The Neckar Valley Wine Region

A flourishing urban centre surrounded by forests and vineyards, Stuttgart is also the ideal place for a wine tour. Just a short hop from the main railway station, the vines stretch up across the sunny slopes of the Neckar Valley. You can look back on a long history of wine-making traditions, kept alive on vineyard tours, at numerous wine and vintners' festivals and during the popular Stuttgart Wine Festival. The wine trail is also a fantastic way to explore the hilly vine-clad countryside all around the city – and enjoy some wine tasting along the way.

One of the finest vantage points from which to see the idyllic Neckar valley, the city of Stuttgart and the vast expanse of vineyards is historical Württemberg hill. In the eleventh century it was the site of the ancestral castle of the ruling family of Württemberg. King Wilhelm I had the mausoleum built here in 1820 after the premature death of his beloved wife, the Russian Grand Duchess Katharina.

Roman emperors had planted vineyards across the region back in the third century AD. By the 16th century, Stuttgart was one of the largest winegrowing communities in the Holy Roman Empire. Today locals and visitors to the Stuttgart Region can wander through the vineyards on countless walking trails enjoying the beautiful vineyard scenery, idyllic spots, sensational viewpoints and wayside places of interest.

And one interesting stop is the Stuttgart Viniculture Museum opened in 1979. After extensive renovations, the history of winemaking has been given a fresh new look since September 2012. The result is a contemporary exhibition in historical surroundings. Wines from the Stuttgart region can be sampled at the museum’s vinothek. The wine list offers 20 regional varieties for up to 70 people.

There are few other places in Germany where visitors can experience history as vividly as they can in Esslingen. Half an hour ride from Stuttgart, the town dates back well over a thousand years. Evidence of this long history can be seen in the old quarter with its three town halls, magnificent patrician houses and the oldest row of timber-framed houses in Germany. Esslingen is famous far beyond the region for its long tradition of winemaking. In 1826 this brought Georg Christian Keller to the town, where he founded Germany’s first sekt winery. And if you arrive in Stuttgart and you don’t taste a Kessler sekt, you should come back!

I tasted it and still want to go spend some more days in Stuttgart and surroundings. Nestled in one of the largest wine-producing regions in Germany, this regional capital is an inspiring destination thanks to its superb location, lovely squares, magnificent castles and buildings in a huge variety of architectural styles.

• Shoppers paradise

Stuttgart's restaurants and cafés provide a whole range of gastronomic treats, from spätzle noodles to pinot noir, from corner pubs to award-winning, internationally renowned restaurants. The city's Königstrasse offers more than a kilometer of shopping fun with any number of fashion boutiques, specialist shops, department stores, cafés, restaurants and quiet zones. In Stuttgart's Bohnenviertel, bric-à-brac and antique shops sit amongst charming eateries of all sizes, whilst Calwer Strasse is home to elegant boutiques and a host of restaurants with outdoor terraces. Moreover, in the evenings, Theodor-Heuss-Strasse und the square surrounding the 'Lucky Hans' fountain are particularly recommended, with bars to suit any taste.

Visitors to any of Stuttgart's many festivals will experience for themselves the joie de vivre and hospitality of its residents. After the May Stuttgart Spring Festival, neighboring Bad Canstatt hosts end-September the largest festival in the Swabian region and the second-largest beer festival worldwide – the Cannstatter Wasen. With more than 300 fairground rides and large beer and wine tents, a great time is guaranteed for all!

Stuttgart’s Highlights

A Highlights of Stuttgart tour starts with Europaviertel, with the new city library and Stuttgart 21. The Europaviertel is one of the most important inner city development projects in Europe.

The city library on Mailänder Platz rises to a height of 40 meters. Grey and sober by day, this ‘cube of books’ is transformed by night with blue lighting.

A must stop, Stuttgart State Gallery, is one of the leading art museums in Germany and contains works spanning 700 years. The oldest part, the Old State Gallery, is a three-winged neo-classical building erected for King Wilhelm I of Württemberg between 1838 and 1843. This makes it one of the oldest museum buildings in Germany. Adjoining the Old State Gallery is the annex building, the New State Gallery. Built in 1984 to designs by architect James Stirling, it is a masterpiece of postmodern architecture. The State Gallery contains Old German, Italian and Dutch paintings as well as a section devoted to Swabian Classicism. Pablo Picasso is represented at the gallery with works spanning his entire career. On display are important groups of works from the various stylistic movements (Fauvism, the Brücke and Blauer Reiter groups and Cubism) as well as eye-catching collections by individual artists such as Beckmann, Schlemmer, Beuys, Kiefer and Baselitz.

One of the top cultural attractions in the regional capital of Baden-Württemberg is Stuttgart State Theater – Europe’s largest multi-genre theatre. The Opera House, built in the classical style, is located at the heart of the extensive palace gardens. In the 1950s a conscious choice was made to design the State Parliament building so that it would not compete with the neighboring Opera House.

Schlossplatz square is the most central location in Stuttgart, the very heart of the city. In the middle of the square is the towering Jubilee Column (1841), crowned with a statue of Concordia, the goddess of harmony. It stands in front of the New Palace, built from 1746 to 1807, and combining elements of Baroque, Classicism, Rococo and Empire.

The Stuttgart Art Museum is also a work of art. By night the stone cubes inside the glass cuboid light up, illuminating parts of Schlossplatz square as well. The museum’s collection features more than 15,000 exhibits, from the end of the 18th century to the present day, from Swabian Impressionism to contemporary art. It is also home to the world’s leading Otto Dix collection, comprising around 250 works.

Schillerplatz square was built for Duke Friedrich of Württemberg. Once a venue for prestige occasions, it now hosts the flower market three times a week. At the centre of the square is a statue of the poet Friedrich Schiller, who spent the most important years of his life in Stuttgart and who gives Schillerplatz its name. The Old Palace was the ancestral residence of the first counts and dukes of Württemberg and is today home to the Württemberg State Museum.

Because of its location in a valley basin, Stuttgart has more flights of steps than many other cities. If you want to climb them all, you would have to walk some 20 kilometers! The Galatea Fountain on Eugensplatz square is one of the most magnificent fountains in the city and offers glorious views over Stuttgart.

Stuttgart’s Fernsehturm was the world’s first television tower and it is considered an architectural and aesthetic masterpiece. Built 57 years ago, it is one of the city’s most famous landmarks and most striking cultural monuments. No other vantage point in the city offers such magnificent panoramic views, encompassing the Neckar valley and its vineyards, the Swabian Alb, the Black Forest and the Odenwald region, unfortunately nowadays is closed for visiting.