the EKO haus is the Japanese house of Culture and Buddhist Understanding. In it, the Japanese…read moreliving in the area are able to practice and cultivate their customs and culture. But also locals can have an opportunity to learn about Japanese culture and actively participate in it. Among the events of the centre there are: Buddhist festivals, tea ceremonies, garden parties with musical or theatrical performances, music events, reading circles for Buddhist texts, exhibitions, courses in traditional Japanese arts, lectures , film presentations, etc. Anyhow, they have this beautiful Japanese garden in the Temple grounds, a peaceful oasis and a must visit in Düsseldorf, makes you think you're in Japan. To get there you can take the U-bahn to Heerdter Sandberg and walk for about 10 minutes. Otherwise you can take a bus to Niederkasseler Kirchweg and walk for 3 minutes (I saw the City tour hop-on hop-off bus also stops here).

A beautiful and serene patch of Japan in Oberkassel - perfectly manicured lawn, landscaped and well…read moreproportioned garden with water features and a temple in the background (which you have to pay to get in but can enjoy from outside). A very peaceful place most of the time, great for a bit of stillness and meditation

Well, one thing that I can say about a garden walk is that they are not suited to a rainy day,…read morewhich unfortunately was the case when I was in Dusseldorf (It sounds as if I brought Melbourne weather with me, or it could be just that their summer is out winter, though it certainly isn't that cold). Okay, I didn't get to see all of the gardens, but then again this place is basically a park, well sort of - there doesn't seem to be any open spaces for picnics, but then again that probably isn't a German thing and I probably can't compare parks in Australia to those in Germany even though the park was establishd a while back in my mind it is a park, probably not hugely touristy, but nice enough for an afternoon stroll. Oh, it also has a pretty large lake with birds in it so alles gute.

Wondered why it was hard to find much about the Wildpark on…read morethe internet or tourist guides to the areaturns out there is very little to see here. I'd managed to see a couple of animals (some Rotwild and Wildschweinen) but was thinking about having a beer somewhere not particularly enjoying myself when my path was blocked by a couple of large vehicles and a bunch of guys stood around with chainsaws looking (and I suppose in a way sounding) like a group of really bad guitaristsgiving some wood hell. The cacophonous output from this barrier was the final straw and I got out of there.

I was really disappointed with this place - I thought it was a zoo, but as it turns out it isn't,…read moreit is a park that happened to have once been the zoo but the zoo has long since been removed. Mind you, it isn't the parks fault that I was misled, namely because I didn't do any research to actually find out what was actually here, but simply accepted the name blindly, and proceeded to tell my brother that we were going to visit the zoo. As a park it is nice, and it does have some animals running around - not just dogs, but also birds, and a rather large lake. However, don't be fooled by the name like I was - it's just a park to relax in (when it isn't raining).

Nice and Big park in the middle of the Zoo neighbourhood. I really enjoy walking my dog with my…read morechild in the stroller. It has a big lake full of ducks, swans and other birds. You can play basketball, ping pong, freesbe or just lay down on the grass.

Another one of Dusseldorf's gorgeous and giant parks, this time to the south (around the University…read morecampus). Art installations are peppered around this giant park, which at points makes you feel like you were in true countryside until you come across the scary bridge over the motorway. See the Rheinturm from its highest hill

We booked an English tour there on a Sunday at 11am. The palace itself is absolutely gorgeous with…read moreso many beautiful intricate details. Definitely worth a visit for sure!! The gardens are pretty big and relaxing to walk around in. There's a section with a bunch of tulips that we missed on our first pass.

If you don't speak German, don't bother with the guided tour. 87 minutes for 3 sentences not in…read moreGerman: "this is the bed where the electress slept.", "This door is fake", "Thomas Jefferson came here once". We asked, in German, if he spoke English, and made it clear 2 of the 3 of us didn't speak any German. To which he said yes, he did speak English... and then continued to exclusively speak in German for the entire tour; making NO effort to give us any information. When I translated 2 questions to ask him, questions about the sculpture/artwork around us; the answer both times was "I don't know". Save your euro and buy 2 beers/person instead.