Language: April - October: German and English
November - March: German
Price: Adults € 6,00; With discount € 4,00; Children 6 and under
free
Advance ticket sales and reservations:
Tourist Information in front of the Main Railway Station
Tel. +49(0)6221-19433, Fax: 1388111 e-mail: info@cvb-heidelberg.de
Evening Tours "Evening walk through
Heidelberg's
Alleys"
Are you visiting this lovely city and have no time to join a tour during the
day and still want to know something about Heidelberg? Join us in an evening
walking tour and discover Heidelberg in the evening light. Official guides will
take you around the present and past of this lovely and unique university city.
Duration: 1,5 hours
Meeting Point:
University
Square (at the "Löwenbrunnen")
Recommended parking lot: P 12 (Kornmarkt)
Time: Tuesday and Thursday: 8.30 p.m. (German)
Other dates, times and languages on request
Approved guides show you Heidelberg's highlights with
explanations in German and English in comfortable buses. Route: Bismarck Square,
Main Railway Station, New University institutions in Neuenheimer
Feld, past Old
Bridge along the Neckar Valley back to Heidelberg, University Square up to
Heidelberg Castle. Reserve your seat by booking in advance at the Tourist
Information Office.
Duration: 2 hours
Meeting Points: University Square
Time: April – October: Thursday and Friday 2.00 p.m.
Saturday 10.30 a.m. and 2.30 p.m.
If a holiday falls on a Thursday or Friday, the tour begins at 10.30 a.m. and
2.30 p.m.
Thursday - Sunday 10.30 a.m. (English)
November – March: Saturday 2.30 p.m.
Language: German/English
Price: Adults € 12,00; With discount € 9,00; Children 6 and under
free
For detailed information and bus ticket reservations go to the Tourist
Information Office Main Station, Willy Brandt-Platz,
Advance ticket sales and reservations:
Tourist Information in front of the Main Railway Station
Tel. +49(0)6221-19433, Fax: 1388111 e-mail: info@cvb-heidelberg.de
Boat Trips
Season opens Easter to October with limited timetable during
off season. All trips are
with explanations in German, English and French.
Heidelberg - Neckarsteinach - Heidelberg
Duration: 3 hours Price: Adults €9.50
Children
€5.50
Heidelberg Round Trip
Duration: 40 minutes Price: Adults €3.50 Children
€2.50
Information from Rhein-Neckar-Fahrgast-Schiffahrt
phone: 0 6221-20 181
fax: 0 6221-20 211
Opening hours: Monday to Saturday 10:00 am to 7:00
pm
The large building complex of the University Library was erected from 1901 to 1905. Previously, a monastery had been located here.
The main sights, the facades pointing to the east and to the south, are abundantly decorated by sculptures, structuring architectural details and plant ornaments extending all the way up to the roof. The two sculptures flanking the main entrance at the "Plöck" were created by Prof. Hermann Volz. They both symbolize the intentions of the University Library: Prometheus (left) gave mankind fire and knowledge. The woman and the child (right) stand for the passing on of wisdom from one generation to the next. The two masks, one laughing and one crying, symbolize comedy and tragedy. An inscription refers to Grand Duke Friedrich of Baden who, being sovereign, also was the university's chancellor and thus sponsor and promoter of the new building. Baden's coat of arms therefore had to be included in the building's architecture. Portraits of the Prince Electors are to be found above the windows.
University
Museum
Old University, Grabengasse 1 Phone: 0 6221
542152
Price: Adults DM 3.00
Opening Hours: Tuesday to Friday 10:00 am to 4:00
pm
Students'
Prison
Old University, Augustinergasse 2 Phone: 0 6221
543534
Price: Adults €2.50 Children €2
Opening Hours: April 1 to October 31 - Monday to Saturday
10:00 am to 4:00
pm
November 1 to March 31 - Tuesday to Friday 10:00 am to 2:00 pm
Closed Sunday, Monday and public holidays.
The Students' Prison is located in the back of the Old University in the "Augustinergasse". From 1778 until 1914, students were imprisoned here for
minor transgressions which were kind of fashionable among otherwise honorable gentlemen inscribed at the Heidelberg University, most of them being members of student
fraternities. Common offenses were disturbance of peace, especially after excessive drinking at night, insulting official authorities or playing jokes at them as well as participating in
dwelling. During these years, the University administration was embodied with an autonomous jurisdiction and had the legal right to detain students. Depending on the seriousness of the offense, imprisonment would last from three days to four weeks. One was allowed, however, to attend lectures. After classes, the juvenile delinquents had to return to jail. Biding their time, many of the young prisoners "decorated" the walls with
graffiti and paintings. Their "artwork" is still preserved and to be seen at the Students' Prison.
