As Stuttgart is located in a valley there are many great lookouts all around the city. I’ve already pointed out Birkenkopf aka Monte Scherbelino in my Fun Fact Friday series. Today I want to introduce Karlshöhe in Stuttgart-South to you.

A good starting point for your trip to Karlshöhe is the U-Bahn station Marienplatz or, even closer, the bus stop Mörikestraße. You will have to walk uphill until you enter the park – and then some more uphill :-).

Don’t be astonished to see a vineyard to your right, it belongs to the city of Stuttgart and is what’s left of an even greater one that existed until the end of the 19th century.

Karlshöhe is known to many locals because of the beer garden Tschechen & Söhne on top of it. A visit there is a treat. The view  is amazing.

After a refreshing drink at the beer garden you can continue your walk. If you follow the trail behind the beer garden downhill you will pass a pretty fountain, the Pallas-Athene-Fountain. It features Athene, Pandora, Prometheus and the head of Zeus.

When you continue downhill you will reach a pretty playground that is located where the old stone quarry used to be. The perfect spot for some fun hours with the kids.

If you’re interested in the history of Karlshöhe, here come some fun facts:

• The hill was called “Reinsburghügel” in earlier days. In honor of King Karl, it was changed to Karlshöhe in 1889.
• Rumor has it that there might have been a castle on top of Karlshöhe in medieval times. But that has never been proven.
• There used to be a stone quarry in the 13th and 14th century. Many buildings in Stuttgart were built with sandstone from here, for example Stiftskirche in downtown Stuttgart.
• After the quarry has shut down in the 19th century the hill had become wild and overgrown. The Embellishment Club Stuttgart (Verschönerungsverein) bought land on top of the hill in 1864 and created a public park from where the citizens of Stuttgart could enjoy the view.
• A project that luckily never went into the making came from the Nazis: they wanted to create a huge building for their radio station “Reichssender Stuttgart” on top of the hill, looking like the Acropolis in Athens…

More information about:

Karlshöhe

Verschönerungsverein Stuttgart (only in German)

Beer garden Tschechen & Söhne (only in German)

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