Gänseliesel, Göttingen, Besucherguide & was in der Nähe unternehmen

The Gänseliesel is a bronze fountain figure of a goose girl standing on the market square in front of the Old Town Hall in Göttingen. It is the best-loved symbol of the city and is often called the most kissed girl in the world, because of a long-standing student tradition. Almost every walk through the old town passes it.

The story behind it

The fountain sits on the Markt, the square that has been the centre of Göttingen's civic life since the Middle Ages. The Old Town Hall behind it dates back to the medieval period, and the market fountain has stood in front of it for centuries. The bronze goose girl on top, a young girl with a goose in her arms, was added around 1901 and has been the figure everyone knows ever since.

Her fame comes from the university. By tradition, a student who has just passed a doctoral exam is carried or led to the fountain, climbs up and kisses the girl, often leaving her draped in flowers. That is how a simple fountain figure became a rite of passage in a university town. The custom is so well known that the statue is treated almost as a mascot of the city.

What to look for

• The goose girl herself at the top of the fountain, with the goose she carries, a small and humble figure in the middle of a grand medieval square.
• Flowers or ribbons around the figure, which often mean someone has recently celebrated a doctorate.
• The Old Town Hall right behind the fountain, whose medieval stonework gives the square its historic backdrop.
• The half-timbered and gabled houses around the Markt, which show how much of the old town survives.

Tips for your visit

• Allow 10 to 15 minutes for the fountain and the square itself, or longer if you want to sit at a cafe terrace and watch the crowds.
• Visit in the morning for a quieter square, or in the late afternoon when students and locals gather around the fountain.
• The fountain is outdoors in the open square, so you can see it at any time without paying. Check current opening hours if you also want to go inside the Old Town Hall.
• The lanes of the old town start right at the square, so it is an easy first stop for a longer walk through Göttingen.

Explore it on a quest

The Gänseliesel is the kind of place that makes more sense when you walk on from it. Discover the square and the streets around it on one of Questo's self-guided quests in the city: quests in Göttingen. You walk from stop to stop at your own pace, the app tells you about each place as you arrive, and you solve a puzzle in what is right in front of you. There is no guide to follow and no group to join.