Hotels in Paderborn

Paderborn is a compact, firmly Catholic city in East Westphalia with a history far older than its modest size suggests. Charlemagne held court here, and in 799 he met Pope Leo III, a meeting that paved the way for his coronation as emperor. The rebuilt Kaiserpfalz sits beside the cathedral, whose cloister window of three hares sharing three ears is the city's beloved emblem. Just below, more than two hundred springs feed the Pader, often called Germany's shortest river, in a pleasant park right in the centre.

The Heinz Nixdorf MuseumsForum is a serious computer museum, and the summer Libori festival fills the streets for over a week. Be honest: wartime bombing destroyed much of the old town, so a lot of what you see is postwar reconstruction, and outside festival time evenings are quiet in a university-town way. Paderborn Lippstadt Airport is handy but served by few routes. Stay near the cathedral and the Pader springs, where the sights, restaurants and the station walk are all close together.