Heidelberg - Should We Visit ?
 

Heidelberg does not seem to rate much of a mention in recent years.

I have it on our itinerary tentatively for two nights enroute Brussels to the Cinque Terre via Switzerland.

Have there been any visits to Heidelberg by Fodorites in recent years ?

If so, where did you stay, where did you dine and what do you remember most ?

Thank you.

This is a difficult question. I didn't love Heidelberg but that's not to you won't. If it's on the way, stop by for the a couple of hours. It's a lovely little city.

I, too, didn't love it, and I have been wondering whether it's because of the weather--chilly and rainy. However, I still think that it is nice enough for a short stay if it makes your trip more convenient or visit for a few hours. We stayed at the Romantik Hotel, which was nice, too.

This post motivated me to write another post asking how touristy Heidelberg is now.

I suspect the fact that it is overrun with tourists has lessened its charm. The Hauptstrasse is no longer a real German street, but instead is lined with shops that cater to tourists.

The castle is worth seeing, as are the student jail and the view from halfway up the hill on the north side of the river, called The Philosopher's Way. You can take a boat trip on the Neckar River that's pleasant.

I enjoyed going to nearby Hirschhorn and having dinner at the castle there.

The setting is beautiful with the ruins of the palace dominating the city.
I would also suggest a cruise on The Neckar.

I was there in 2010 and thought...ehhh. There were lots of tour groups and it wasn't high season. I did stay two nights, so I didn't see it only from the daytripper perspective. I have nothing specific against it but nothing about it makes me want to go back either. It definitely doesn't make my top 50 favorite places in Germany list.

The castle is quite impressive and worth a tour - loads of history here! You can walk over the beautiful bridge to the other side of the Neckar and climb the Philospher's Way as previously mentioned. The town, well, it used to be full of Americans because of the nearby base...not sure if that situation has changed in the last 5 years. We had an impossible time trying to find a place to eat on a Friday night without a reservation and ended up in an unmemorable restaurant on the Haupstrasse.

I would say it is certainly worth a visit for the castle and views but I wouldn't necessarily want to stay there.

We didn't especially care for Heidelberg either. There are a few worthy sites to visit but the town, overall, isn't high up on my list of memories.

We stayed at the Crowne Plaza because we got a great non refundable rate with breakfast and it is where the shuttle bus from Frankfurt Airport drops off and picks up passengers. It was a nice hotel and if we went to Heidelberg again, though we probably won't, we would stay there again.

If possible, I would go to Bad Wimpfen instead, which is about 1 hr from Heidelberg on the Neckar River. Lovely little town with many medievel walls, towers, ruins, etc., to visit.

http://www.badwimpfen.de/showpage.php?lang=2

Heidelberg is very enjoyable for a day. Yes, the Hauptstrasse is filled with shoppers (Americans pretty much replaced by Japanese these days), but I do not see why that should detract from all that Heidelberg has to offer.

Besides the visiting of the wonderful Castle, there is the lovely Jesuit Church and the Heilig Geist church where one can frequently catch a free organ practice/recital. There is the Witches Tower, the stark memorial to the Jews and the tragic Kristall Nacht progrom where the temple once stood, the lovely stadt museum, University Square, Korn MarktSquare, the beautiful historic bridge (note the historical floods heights noted on the side of the bridge), the University Library, etc. Most tourists never get off the two main arteries that intersect, which is a shame, as the real charm is in the smaller cobblestones alleyways.

Favorite Restaurant: http://www.weisserbock.de/?page_id=174&lang=en

If you are spending two nights, I would consider a half day in either Schwetzingen (very famous baroque gardens), Ladenburg (Former Roman town with famous facherwerk architecture...think of a miniature Rothenburg o/t) or Speyer (Imperial Dom and Technik Museum)

If you happen to hit the right time, 4 times a year they commemorate Heidelburg being burned down by the French with huge fireworks at the castle that make it appear as if the castle/mountain are on fire (best view is across the Neckar river on the Philosopher's Way or on one of tour boats on the river)

I like Bad Wimpfen very much, but it is not exactly on your Route to Switzerland.

If you want to get "further down the road" before you stop, an alternate city would be Freiburg...lovely Munster, wonderful market surrounding the church on the square, shoppers paradise. Parking, however, is much more expensive than elsewhere and tourist buses arrive in droves. We still like it, but prefer to stay outside in the wine town of Pfaffenweiler (very nice wine coop)and several gourmet restaurants.

Happy Travels!

Thank you all for your comments.

It seems like much can be seen from the window of a train carriage as it passes through Heidelberg :-) It sounds like a place to consider more so on a driving tour for a day or so.

This time we are travelling by train so I am thinking that we may need to look at an alternative like Strassbourg.

Also havent been to Stuttgart for at least 25 years and it seems there is good train scenery near to there. Thanks again.

Strassbourg definitely deserves the 2-night stay you were planning.

Thank you Gina_07. I will start my research and post on finding a nice place to stay in Strassbourg. We will probably stop enroute at Namur after Brussels to visit a brewery or two.