Magnificent castles and parks, famous cities such as Dresden, Leipzig and Meissen, plus beautiful landscapes such as Saxon Switzerland or the Ore Mountains invite you to Saxony. The Trescher travel guide SAXONY introduces you to all regions, sights and attractions in the Free State. Saxony is a state full of art and great history. Dresden with the Semper Opera House, Zwinger and Frauenkirche is one of the most beautiful European cities of culture. Leipzig features the Gewandhaus Orchestra and the world-famous St. Thomas Choir. His grave is also located in St. Thomas's Church, where Johann Sebastian Bach worked. The porcelain city of Meissen with the Albrechtsburg above the Elbe, Bautzen and Görlitz, where master builders created impressive cityscapes from the Renaissance to Art Nouveau, are also exciting destinations. Saxony also means charming landscapes. From Königstein Fortress or the bizarre rock towers of the Bastei in the Saxon Switzerland National Park, you can enjoy wide views over the Elbe Sandstone Mountains. If you don't go on a hiking or cycling tour, you can take the historic paddle steamer to the wildly romantic rock worlds. Or you can trundle in a steam train through the green Zittau Mountains, the Moritzburg pond landscape or the Ore Mountains, which are transformed into a sea of lights at Christmas time. The deep craters left behind by the lignite opencast mine in Upper Lusatia are now filled with water and invite you to swim and do water sports.