Ludwigsburg: Palace, Cityscape and Gardens
Accommodation in Ludwigsburg
Ludwigsburg showcases the Baroque not only at the palace, but also in its cityscape: straight, broad streets intersect at right angles, with two-storey town houses in soft pastel colours in between. A visit combines the city’s history and palace culture with a distinctive perspective on gardens and fairy-tale worlds. Ludwigsburg Residential Palace contains 452 rooms and is one of the largest original-preserved palaces in Europe.
Das Residenzschloss im Herzen Ludwigsburgs mit seinen umgebenden Gartenanlagen.
Photo: Maulaff via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Palace History and Cityscape
The standard tours of the Residential Palace show a selection of its most important rooms. The classic family tour presents the history in a playful way, making it an enjoyable experience for children and adults alike. If you are travelling with children, you can take this special way of presenting the history into account when planning; if you are interested in the rooms and architecture, the standard tours also offer an introduction to the palace.
In the historic centre, the arcaded market square shapes the cityscape. Two Baroque churches define its appearance. Together with the straight streets and colourful town houses, the square illustrates Ludwigsburg’s Baroque design. Hoheneck is also part of Ludwigsburg: Hoheneck.
Ceramics, Art and Theatre
The Ceramics Museum in the Residential Palace displays around 2,000 m² of Ludwigsburg porcelain and ceramic art from different periods. The collection spans medieval stoneware to 20th-century studio ceramics. One of its highlights is a study collection of 2,000 pieces of Ludwigsburg porcelain. If you are particularly interested in materials, forms and how they have changed, you can explore the broad history of ceramics here.
The Museum of Art and Cultural History of the City of Ludwigsburg and Württemberg complements this perspective with a permanent exhibition and changing special exhibitions on topics from history and the present day. Another cultural highlight is Ludwigsburg Palace Theatre: with its original stage machinery, it is one of the oldest surviving theatres of its kind. The six historic gatehouses recall the former city wall complex. Today they serve as museums, archives and exhibition spaces.
Gardens and Activities with Children
Blühendes Barock is a year-round garden exhibition around the Residential Palace. The North Garden and South Garden offer particularly beautiful views of the palace. The garden programme includes an annual pumpkin exhibition. The Fairy-Tale Garden features more than 50 lovingly designed fairy tales; a boat trip along the Fairy-Tale Stream is also included in the admission price for Blühendes Barock. In the Sardinian Garden, there is an aviary with flamingos and storks. Alongside palace rooms and collections, visitors can therefore choose from garden settings and fairy-tale experiences.
When choosing a holiday apartment in Ludwigsburg, you can first consider what you would like your stay to focus on: the Baroque city and its museums, the palace’s history, or the gardens with their Fairy-Tale Garden and pumpkin exhibition. These options offer different ideas for exploring together with children and for culturally themed holiday days. Other destinations at the same level include Freiberg Am Neckar, Asperg, Pleidelsheim, Markgröningen, Großbottwar, Schwieberdingen and Oberstenfeld.
For the overarching travel overview: Ludwigsburg.
