How To Spend Half A Day In Bremen You’ll Love

Why should you visit Bremen?

We decided to spend half a day in Bremen on our way from Copenhagen to Amsterdam in the summer. This is a pretty long train ride, and although we love trains, we wanted to break up the multiple hours that we would be spending travelling this distance. The natural stop might have been Hamburg, but we wanted to stay in a smaller town and see something different. Enter Bremen. Bremen is a great little town popular for its Town Musicians of Bremen statue and its old town that has been well looked after.

What you will find here

Here you’ll find the spots we visited that we think are worth exploring while you’re spending half a day in Bremen. Because we were only spending half a day in Bremen, we visited the places that would not take the entire day (so no museums, unfortunately!). If you’re planning to spend half a day in Bremen, this will give you a good idea of places to visit and things to see that won’t take up too much time and are within walking distance of each other.

What Is there to do in Bremen?

Visit Bremen’s Market Square

The market square of Bremen is really the crown jewel of Bremen. Here you will find the beautiful Bremen town hall on one side and The Schütting, or Haus Schütting, a gorgeous piece of architecture covered in an intricate golden facade that is used for the chamber of commerce (so you can only see inside parts of it) on of the other. There is also an aesthetic line of Deutsches Haus that frame the square. You’ll also find the statues Bremen Roland (symbolising a medieval city) and Heralds at Bremen City Hall which features two knights on horseback, just around the corner of the town hall.

View the ICONIC Town Musicians of Bremen

The Town Musicians of Bremen is the most famous site in Bremen and most likely the only one you will have heard of. This Brothers Grimm statue is around the side of the Bremen Hall and was created by Gerhard Marcks. There is plenty of space to marvel at it so don’t worry too much about crowds. When we went there, there was only a person or two coming by to have a look. Having a look at this statue won’t take you too much time and it’s right near the market square so it’s worth putting on your list if you only plan to spend half a day in Bremen.

Walk down Böttcherstraße

Böttcherstraße is a narrow brick street built in the 20th century by Ludwig Roselius. Although not as old as Schnoor, it gives that old town feel and is truly something special to wander this small lane. It will only take you 10 minutes to walk down the street so if you’re going to spend half a day in Bremen this is something you could spend 15-30 minutes doing and it isn’t too much of a detour if you’re heading to Schnoor from the market square (or vice versa).

Wander Schnoor 

Schnoor is Bremen’s Oldest District with homes so old you’ll wonder if you’ve time travelled to the 15th and 16th century. Out of all of the things you can see in Bremen, I think this is the stand out location. This is because it is something truly charming and unique. There are so many small, independent stores here and it doesn’t have that tourist trap feel at all. Many houses here are also residential, so you can see people just going about their life.

Take in the view of The Mill in the Wallanlagen Bremen

Mühle am wall, The Mill in the Wallanlagen, is an old windmill used to make flour. It is now a cafe, and is nestled in a beautiful walking park that makes up the old fortress of Bremen. If you have some time, I highly recommend this as a nature option, but I’ve left it last as it’s a little bit more time consuming and out of the way than the others. However, if you’re walking from the market square to the Bremen Hauptbahnhof then it’s on the way! It is about 10 minutes from Bremen station.

If you just want to take a photo, you can take one on The Herdentor which is the bridge going to the station (that is where I took this photo!).

What are the best vegan eats in Bremen?

The inner part of Bremen, where you’ll be spending your time doesn’t have many vegan cafes or restaurants. You probably don’t want to be spending your precious time hunting one down if you’re on a tight schedule, too. However, Germany is very vegan-friendly and you’ll usually be able to find at least one vegan option at most chain restaurants, cafes, and bakeries. We had breakfast at Müller & Egerer bakery and grabbed snacks for the train from Backwerk, both of which have a range of vegan sandwiches and bakery goods.

When is the best time to visit Bremen?

We visited Bremen in September and it was in the 30s all morning. This is perfect for me but if you’re going to be wandering around outside or lugging around suitcases to the train this might be better for a spring or autumn trip! Although not one of the most popular Christmas markets in Germany, Bremen hosts a Christmas market every year so if you’re going Christmas market hopping and looking for a more obscure option, this might be it!

How do you get to Bremen?

Bremen is only 1.5 hours drive or train ride from Hamburg or Hanover. We took the train from Copenhagen through to Bremen (7 hours), stayed the night in Bremen and then took the train through to Amsterdam (4 hours).

OR you can find all the hotels available on this map: