At the top of the city, the Heidelberg castle is a symbol of German Romanticism with its famous ruins, which tell the story of wars and a wedding that marked the history of Europe.

For the traveler staying in Frankfurt, paying a visit to this beautiful city will be worth it. The trip takes about 1 hour and you can use a car or train.

Castle or palace? Both!

Heidelberg castle is now called a palace, but in its origin, it was in fact a fortified castle. After the marriage of Frederick V, Prince-elector of the Palatinate, with Elizabeth Stuart of England, in 1613, the castle is then transformed into a palace to receive his beloved and the entire entourage from London with all the refinement to which she was accustomed.

How it became a ruin

Heidelberg’s castle underwent several concussions: it was destroyed in the Thirty Years ‘War and later, the French invaded the city, in the late 17th century, destroying it again during the Great Alliance War or the Nine Years’ War. However, it was not “only” that partly destroyed the building. In 1537 and 1764, lightning struck the castle, causing a fire, which led to the ruins in the second episode.

The castle

Its first buildings date from around 1300 and the castle was used as the residence of most elector princes. Heidelberg Castle is made up of several buildings, each from a period, around an inner courtyard. From the terrace, it is possible to have a view of the city of Heidelberg to the horizon, the Neckar river, and the Karl-Theodor Bridge, one of the symbols of the city.

With the private guided tour of Heidelberg castle, you will get to know the interior of the restored buildings in the 19th century and see what Heidelberg’s life and history were like in other times. Outside the castle, there is the palace garden, the “Hortus Palatinus”, which was considered by some to be the eighth wonder of the world of the past before being destroyed by the French.

World’s largest wine barrel

The “Heidelberg Tun” has impressive numbers! 7 meters high, 8.5 meters wide, and capacity for 220,000 liters of wine. And there is still a great unusual curiosity, the stairs that give access to the top of the barrel were intended to give access to a dance floor that was on top of this giant!

Many wonder why such a large barrel, are the castle’s inhabitants so voracious consumers of wine in this region? Certainly, the consumption of wine was large, but not so much as to justify such a large barrel, in fact, they were used to store the tithe of wines paid by producers in the Palatinate region.

But the big barrel, which we can visit today, was not always there. In 1591 the smaller original was built, with a capacity of “only” 130,000 liters. Unfortunately, like much of the castle, it was also destroyed in the Thirty Years’ War. In 1664 another large barrel was erected, this time with greater capacity, which can hold up to 200,000 liters. However, after about 100 years the current barrel was finally built, by elector prince Carl Theodor, which is available for visitation during the guided tour of the castle.

German Pharmacy Museum (Deutsche Apotheken-Museum)

During the visit to this museum, travelers will find several topics displayed and interesting environments, such as the Baroque Pharmacy of the old Benedictine abbey at the beginning of the tour and the Children’s Pharmacy ”, which has, among other exhibitions, the“ Estação da Fragrância ”, a fully interactive area for children.

With our guided tour of Heidelberg, travelers will discover all these places and experience all the enchanting experiences that await them. In addition to discovering more curiosities and mysteries of this fantastic place. With our private guided tours, the traveler is taken behind the scenes of the palace, not open to the general public.