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Gelsenkirchen is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia. Gelsenkirchen, like neighbouring cities, is refining its image promoting its industrial culture. Old refineries have been remodelled into event halls and ice skating rinks. Beautiful bike paths now lie where old rail lines ran. Art from old machines are a source of artistic expression.

Understand[edit]

Former Zeche Nordstern

Gelsenkirchen is a city of 260,000 people (2019) in the heart of the Ruhr region in Germany. Located in the western part of the country, Gelsenkirchen is located near major cities such as Dusseldorf and Cologne. Through coal mining, the Ruhr Region became former industrial capital of Germany and formed heavily populated cities. During World War II, the area was severely bombed due to its rich industrial value. After World War II though coal mining was severely curtailed and large unemployment hit the region.

Get in[edit]

The Ruhr area, especially Gelsenkirchen, offers a wonderful public transportation system. Whether using the train, bus, streetcar/ trolley, or car, it is easy to plan your transportation to and from all your activities in and around Gelsenkirchen.

By plane[edit]

Nearest airports are located within 100 km from the city.

Train stations with connections to Gelsenkirchen are available at both airports.

By train[edit]

The city can be easily reached using the German train network InterCity-Express (ICE)and InterCity (IC) trains offer high speed connections between cities throughout Germany and popular European destinations. These trains travel up to 300 km/h and offer optimal comfort for long distance travel.

  • 1 Gelsenkirchen Central station (Gelsenkirchen Hauptbahnhof). Gelsenkirchen Central Station (Q462284) on Wikidata Gelsenkirchen Hauptbahnhof on Wikipedia

Intercity transportation[edit]

The Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr[dead link] Website offers a wonderful online planner in multiple languages for using the train and/ or bus in the Rein-Ruhr area. The central Bus Stations are located at the Gelsenkirchen Main Train Station and in the center of Gelsenkirchen Buer. Tis website does not provide prices for your specific route-plan.

The official bus and tram/treetcar transportation provider in Gelsenkirchen and the surrounding area is BOGESTRA.

By car[edit]

Gelsenkirchen can be reached using the highway (Autobahn) A42, A2, A40, as well as the Bundesstraße B224/A52.

Get around[edit]

Map
Map of Gelsenkirchen

Public transport[edit]

From the central station, Gelsenkirchen Hauptbahnhof, 3 trams and multiple bus routes leave. For tourists, the 3 trams are the most important:

  • Tram 302, starting in Bochum it arrives at Gelsenkirchen Hauptbahnhof, crosses the city centre underground and then crosses the city on the major north-south thoroughfare Kurt-Schuhmacher-Straße in a straight line, stopping at VELTINS-Arena at the 2 Veltins-Arena Stop and ending in Gelsenkirchen-Buer. On football match days and during events at the stadium this line will be served by everything the local transit company BOGESTRA can throw at it, but will still likely be completely overwhelmed. If you're headed for the Arena, be patient and listen to the guides, all others avoid immediately before and after.
  • Tram 301, starts and ends at Hauptbahnhof, diverges to the north-east after the city centre and passes by ZOOM zoo, before eventually meeting 302 in Buer and ending in the west near the border with Essen. There it'll connect to Tram U17 to Essen.
  • Tram 107, starts and ends at Hauptbahnhof, diverges to the west and runs to Essen city, passing the Trabrennbahn horse race track before leaving the city and passing Zollverein Mining Museum in Essen.

Tickets, information updates and schedules are available via BOGESTRA.

Other important stations are 3 Gelsenkirchen Zoo Station on regional train RB43 Dortmund - Herne - Wanne-Eickel - Dorsten, for access to Gelsenkirchen Zoo and 4 Gelsenkirchen Buer-Nord Gelsenkirchen-Buer Nord station on Wikipedia, on S-Bahn local train S9 Hagen - Wuppertal - Essen - Gelsenkirchen-Buer-Nord - Recklinghausen / Haltern am See, located north of Buer district. Also underground tram stations 5 Heinrich-König-Platz and 6 Musikitheater in the city centre of Gelsenkirchen.

See[edit]

Contrasts in the inner-city
  • 1 Berge Castle (Schloss Berge). Adenauerallee 103, Bus 302 (stop: "Berger See"). Built in 1264, and underwent major expansion between 1785 and 1788. There is a traditional summer festival at the end of July every year. Concerts and other events are hosted regularly in this historically preserved location. Schloss Berge (Q880112) on Wikidata
  • 2 Zoom Erlebniswelt. Openings times: Mar Oct 09:00-18:00, Apr-Sep 09:00-13:30, Nov-Feb 10:00-17:00. Gelsenkirchen's interactive zoo. Zoom offers a special zoo experience for children, families, and adults of all ages! The zoo is split into three sections or "worlds": Africa, Asia, and Alaska and offers a more natural atmosphere of the animal habitats. Day ticket: adult €17.50, child aged 4 to 12 €11.50.. ZOOM Erlebniswelt (Q136330) on Wikidata ZOOM Erlebniswelt Gelsenkirchen on Wikipedia
  • City Parks. Gelsenkirchen offers wonderful city parks with beautiful playgrounds, gardens, and ponds. The "Revierpark" and "Stadtgarten" are popular centrally located parks within the city.

Do[edit]

  • 1 Nordsternpark. A former industrial park offering many attractions including a bike/walking trails along a canal, an open air theater (which plays featured films in the summer time), rock climbing, a children's play land, and a colliery. Nordsternpark (Q1998706) on Wikidata Nordsternpark on Wikipedia
  • Football: 2 Schalke 04. They were relegated in 2023 so they now play soccer in 2. Bundesliga, Germany's second tier. Their home ground is Veltins Arena, capacity 62,000, which in 2024 hosts matches in the UEFA Euro Finals. It's 3 km north of the centre, or 2 km northeast of Gelsenkirchen Zoo railway station. Veltins-Arena (Q150961) on Wikidata Arena AufSchalke on Wikipedia
  • Veltins Arena also hosts other events, such as rock concerts, operas and motorbike racing. Tours of the arena are available.

Buy[edit]

There are 2 major shopping areas:

  • Bahnhofstraße (in Gelsenkirchen city centre).
  • Hochstraße (in Gelsenkirchen-Buer).

Eat[edit]

  • Cafe Extra Blatt. An American-style cafe which offers coffee drinks as well as meals. Every morning they offer an all-you-can-eat buffet of eggs, bacon, fresh bread, and other delicious treats. Also cocktails are only €4 each in the evenings. This is a fun place to enjoy a typical European cafe with a slight American flair.
  • El Sombrero. A Mexican-themed cocktail bar. Drink specials and entertaining servers offer a fun night out with friends.
  • Cafe Arminstraße. A nice coffee shop located in the Arminstraße. Offers everything you need for a snack or a drink.

Drink[edit]

Sleep[edit]

Depending on your budget, Gelsenkirchen offers two hotel options.

  • Inter City Hotel. Inter City Hotels are a chain of inexpensive hotels in convenient central locations in several Germany cities. Gelsenkirchen offers a convenient Inter City Hotel connected to the main train station in the center of the city. Also ask about special (free) transportation passes for convenient travel within and around Gelsenkirchen!
  • Maritim Hotel (located centrally and is a €6 taxi ride from the main train station). Including their signature Champagne Breakfast, Maritim Hotels offer first class hotel accommodations. Also the Gelsenkirchen Chapter of Rotary International meets in the meeting rooms of Martim once a week.

Go next[edit]


This city travel guide to Gelsenkirchen is a usable article. It has information on how to get there and on restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please feel free to improve it by editing the page.