Bergstraße

Understand

The route mostly follows the modern B3 road (Bundesstraße 3), and goes almost straight from north to south at the spot where the Rhine lowlands meet the western edge of the Odenwald. (The Odenwald is a low mountain range lying mainly in Hesse with some parts in Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria.) The name, Bergstraße, comes from the road's route along the foot of the mountains, the Rhine lowlands once being too damp to build a road there. The area extends from Darmstadt in the north to Heidelberg in the south. The Bergstraße used to include the towns of Leimen, Nussloch, and Wiesloch; however, that area south of Heidelberg lost its charm due to development, so that today Heidelberg is considered to be the end of the Bergstraße.) There are vineyards along the Bergstraße because of a mild climate in the region. The Hessische Bergstraße (the portion of the Bergstraße in the Bundesland of Hesse) is one of 13 regions for quality wine in Germany.

Get in

By plane Frankfurt International Airport is only 30 km north of the Bergstraße. From there you can easily reach the Bergstraße by train with a change of train at the Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof, Mainz or Mannheim. There is 1 direct train per hour from the Frankfort airport to Darmstadt at the northern end of the Bergstraße.

By train Railway and tram lines give easy access to all communities along the Bergstraße. The ICE trains serve Darmstadt, Heidelberg and Mannheim and also stop at Bensheim and Weinheim. There is an interurban tram line (Straßenbahn) between Weinheim and Heidelberg.

By car The Bergstraße (Bundesstraße B3) is well connected with the European highway network.

Get around

By regional public transportation

A railway line runs along the length of the Bergstraße from Darmstadt to Weinheim and Ladenburg. South of Weinheim, the railway no longer follows the Bergstraße (B3). However, there is an interurban tram line (Straßenbahn line number 5) that follows the Bergstraße south from Weinheim to Heidelberg serving the communities of Hirschberg, Schriesheim and Dossenheim. One can transfer between the railway and tram line 5 at the Weinheim Hauptbahnhof. Lorsch is not quite on the north-south line paralleling the Bergstraße but on a line branching from it at Bensheim. Thus, one may need to change trains for Lorsch.

Tariff Unions There are two public transportation tariff unions serving the Bergstraße. The Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund (RMV) provides tickets for buses, trams and regional trains from Darmstadt to just north of Zwingenberg. The Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Neckar (VRN) provides tickets for buses, trams and regional trains from Zwingenberg to Heidelberg. Buses and trams will show the RMV logo north of Zwingenberg, and the VRN logo southwards from Zwingenberg. You could purchase a RMV ticket to a VRN destination (or vice-versa); however, your options for economical day tickets will be much more limited than if your trip is entirely within one tariff union either RMV or VRN. The RMV site has a separate page fare price enquiry. If 2-5 people are traveling together on a day trip within the RMV tariff area, then you may find that a group day ticket (Gruppentageskarte) to be cheaper than either the equivalent single trip tickets or the rather pricey Hessenticket.

Ticket Purchases The railway stations at Darmstadt, Bensheim, Weinheim and Heidelberg all have a ticket office (DB Reisezentrum). Besides DB (railway) tickets, these will sell regional tickets either RMV (Darmstadt) or VRN. At other railway stations along the Bergstraße, you will need to use ticket vending machines. The railway ticket vending machines (DB Automat) accept Euro coins and notes. Because the machines give change in coins, the machines may refuse to accept Euro notes that are more than €10 above the value of the tickets. DB staff say that the machines will no

See

Here are some of the sights along the Bergstraße listed from north to south:

1 Burg Frankenstein - This fortified castle is located in Darmstadt-Eberstadt. 2 Ruins of Schloss Alsbach - Above the town of Alsbach. 3 Zwingenberg - Historical old town (Altstadt). 4 Melibocus - Mountain near Zwingenberg and Bensheim with lookout tower on top. 5 Bensheim - Altstadt; views of the Upper Rhine Plain. 6 Naturschutzzentrum Bergstraße - Wildlife preservation centre (between Lorsch, Bensheim und Heppenheim). 7 Benediktinerkloster - UNESCO World Heritage Site in Lorsch. 8 Heppenheim - Half-timbered buildings; the Starkenburg hilltop castle. 9 Weinheim - Historic half-timbered houses; Schloss (castle). 10MISSING WIKILINK Ladenburg - Historic half-timbered old town; Roman finds.. 11 Schriesheim - Strahlenburg castle; pleasant town centre. 12 Heidelberg - Lively Altstadt; castle overlooking the city.

Drink

Apfelwein (apple wine/cider) is offered in many restaurants along the Bergstraße (and also in places away from the Bergstraße such as Mainz, Michelstadt and Frankfurt). It is served in drinking glasses of either 25 or 50 cl. You have the option of drinking it diluted with water or pure (pur in German) without water. You may wish to try it both ways (with water or pure) to determine which you prefer.