Germany's most romantic city — ruined castle, student pubs, and Neckar River sunsets
Heidelberg is Germany's most visited city outside Berlin, Munich, and Hamburg — and with good reason. The ruined red-sandstone castle above the old town, the oldest university in Germany (founded 1386), and the Neckar River framed by forested hills create a stage-set romanticism that drew Goethe, Mark Twain, and generations of travellers. The Philosophenweg (Philosophers' Walk) path offers the classic view across the rooftops to the castle.
Heidelberg's university was founded in 1386 by Elector Rupert I, making it the oldest in the German-speaking world — and the city has been shaped by academic culture ever since. The castle was gradually built from the 13th century and reached its splendour as an Electoral Palace in the Renaissance, before French troops destroyed it in 1689 and 1693 during the Nine Years' War. The ruins were left as they stood — a romantic relic that became one of the most painted scenes in Europe during the 18th century.