In addition to its historic charm, Rostock also has a thriving university: it dates back to 1419, making it the oldest university in Northern Europe.

For over 700 years the Gothic building has been the seat of the Rostock city administration

The Fountain of Joy shows 16 sculptures of people and animals in a circular floor of 20 meters. Two couples are clearly exercising and in the middle of the fountain a family of four can see a kind of pyramid. The life-size people are naked and close together, which led to criticism of the new fountain.

The Kröpeliner Straße pedestrian zone with its colorful shops and cafés is a popular and attractive stroll and shopping mile in the middle of Rostock.

In the GDR, the building was used as a clubhouse by the People's Navy. Today it houses the Rostock Higher Regional Court.

The fortifications built to protect the city had a length of 3 kilometers and over twenty city gates in the 13th century.

The Neuer Markt is located in the center of the Hanseatic city of Rostock, surrounded by Hanseatic gabled houses with restaurants, cafés and shops.

The Steintor was built in the second half of the 16th century. This city gate was originally part of the wall that surrounded the city.

The six-story gate with a height of 54 meters is now a city history meeting center and shows an exhibition on Rostock's city fortifications.

The golden griffin on a blue background served as a symbol of power for the princes of Rostock.

The Kuhtor is not only the oldest of the four existing 22 gates of the historic Rostock city fortifications, but also one of the oldest buildings in Rostock and probably the oldest preserved city gate in Northern Germany.

The wooden pedal crane from the 18th century and the bridge crane from the 1950s are witnesses to the handling technology of days gone by.

Red-brick and pastel-coloured buildings on this large market square hark back to the 14th- and 15th-century Hanseatic era.