Things to do in Heidelberg: 9 experiences

1 hour, or 90 minutes with a guided walkGo alone or with a tour

The church on the Marktplatz where the electors were buried and Europe's largest manuscript library once filled the galleries.

1 hour with the University MuseumBook ahead

Five cells beside the Old University where rowdy students were locked up and covered the walls and ceilings with paintings and poems.

30 minutesFree

Nine red sandstone arches over the Neckar, praised by Hölderlin, blown up in 1945 and rebuilt with citizens' donations.

1 to 2 hoursFree

A steep path from the Old Bridge up to the sunny slope opposite the old town, where the classic view of Heidelberg opens up.

2 to 3 hours with time at the topNo booking needed

Two funiculars climb from the Kornmarkt past the castle and the Molkenkur to the Königstuhl, one of them still running cars from 1907.

Half a day on footFree

The hill above the Philosophers' Walk holds layers of history: Celtic ramparts, medieval monastery ruins and a 1930s amphitheatre.

An eveningFree

Six old town squares with stalls, a century-old carousel, a forest of fir trees under the castle and an ice rink.

Half a dayNo booking needed

Gardens of European renown near Heidelberg, with an 18th-century mosque built by an elector to show himself as a tolerant ruler.

No booking needed

Ride the funicular up to a red sandstone ruin above the old town, home to a barrel that holds 220,000 litres.