz Museum.","wiki_description":"The Kolumba is an art museum in Cologne, Germany. It is located on the site of the former St. Kolumba church, and run by the Archdiocese of Cologne. It is one of the oldest museums in the city, alongside the Wallraf-Richartz Museum.","day_image":"2ba6f952-6757-4dbd-469a-952484c1ad00","address":"Kolumbastr. 4, 50667 K\u00f6ln","latitude":50.93841667,"longitude":6.95427778,"wiki_latitude":50.93841667,"wiki_longitude":6.95427778,"place_id":"428f19c8292a4a3ed5a1c3bf59baca27","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]},{"title":"Old Market Square","wiki_title":"Marketplace","description":null,"wiki_description":"A marketplace or market place is a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods. In different parts of the world, a marketplace may be described as a souk, bazaar, a fixed mercado (Spanish), or itinerant tianguis (Mexico), or palengke (Philippines). Some markets operate daily and are said to be permanent markets while others are held once a week or on less frequent specified days such as festival days and are said to be periodic markets. The form that a market adopts depends on its locality's population, culture, ambient and geographic conditions. The term market covers many types of trading, as market squares, market halls and food halls, and their different varieties. Thus marketplaces can be both outdoors and indoors, and in the modern world, online marketplaces.","day_image":"1f282ca5-360d-4f5b-352a-7f487d1f3000","address":"","latitude":50.93909015,"longitude":6.96021508,"wiki_latitude":52.95333333,"wiki_longitude":-1.15027778,"place_id":"46796ba0cdc964732e36f2314c0d015a","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]},{"title":"Rhine Garden","wiki_title":"Private housing estates in Hong Kong","description":"Private housing estate is a term used in Hong Kong for private mass housing \u2013 a housing estate developed by a private developer, as opposed to a public housing estate built by the Hong Kong Housing Authority or the Hong Kong Housing Society. It usually is characterised with a cluster of high-rise buildings, with its own market or shopping mall. Mei Foo Sun Chuen, built by Mobil, is the earliest (1965) and largest by number of blocks (99).","wiki_description":"Private housing estate is a term used in Hong Kong for private mass housing \u2013 a housing estate developed by a private developer, as opposed to a public housing estate built by the Hong Kong Housing Authority or the Hong Kong Housing Society. It usually is characterised with a cluster of high-rise buildings, with its own market or shopping mall. Mei Foo Sun Chuen, built by Mobil, is the earliest (1965) and largest by number of blocks (99).","day_image":"774cbf2f-64b1-472b-2c5e-76dab0051e00","address":"","latitude":null,"longitude":null,"wiki_latitude":null,"wiki_longitude":null,"place_id":"5d4bf555ffd0c7feaff521041c4a67a6","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]},{"title":"Wallraf-Richartz Museum","wiki_title":"Wallraf\u2013Richartz Museum","description":null,"wiki_description":"The Wallraf\u2013Richartz Museum is an art museum in Cologne, Germany, with a collection of fine art from the medieval period to the early twentieth century. It is one of the three major museums in Cologne.","day_image":"a3c25869-c5f6-42f4-1f63-18238455e500","address":"","latitude":50.9375,"longitude":6.95861111,"wiki_latitude":50.9375,"wiki_longitude":6.95861111,"place_id":"6dd4a6cab0137f616f72cefad798562e","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]},{"title":"Fish Market Square","wiki_title":"","description":null,"wiki_description":"","day_image":"2de1fa6c-39c7-4ea5-5b2e-f3312351b300","address":"","latitude":null,"longitude":null,"wiki_latitude":null,"wiki_longitude":null,"place_id":"83497918cd10413027fd50e837d97ff7","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]},{"title":"Romerbrunnen","wiki_title":"","description":null,"wiki_description":"","day_image":"117b2f63-02ef-44b5-3117-327629676900","address":"","latitude":null,"longitude":null,"wiki_latitude":null,"wiki_longitude":null,"place_id":"b892e20d38df356597067e1ef1d4f3db","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]},{"title":"Kolnisches Stadtmuseum","wiki_title":"K\u00f6lnisches Stadtmuseum","description":null,"wiki_description":"The K\u00f6lnische Stadtmuseum is the municipal history museum of Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is housed in the building of the historic Zeughaus with the adjacent Prussian Alte Wache Zeughaus.","day_image":"8d5a6d5c-3ff0-40ba-f348-9f6abf101100","address":"","latitude":50.94127778,"longitude":6.95016667,"wiki_latitude":50.94127778,"wiki_longitude":6.95016667,"place_id":"ded7e5a43d514b2bdca6788fae34676a","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]},{"title":"Heinzelmannchenbrunnen","wiki_title":"Heinzelm\u00e4nnchen","description":null,"wiki_description":"The Heinzelm\u00e4nnchen are a mythical race of creatures, appearing in a tale connected with the city of Cologne in Germany akin to gnomes, or elves.","day_image":"cdae61c2-762f-4be7-7deb-4d66e13b0900","address":"","latitude":null,"longitude":null,"wiki_latitude":null,"wiki_longitude":null,"place_id":"e497651d9d540d83820ca155941d0e91","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]},{"title":"Cathedral","wiki_title":"Cologne Cathedral","description":"A cathedral is a church that contains the cathedra of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of \"cathedral\" are usually specific to those Christian denominations with an episcopal hierarchy, such as the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, and some Lutheran churches. Church buildings embodying the functions of a cathedral first appeared in Italy, Gaul, Spain, and North Africa in the 4th century, but cathedrals did not become universal within the Western Catholic Church until the 12th century, by which time they had developed architectural forms, institutional structures, and legal identities distinct from parish churches, monastic churches, and episcopal residences. The cathedral is more important in the hierarchy than the church because it is from the cathedral that the bishop governs the area under his or her administrative authority.","wiki_description":"Cologne Cathedral is a cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia belonging to the Catholic Church. