Lose Your Heart in Heidelberg: Free Walking Tour by a Local Student

What we cover: Starting at Neckarmünzplatz, we walk the length of the Hauptstraße, one of Germany's longest pedestrian zones, through the Old Town and stopping at everything worth stopping at. Along the way you'll hear about the French burning the city not once but twice, a lovesick princess whose failed marriage sparked a war, and why there are 800 medieval graves hidden under a marketplace you'll walk right over. We'll stop at the Old Bridge to meet the famous Monkey and talk about a famous Heidelberg tradition. Student life is woven throughout, from the legendary Student Prison (yes, it was a rite of passage), to the dueling fraternities, to the free tuition perk that still draws students from across Europe. Heidelberg University is Germany's oldest and has received up 57 Nobel Prizes. We talk about the people who studied here: Hegel, Max Weber, and others who shaped how the modern world thinks. For food and drink, I'll point you to Heidelberg's oldest chocolate shop, the breweries that have been pouring since before your great-great-grandparents were born, and where students actually eat and drink, not the tourist traps.