Discover Karlsruhe and find hotels

When looking for a hotel in Karlsruhe, you can start by considering which themes you want to shape your stay: architecture and art, natural history, the zoo and city garden, or different ways to explore the sights. Karlsruhe combines a tangible architectural heritage with exhibition venues and a CityTour. The wider Karlsruhe travel destination also includes other places and landscapes in the district.

Culture, architecture and natural history

Since 1997, ZKM has been housed in Hallenbau A, a listed former industrial building. Built between 1915 and 1918, it was one of Germany’s most architecturally advanced buildings at the time. For culture enthusiasts, the institution and the building’s history are therefore part of the same theme: Hallenbau A is both part of ZKM’s history and a building from the early industrial era.

The State Museum of Natural History Karlsruhe features permanent exhibitions on native and exotic wildlife, as well as rocks, minerals and fossils. Its subject matter thus ranges from animal life to geological topics. The Karlsruhe Zoological City Garden, by contrast, combines a zoo with a city garden. When weighing up the options, you can choose between exhibitions on animals and geological topics on the one hand, and the combination of a zoo and city garden on the other.

CityTour or “AugenBlick” circular route

The Karlsruhe CityTour is a tour on a red double-decker bus that visits Karlsruhe’s major sights. Seasonal details may change, so check the latest information before planning your trip. Another option is the approximately ten-kilometre “AugenBlick” Karlsruhe circular route. It can be started at various points, for example at the Turmberg. The two options therefore differ in format: the CityTour takes you to sights by double-decker bus, while the circular route has several possible starting points and is approximately ten kilometres long.

In the wider Karlsruhe travel destination

Karlsruhe District stretches from the Rhine plain in the west, across the Kraichgau hills in the east, to the foothills of the northern Black Forest in the south. The district’s more than 1,500-kilometre cycling network is also part of this regional setting. As the infrastructure may continue to develop, up-to-date route information is useful for planning your trip.

The Frauenalb Monastery Ruins lie in the upper Albtal, just below Bad Herrenalb, within the municipality of Marxzell in Karlsruhe District. They are the most significant Baroque monastery building in northern Baden, but are currently closed to visitors. Their location and Baroque significance establish the ruins’ regional context; the current closure is an important consideration for anyone planning a visit.

In Bruchsal, Bruchsal Palace served as a prince-bishop’s residence and is one of the most magnificent prince-bishop’s residences in Germany. The staircase by architect Balthasar Neumann is especially well known and is described as the “crown of all Baroque staircases.” The Bruchsal Municipal Museum is also located on the palace’s third floor. It documents the history of the Bruchsal area from the Stone Age to the present day. Architecture and regional history are therefore two distinct themes within the same palace.

Bretten also offers a range of historical highlights. The Melanchthon House in Bretten is Germany’s second-largest museum devoted to the history of the Reformation, after the Luther Hall in Wittenberg. The Swiss Court dates from 1707 and houses Bretten’s municipal and regional history museum. Reformation history and municipal or regional history are therefore clearly distinct themes to explore in Bretten.

Discover more destinations: Grötzingen, Oststadt, Durlach, Östringen, Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Waldbronn, Kürnbach, Kronau.

Go to the wider travel overview: Karlsruhe.