Last Updated: May 2026
Heidelberg is one of those places that immediately justifies every superlative — a city of extraordinary depth where Germany’s oldest university, a dramatically ruined Renaissance castle, a storied medieval bridge, and a beautifully preserved Baroque old town all come together along the banks of the Neckar River. We arrived from Rüdesheim by continuing upriver on the Rhine to the Main River, docking in Frankfurt before taking a bus south to Heidelberg. Sandy and I had read about this city for years, and it exceeded everything we anticipated — the castle alone would justify the detour, but Heidelberg keeps delivering at every turn. First mentioned in 1196 with origins reaching back to Roman and Celtic settlements, the city’s medieval foundation is centered around the iconic Heidelberg Castle and the Church of the Holy Spirit, while centuries of academic life and Romantic-era poetry have layered it with a richness few German cities can match.
