While visiting Cologne there are a couple of great cities you can day trip too. We decided on a day in Bonn! It’s nice and close, has some great history and a cute Christmas market too. If you’re also wanting to day trip to Bonn from Cologne, we’ve written this handy little guide so you can make the best of your trip too.

There are a couple of ways to get from Cologne to Bonn, some quicker than others. The easiest and quickest way is to get a regional train from Köln Süd station. From there you can get the RE5, RB48 or RB26 trains to Bonn Hauptbahnhof which take around 15-20 minutes. However, for this train, you’ll need to get it from Köln Süd so if you’re not staying in the south of the city, there might be easier options for you. If you’re closer to Cologne central station, the intercity trains ICE229 and ICE652 get to Bonn Hauptbahnhof in 20 minutes.

If for some reason the trains aren’t running, there are tram options too. The number 16 tram runs from Cologne central station direct to Bonn Hauptbahnhof, but it does take 59 minutes. There’s also the number 18 tram which goes from Köln Eifelwall/Stadtarchiv station, just a 4 minute walk from Köln Süd.

For all train and tram options, you can get the same KVB ticket from any of the machines at stations. The cheapest option is to get the 24 hour ticket for category 4 which includes Bonn and is €19. This means you can also use this ticket for travel in Cologne before and after your day trip (as long as it’s within the 24 hour period). You can find more information on public transport in Cologne here if you need!

One of the most famous things about Bonn is that it is the birthplace of Beethoven. He was born in 1770 in what is now the Beethoven House Museum on Bonngasse. It is open from Wednesday to Monday 10am to 6pm and costs €14 to visit. However if you go after 5pm you can get a reduced entry fare of only €7. There is also a Beethoven memorial in Münsterplatz that was unveiled in 1845 that you can visit anytime.

As a bonus, if you’re travelling to Bonn in September, you might be around for Beethovenfest! This is a month long festival that runs from the 3rd of September to the 3rd of October in 2026 (the date will vary every year though). This festival has around 80 concerts with international orchestras, exhibits, talks and workshops. If you’re a Beethoven fan, this really is the city for you!

When you’re walking around the main town, there are a couple of great landmarks to keep an eye out for. First is Altes Rathaus or the old town hall, which was originally built in 1737, then rebuilt after WW2. It is a gorgeous building with a double staircase out the front and right outside is a square with a regular food market. A short walk away is Münsterplatz, another square where you will find Bonn Minster. Built between the 11th and 13th centuries, it is one of the oldest churches in Germany. In this square you’ll also find Altes Postamt Bonn, a former palace then turned post office, which is now a private building.

Another impressive building worth seeing is Kurfürstliches Schloss which is the electoral palace. It is the former home to the Prince-elector and Archbishop of Mainz and started construction in 1627. Today it has many uses, one of them being the main building for the University of Bonn. Right in front is Hofgarten Bonn, a nice park to relax in and get a great view of the palace.

Another thing that Bonn is the home of is the confectionary company Haribo! The company was created by Hans Riegel Sr in the town of Bonn, hence the name Haribo: HAns RIegel BOnn. In 1922 they created the first gummy bears, and have since become one of the world most popular gummy candy brands. The current headquarters are in Grafschaft, a 30 minute drive or 1.5 hour public transport journey out of Bonn. Here you can visit the Haribo warehouse which is open 10am-6pm every weekday and until 2pm on Saturday.

If you can’t travel to the current headquarters, there is a factory outlet only a 15 minute tram ride out of Bonn. Or even easier, there is a decent sized store in Bonn city. It is open 10am-8pm every day except Sunday and has really reasonable prices. It has a huge array of lollies in both bags, tubs and pick and mix and there were so many things we’d never seen before. If you’re a fan of Haribo, we really do recommend visiting this store to get some fun treats!

There’s some great castles nearby that you could visit on your day in Bonn:

• Burg Godesburg: This is a little castle built in the early 13th century on a once volcanic hill. You can enter the castle for free but there’s a small entrance fee to climb the tower. There is also a fancy restaurant in the castle with the same name. It’s a short 5 minute train ride from Bonn to the area of Bad Godesberg then a 20 minute walk to the castle.
• Burg Lede: This is a beautiful gothic castle with a moat dating back to the 13th century that used to be a residential tower. It is a 20 minute bus ride from Bonn but is a private building so isn’t always open for visits. We recommend calling ahead if you want to go inside during your visit.
• Schloss Drachenburg: Set on a hill above the Rhine River, this amazing castle was built in the late 19th century. You can get there via a 25 minute tram ride from Bonn and it is then a 45 minute hike up to the castle. However if you are visiting anytime other than mid November to the end of December, there is also a train. It heads up the hill every 30 minutes and costs €14 for a return ticket. Once at the castle it costs €10 to enter and for most of the year is open from 11am to 6pm every day.

If your day in Bonn is around Christmas, you might be around for the Bonn Christmas markets! In 2025 they ran from Friday the 21st of November to Tuesday the 23rd of December and it is similar every year. The main market is in Münsterplatz which has a mix of food, drink, souvenirs and even a mini ferris wheel. Some of the food stalls at this market have indoor places to sit and enjoy your food and drink too. They all use plates and glasses that you have to pay a small deposit for which you then get back in cash when you return them.

Right around the corner there’s another great market in Bottlerplatz where you’ll also find the Star Gate, that has remains of Bonn’s old city wall. Both markets easily blend into one another and walking around them is a lovely way to spend an hour or two.

While at the Christmas market in Münsterplatz we found a little hut where you could sit inside so decided to get lunch there. We got a traditional currywurst and chips, and I got a fresh bread roll too. All together it was 18.50€ including the 2€ each for the plates, which we got back in cash after we returned them. The chips and sausage were fresh and the sauce was delicious so we recommend it for lunch!

For a sweet treat in the same market, we found a hut from a company called Schneeballenträume. They sold Schneeballs (Snowballs) which are fried balls of shortcrust pastry. Traditionally they just have icing sugar on them but you can get them covered in chocolate, nuts and with fillings inside. The price differs depending on the flavour but they’re usually a couple of Euros each. We highly recommend getting a couple of different ones because we absolutely loved them!

As you can see, a day in Bonn is more than enough to enjoy this beautiful little city. Getting there from Cologne is quick and easy with many train and tram options. Once there, you can explore Beethoven’s past and walk around the old town, keeping an eye out for some wonderful landmarks. Of course if you’re a Haribo fan, this is the place to be with a great store right in the centre of town. There’s also some wonderful castles nearby and a cute Christmas market that’s put on each year. We hope you have a great time, whatever you get up to here, and enjoy this wonderful German city.

To see everything we got up to on our Christmassy visit to Bonn, you can watch our vlog from our trip to Germany:

• Make the Most of Christmas in Luxembourg City
• How to See Hamburg on a Budget
• How to See Lübeck in a Day Trip from Hamburg