Overland and day tours
Explore the southwest of Germany with me
Baden-Baden
In Baden-Baden we take a city tour through the city center via the market square past the collegiate church to the Friedrichsbad with the Roman bath ruins, further through the old town to the Trinkhalle (here you can get a taste of Baden-Baden’s thermal water on request), Kurhaus and Casino (on request we can take a tour of the casino, but this should be registered and depends on the opening times), to Palais Hamilton and past the theater. to the Palais Hamilton and past the theater. The tour may vary depending on where we find a parking space.
University City of Tübingen
Approximately 30 km south of Stuttgart is the city of 90,000 inhabitants, with the lowest average age (39 years) in Germany. This is immediately apparent to visitors coming from the train station, walking across the Neckar Bridge, with the magnificent view of the medieval Neckar front with the old Burse, the Protestant monastery and the Hölderlin Tower, with the collegiate church and Hohentübingen Palace in the background. Rarely do you see so many young people, theoretically almost every third person you meet is a student, a total of around 27,000 in the 2018 summer semester. A walk through the historic city center across the Neckar Bridge, along Bursagasse past the famous women’s bookshop (not even the letter carrier is allowed in here), to the Protestant Abbey with a view of the inner courtyard, to the “Faulen Eck”, a memorial break there, whether we walk up to the castle (quite steep, but the view rewards the effort), back to the market square with its beautiful town hall and across Kirchgasse to Holzmarkt and a worthwhile view into the collegiate church. Lunch or a small meal in the Wurstküche, Neckarmüllerei or another restaurant.
Lichtenstein Castle, Württemberg’s fairytale castle
Located about 45 minutes south of Stuttgart on the edge of the Swabian Alb, it is the 3rd castle at the same location. The previous castles were destroyed in wars or fell into disrepair because they had lost their importance and were no longer maintained for cost reasons. In the second half of the 19th century, during the Romantic period, Wilhelm Count of Württemberg, a cousin of the King of Württemberg, came up with the idea of rebuilding the former castle on this site after reading a novel by Wilhelm Hauff. He was looking for a ruined castle to build himself a summer residence. The old forester’s lodge that Duke Friedrich II had built here was demolished and the present castle was built according to plans by Carl Alexander Heideloff. A visit to the castle is perfect for lunch at the Rössle restaurant, where the Honau trout farm, fed by the spring water of the Echaz, has a good reputation beyond the region.
Lichtenstein Castle
Restaurant Forellenhof
Heidelberg
As a former Electoral Palatinate residence city with the internationally renowned castle ruins overlooking the Neckar and the old town, Heidelberg also has the oldest university in what is now Germany, the Ruprecht-Karls-Universität, the third university founded in the Holy Roman Empire north of the Alps after Prague and Vienna. It is still regarded as one of the best universities in the world. Heidelberg was one of the few major German cities to survive the Second World War virtually unscathed. A visit to the world-famous Renaissance palace and the picturesque old town is the most important part of this day tour, but you can also opt for an excursion on the Neckar on a White Fleet boat or the Neckar Sun solar-powered ship. Lunch in the old town or, by prior arrangement, in the romantic Wolfsbrunnen complex with its beer garden.
Restaurant Wolfsbrunnen
Hohenzollern Castle
The first castle built on the “Zollerberg” probably dates back to the 11th century and is mentioned in a document by a monk named Berthold from Reichenau Abbey. The Hohenzollern dynasty originated from here around a thousand years ago, but the name of the castle and the dynasty is still not clearly known today. Hohenzollern is the ancestral castle of the princely dynasty and the former reigning kings and emperors of the German Empire. A visit to the inner courtyard of the castle is absolutely worthwhile, you can take a shuttle transfer up, but the last 400m or so have to be walked, it’s a bit steep uphill. But it’s worth it, everyone can enjoy refreshments in the café restaurant or, in summer, in the beer garden. And there is also a very interesting souvenir store.
Hohenzollern Castle
Black Forest
The Black Forest is the largest contiguous low mountain range in southwest Germany and one of the most popular vacation destinations. A distinction is made between the northern, central and southern Black Forest, the highest mountain being the Feldberg at 1495 m above sea level. People often ask which area is the most beautiful, but there is no one answer. All the areas here have their own special charm, their own characteristics and their own beauty. It is impossible to get to know the Black Forest in one day, I can only give you impressions. Due to its proximity to Stuttgart, I take you on a day trip through the northern Black Forest with a visit to the small town of Calw, where I show you the birthplace of the writer Hermann Hesse, the former Benedictine monastery of Hirsau, the starting point of the Cluniac reform movement in Germany and, with the “Hirsau School”, an important building tradition of German Romanesque architecture since the Hirsau reform by Abbot Wilhelm in the second half of the 11th century, where it is also possible to visit the ruins. Lunch in Baden-Baden in conjunction with a walk through the town and, if desired, a visit to the casino or the drinking hall in the spa gardens. Return via the Black Forest High Road via Freudenstadt with the largest arcaded market square in Europe. Another very popular excursion destination is the Vogtsbauernhof open-air museum in Gutach.
Vogtsbauernhof
Burial chapel on the Württemberg
The Counts of Württemberg have resided on this hilltop since the end of the 11th century, presumably after immigrating here from Luxembourg. Konrad von Wirtemberg, who married Luitgard von Beutelsbach in 1070, is mentioned as the first Württemberger. Three rings of walls fortified the castle complex, which was destroyed at the beginning of the 14th century by Esslingen and Rudolf von Habsburg’s imperial troops. This prompted the counts of Württemberg to retreat to the impassable and marshy Nesenbach valley, where they maintained a stud farm, the Stutengarten (=Stuttgart), and developed it into their new residence. They were protected on three sides by hills and only had to defend themselves to the east, which explains the impossible situation of today’s major city and state capital.
Stuttgart Trade Fair
The optimal location, opposite Stuttgart Airport, offers a total exhibition area of approx. 120,000 m², including a high-rise hall with 20,000 m² and 8 standard halls with 10,000 m² each. The congress center, which, like the entrance area, is located directly at the exhibition site, has a variable area of 10,000 m², the conference rooms can be divided up according to the needs of the visitors and events with rooms for 25-400 people. The large congress hall offers space for over 2,000 visitors, while the congress hall for up to 5,000 visitors is directly connected to the congress center.
