I only chose to go to Stuttgart because I got a really cheap ticket. I wanted to go to Germany but was hoping to go to Munich or Berlin but I couldn't resist the €20 ticket on the TGV.
I thought Stuttgart was going to be a dull, grey, industrial city - seeing it's the home of Mercedes and Porsche and other big businesses. It's funny how perceptions can be so different from reality. Stuttgart is a really pretty city and so green. It's actually one of the greenest cities in Europe.
We stayed at an Ibis hotel, a 20 minute walk from the centre. It's only 2 stops on the very efficient tram so that was a perfect place to stay.
The public transport in Stuttgart is not only efficient but very, very clean and with huge seats. Not at all like the Paris metro where everyone is squashed into little seats in filthy trains. It was expensive though, more expensive than Paris. However, I only paid once. After that I just looked for the inspectors before getting on! Naughty I know...
What is there to do in Stuttgart? In order of importance:
- Eat berliners.
- Eat creamy cakes.
- Sit in the beautiful parks.
- Sit in cafes.
- Go to the Mercedes Museum.
In other words, it's a great place to sit around, relax, and just generally take it easy. My kind of holiday!
I'd definitely recommend doing the city tour when you first get there. You get to see all the main sites plus go up the 150 storey television tower which gives great views over the region. You can also get good views of the city from the tower at the Hauptbahnhof. It's free to go up and you can see the vineyards which surround the city and all the pretty houses. No nasty highrise apartments anywhere!
Four days was too much to stay in Stuttgart so we did a day trip to Tubingen, one hour and €20 on the train. What a gorgeous little town! Very pretty half timbered houses, beautiful squares and parks and a castle which looks over the town. Well worth a visit.
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