Opening Hours: Monday to Friday 10:00 am to 6:00 pm
Saturday and Sunday 10:00 am to 4:00 pm
Approx. 80 to 100 exhibits are on display, including conifers, deciduous trees as well as outdoor and indoor plants from all parts of the world. The museum, a collector of woods, trees and single plants from Japan, China, Taiwan, Thailand, U.S.A. and most parts of Europe, is the only one of its kind in Europe.
Opening Hours: Wednesday to Friday 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm
Saturday and Sunday 11:00 am to 6:00 pm Closed on Monday and
Tuesday
Many packages were designed by prominent artists of their time, they are real "works of art" and meanwhile accepted part of the history of arts and design.
In this premises the museum is presenting packages as reflections of the cultural progress of our society. The manifold functions of packaging are shown as well as its historic development: packaging as the result of a creative and artistic performance.
Different sectors of the exhibition are showing packaging to be affected by permanent change:
artistically and technical innovations have always had an influence on the design of a package.
Complementary changing
exhibitions and special shows are illustrating different aspects of packaging in our century. Promising competitive works of young
designers are represented here as well as typical packaging design of foreign cultures.
Television
Tower
Königstuhl Phone: 0 6221 25041 Fax: 0
6221 164492
Price: Adults DM 2.00 Students and senior citizens DM
1.50 Children DM 1.00
Opening Hours: March to October 10:00 am to 6:00 pm, June to
August to 7:00 pm
Price: Adults DM 7.00 Children DM 3.00 Family
card DM 18.00
Opening Hours: April to September daily 9:00 am to 7:00 pm
October to March 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Free
parking area, bus no. 33
Old Bridge
The four preceding bridges were constructed of wood. They were destroyed by floods, fire and ice. Prince Elector Karl Theodor was the first ruler to
construct a stone bridge which was erected from 1786 to 1788. The medieval bridge gate on the town
side was originally part of the town wall. Baroque tower helmets were added during the erection of the stone bridge in 1788.
There is a plaque referring to the defense of Heidelberg against French troops. On October 16, 1798, a brave Austrian regiment commanded by Prince Schwarzenberg succeeded in repulsing the advancing French Army.
The West Tower contains dungeons, whereas the East Tower holds a spiral staircase. A few steps east of it visitors will find the "Tränktor" (Drinking Gate). During the Middle Ages, cattle were driven through this gate to their drinking places.
The two bays of the bridge carry monuments created by Franz Konrad Linck (1730 - 1793) who, since 1763, was the Prince Elector's official court
sculpture.
The "Philosophenweg"
The "Philosophenweg" gets its name from the fact that Heidelberg's philosophers and university teachers are said to have once walked and talked here. Even today, this world-famous path offers new sights and insights.
Many sub-tropical plants flourish in the "Philosophengärtchen". The temperate climate is perfect for Japanese cherries, cypresses, lemons, bamboos, rhododendrons, gingko and yucca trees, and several other plants from the
Mediterranean, North Africa and Asia.
Joseph Freeherr von Eichendorff (1788-1857) is one of the German poets who fell in love with Heidelberg and dedicated poems to the old town. A commemorative stone refers to the German Romantic who studied here 1807-08.
Holy Ghost Church
A late Roman basilica was first mentioned in 1239. In 1398, it was replaced by a large church building which nave was constructed in the typical style of the late Gothic period. The chancel was completed by 1410, the building of the nave took until 1441. There was also a delay in the construction of the church tower which was started again in 1508.
The chancel contained the tombs of the Prince Electors of the Palatinate. Of the originally 54 epitaphs, the only one to remain was the one of Prince Elector Ruprecht II (1352 - 1410).
During the 30 Year's War, however, the complete collection became the booty of Heidelberg's conqueror, commander Tilly. Following orders of the Catholic Prince Elector Maximilian of Bavaria, the library was given to the Pope of Rome. Of the collection which once included more than 5000 books and 3524 manuscripts, only 885 manuscripts were returned to Heidelberg in 1816.
During the following centuries, the church frequently changed its religious denomination and was used at different times by Catholics as well as Protestants. Even a partition barrier was erected in 1706 because both denominations wanted to hold service here. For 230 years, the barrier stayed in its place until it was removed in 1936. Today, the Church of the Holy Spirit is a Protestant Church.
The Madonna at the Kornmarkt
The Madonna was erected by a Catholic fraternity. When the sovereign officially declared Mary the patron saint of the Catholic belief in the Kurpfalz, the statue became a focal point of religious worship in Heidelberg. The Madonna of the Kornmarkt demonstrates three typical characteristics of this period: Mary is shown as the Queen of Heaven, as a virgin and as a victor.
The Prince Elector, in spite of his intentions to convert his "heathen" subjects, failed in changing their religious convictions. Many of the Protestants preferred to emigrate from Heidelberg. When, during the first half of the 19th century, citizens rebelled against aristocracy and clergy, the "Madonna of the Kornmarkt" lost much of her religious symbolic significance. At the same time, the statue was discovered and appreciated as real art work.
