Karlsruhe
From Imakoopedia
Karlsruhe is a city in Baden-Wuerttemberg in Germany.
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Understand
Karlsruhe is located at the Rhine, close to the French border. The city was founded in 1715 by margrave Karl Wilhelm von Baden. The city was laid out on the drawing board. It consists of a central circle, containing the castle, and streets running towards the castle as radial "spokes". This pattern is still visible today. Due to the fan-like layout, Karlsruhe is known as the "fan city" (Fächerstadt).
The Rhine valley, where Karlsruhe ist located, is the warmest part of Germany because it is only about 100 m over N.N. and there are mountains in the east (black forest) and west (vogesen). Therefore, Karlsruhe has more sunny days than many other parts of Germany.
There isn't a lot of tourist traffic to Karlsruhe, which doesn't have any major sights except for the castle. Tourists generally tend to gravitate towards the cities of Heidelberg (50km to the north) and Freiburg (100km to the south), with their well-preserved old towns.
Karlsruhe is home to the two highest federal courts of Germany, the Bundesverfassungsgericht (Federal constitutional court) and the Bundesgerichtshof (Supreme federal court). Because of this and other administrative facilities, Karlsruhe has a reputation as a city of civil servants.
Karlsruhe has a large technical university, as well as several other colleges.
Get in
By Train
The train station is south of the city center. You can get to the central market place by tram in less then 5 minutes, and there are direct tram links to other parts of the city. Karlsruhe is well linked to other larger cities by ICE high speed trains.
By Plane
- Baden-Airpark (http://www.badenairpark.de/) is the nearest local airport, about 30km from the city. The airport is now served by low-cost carrier Ryanair, which offers cheap flights to several European destinations.
- Frankfurt airport has a direct ICE high speed train link to Karlsruhe.
By Bus
The bus station is located direct at the southern entrance of the train station. Inside the train station you find a place to buy tickets for international destinations.
Get around
- Public transport: Karlsruhe has an excellent public transportation system. Short term visitor may consider the 24-hour day pass, which is also available for multiple persons. The KVV homepage (http://www.karlsruhe.de/KVV/) has more information on fares and the timetables.
See
- ZKM, Lorenzstraße 19, (0721) 81-000, W-F 10AM-6PM, Sa,Su,Holidays 11AM-6PM, M,Tu closed (Media Museum). The Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnolgy is devoted to interactive and 'media art'. The museum is quite unique, and the exhibitions are world-class. The ZKM also hosts many cultural events, check their home page for the schedule. The same complex also hosts the Museum für Neue Kunst (Museum for new Art) and the city gallery. http://www.zkm.de
- Staatliche Kunsthalle (Art Hall of the State), Hans-Thoma-Straße 2 - 6, (0721) 926-3355, Tu-F 10AM-5PM, Sa,Su,holidays 10AM-6PM. This museum shows mainly classical paintings from the 16th century on. http://www.kunsthalle-karlsruhe.de/
- A list of other museums can be found on the city homepage (http://www.karlsruhe.de/Kultur/Museen/index.htm).
- Badisches Staatestheather, Baumeisterstr. 11, (0721) 933-333 (Reservations). This is the biggest theater and opera house in the city, but there are various smaller theaters. A list can be found on the city homepage. http://www.karlsruhe.de/Kultur/Staatstheater/start/
- Cinemas: The Schauburg (http://www.schauburg.de) and the Kino im Prinz-Max-Palais (http://www.kinemathek-karlsruhe.de) are independent cinemas which occasional show movies in their original language. The other cinemas tend to stick to the usual German-dubbed fare. Schauburg, Marienstr. 16, (0721) 3500018. Kino im Prinz-Max-Palais, Karlstr. 10, (0721) 9374714 (Information).
- Castle, directly north of the city center. The castle hosts the Badisches Landesmuseum, Tu-Th 10AM-17PM, F-Su and holidays 10AM-6PM, special exhibitions Tu-Su 10AM-6PM. The castle is directly north of the city center, an 2min walk on foot from the market place. The castle was rebuild after World War II, and now hosts the Badisches Landesmuseum, a museum dedicated to historical exhibitions and local interest. There are also special exhibitions from time to time. North of the castle is a vast park area, the castle garden (Schlosspark), where the locals hang out on summer days. On Saturdays, Sundays and holidays during the summer season you can also take a ride on the small steam train that runs through the gardens. Entry to the gardens is free, the museum is €4 for adults.
- The Pyramid. The pyramid on the marketplace is the emblem of the City. It marks the place where markgrave Karl Wilhelm was buried, and is somewhat unremarkable.
- Zoo. Near the main station, opening hours vary throughout the year, but the main entrance is open at least M-Su 9AM-16PM, and longer in the summer months. The other entrances have shorter hours, check on the web page. The zoo is moderately large, and does have some special attractions. The price is €5 for adults, discounts are available for some groups. http://www.karlsruhe.de/Zoo/
Eat
Die Kippe (http://www.die-kippe.de) offers cheap greasy food in a nice smokie atmosphere. During summertime they have a nice beer garden. Among other meals they serve some kind of regional food.
Buy
Most shops are located in the pedestrian zone in the Kaiserstrasse. At the Ludwigsplatz, near the Kaiserstrasse, there are various open-air cafes where the shopper can relax. Some of the posher boutiques and shoe shops are also in this area.
Sleep
- Youth Hostel (http://www.jugendherberge-karlsruhe.de/)
- Other Hotels. You can search for hotels on the city homepage (http://www.karlsruhe.de/Tourismus/ukv/).
External links
- City homepage with visitor information (http://www.karlsruhe.de/).
- Interactive city map (http://stadtplan.karlsruhe.de/).