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and of the administration of the Archdiocese of Cologne. It is a renowned monument of German Catholicism and Gothic architecture and was declared a World Heritage Site in 1996. It is Germany's most visited landmark, attracting an average of 20,000 people a day. At 157\u00a0m (515\u00a0ft), the cathedral is the tallest twin-spired church in the world, the second tallest church in Europe after Ulm Minster, and the third tallest church of any kind in the world.","day_image":"1606c24b-3772-4039-5860-16a2341cab00","address":"","latitude":50.94138889,"longitude":6.95833333,"wiki_latitude":50.94138889,"wiki_longitude":6.95833333,"place_id":"5d7f6746c1ffe37f1bf5984c0623fd1f","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]},{"title":"City Hall","wiki_title":"Cologne City Hall","description":"In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre, guildhall, or municipal building is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city or town council, its associated departments, and their employees. It also usually functions as the base of the mayor of a city, town, borough, county or shire, and of the executive arm of the municipality.","wiki_description":"The City Hall is a historical building in Cologne, western Germany. It is located off Hohe Stra\u00dfe in the district of Innenstadt, and set between the two squares of Rathausplatz and Alter Markt. It houses part of the city government, including the city council and offices of the Lord Mayor. It is Germany's oldest city hall with a documented history spanning some 900 years. The history of its council during the 11th century is a prominent example for self-gained municipal autonomy of Medieval cities.","day_image":"f3c33b3d-9b14-4f25-babc-45fa16c0d900","address":"","latitude":50.93798333,"longitude":6.95930556,"wiki_latitude":50.93798333,"wiki_longitude":6.95930556,"place_id":"8a41f41e3ca15998c35ce1d557916b02","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]},{"title":"Willi Ostermann Brunnen Fountain","wiki_title":"","description":null,"wiki_description":"","day_image":"e1645568-ad46-4eeb-7d25-23c8d8532c00","address":"","latitude":null,"longitude":null,"wiki_latitude":null,"wiki_longitude":null,"place_id":"fc4bfb5b66e96b912f297decbd892c4a","order":0,"tour_ids":"36866","order_tours":{"36866":0},"colors":["#646464"],"posts_title":[{"title":"Essential Free Tour Cologne","id":36866}]}]
Latest reviews
Essential Free Tour Cologne
23/09/23
That was a great opportunity to get to know the city and learn some fun facts about it. I'll recommend that tour to my friends and I'm looking forward to take part in another one somewhere else.
Ewa
Essential Free Tour Cologne
21/07/23
The tour guide was nice , could tell more of history from Cologne, people, engagement, politics 🤗
Elisabeth
Essential Free Tour Cologne
23/11/23
Joan
Essential Free Tour Cologne
14/11/23
Alejandro
Essential Free Tour Cologne
21/10/23
Manuel
Essential Free Tour Cologne
27/09/23
Excelente muy buen relato y animado
Marcelo
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Highlights of your trip!
Best Free Tours in Cologne
Many travelers fly into Cologne for business, only to be surprised upon arrival to discover that this dynamic financial capital is also a tourist gem. With Free Walking Tours in Cologne, you will discover that this ancient Roman settlement with 2,000 years of history played an important trading role during the Middle Ages and, today, is an art world capital. Have you just arrived here? Book the Essential Cologne City Tour! You will enjoy a perfect introduction to the most important monuments of the city and discover secret places you will never find on your own (even with Google Maps!). You will walk with a local guide and have fun with a small group of fellow travelers. But, if you want to get to know the most youthful and irreverent side of the city, don’t hesitate to join the Free Alternative Cologne Tour. It will be a totally different sightseeing tour than any you have participated in before!
Highlights of a Free Tour in Cologne
Cologne is Germany’s oldest city, and it has been an important financial center for centuries. Not surprisingly, its Old Town boasts some spectacular architectural and artistic gems. With Free Tours in Cologne you will discover, among many other landmarks, the magnificent Cologne Cathedral. This is the most important of the 12 historic churches that are still preserved in the city. More importantly, inside you can find the reliquary where the remains of the Biblical Three Wise Men are kept. Nearby are the interesting Colonia Central Station, the Town Hall and the Fish Market Square. Strolling along the peaceful Rhine River, you will find the best-known among the modern landmarks of Cologne, the wonderful Hohenzollern Bridge. Additionally, Cologne’s National Socialism Documentation Center is a must-visit landmark. Here it’s possible to learn about Nazism in Cologne and the Allied bombing that almost destroyed the city during World War II.
Things to Do in Cologne
Both ancient and avant-garde, Cologne is one of the most attractive and dynamic cities in all of Europe. In particular, Cologne has been a magnet for artists and art lovers for centuries. The Ludwig Museum is perfect for those interested in modern art who want to see little-known Picasso paintings; the Romano-Germanic Museum exhibits a perfectly preserved 3rd-century Roman villa; and the fun Imhoff Chocolate Museum tells the (delicious) history of the chocolate industry in this city. In addition, Cologne Free Walking Tours will introduce you to an attraction well worth a visit: the Casa Farina. This is the place where, more than 300 years ago, an Italian merchant founded what is now considered the oldest perfume factory in the world. If you feel like walking, you can go to the Rheinboulevard, a pleasant promenade that runs along the Rhine River. Of course, Cologne is a modern and multicultural city with a lively nightlife, as well as excellent restaurants.
