Duration of visit for Dresden's museums?
 

Hi folks!

I've decided I'm going to keep Dresden in my itinerary for my 2024 trip to Germany (and then some) for the Christmas Markets.

I'm interested in seeing the following museums:

• Zwinger Palace
  • Old Masters Gallery
  • Cabinet of Mathematical and Physical Instruments
• Royal Palace
  • Historic Green Vault
  • New Green Vault
  • Royal Apartments
  • The Armoury

Can someone please tell me how much time I should allocate for these?

I expect I will likely be at the Royal Palace all day (or at least a good chunk of it) and am keeping the day free for it. It is the museums within the Zwinger complex that I am a bit more unsure of the timings of it.

Glad to hear you're keeping Dresden in your itinerary :-)

Indeed, you will probably spend most of the day in the Royal Palace. It's a good thing two Christmas markets are just around the corner - for a much need break from all the art pieces ;-)

Difficult to say about these two museums in the Zwinger. If you really are into those mathematical and physical instruments you can easily spend two hours there alone. Otherwise I'd say one hour is enough. For the Old Masters, however, calculate 3 hours unless you just want to rush through and see the highlights - that's doable in one and a half hour. Baroque sculptures are integrated in the Old Masters exhibit, and there is also a separate (big) hall with ancient sculptures in the same building which is a *must* see.

I just hope you reserve enough time for the Caspar David Friedrich exhibit in the Albertinum ...

Yes, I couldn’t justify not doing it! It’ll be a short trip but I’d rather go for at least a little.

I’m not particularly fond of art but I do appreciate classical art so I expect I’d have a shorter visit in the Old Masters Gallery, likely similar to how I’ve visited other galleries like the Louvre and focus on the highlights plus a bit of a linger otherwise.