Prager Straße (Prague Street), Dresden

Prague Street is one of Dresden’s best-known shopping streets and a fascinating example of how the city has repeatedly reinvented itself. It was built between 1851 and 1853 as a connecting street between the city centre and a newly constructed railway station. It soon became a popular shopping and entertainment district.

The street was almost completely destroyed during the Second World War. Rather than reconstructing the pre-war buildings, planners created a wide, modern pedestrian boulevard, largely built from the 1960s onwards. Residential apartment buildings, hotels and shops were arranged around open spaces featuring gardens, fountains and sculptures.

Prague Street offers an interesting contrast with Dresden’s reconstructed Baroque Old Town. Among its distinctive landmarks is the Round Cinema, a futuristic cylindrical cinema building. The UFA Crystal Palace, built in 1998, is another striking example of contemporary architecture, combining dramatic forms of glass and concrete. The Central Gallery is also worth a look for its remarkable aluminium façade, whose honeycomb pattern echoes the design of the original Centrum department store.

Today, Prague Street is a lively shopping boulevard with more than 100 shops, cafés and restaurants, as well as popular department stores. It is an easy place to explore while walking between Dresden Central Station and the Old Town.

The street also reflects Dresden’s more recent history. It became a gathering place during the peaceful demonstrations of 1989, which contributed to the collapse of the East German regime.