City Review: Tübingen, Germany

Have you ever heard of the German city of Tübingen? Unless you’re German yourself, probably not.

But it’s a special place to me, because it’s the first place I ever traveled outside the U.S. When I was 18 years old, I took my first-ever international trip, flying from Kansas City to Stuttgart. There, my former foreign-exchange-student boyfriend picked me up at the airport, just 40 minutes away from his hometown, Tübingen. And while I made a few visits there over a few years, understandably I hadn’t been back since we broke up in 2015.

A lot has changed in 11 years. I’ve lived in Spain for more than five years of my life and visited a total of 37 countries. And while I remembered Tübingen being a magical city at the time, I wondered whether it was really that charming, or whether it simply had the benefit of being the first place I ever went.

So on our European train trip this past May, it was time to find out. 🙂

Here’s my review of Tübingen, Germany.

About Tübingen, Germany

Tübingen is a fairly small city, located in the southwest German state of Baden-Württemberg. With just under 100,000 residents, a third of the city’s population is made up of students. In fact, Tübingen is probably best-known among Germans for being a major university city. The Eberhard Karls Universität, or University of Tübingen, is one of the oldest universities north of the Alps, originally founded in the year 1477.

Like Heidelberg, where we’d just come from on this trip, the old town center of Tübingen survived World War II without any major damage — which means its historic buildings and traditional half-timbered architecture is still intact. So yes, I can confirm it is actually a very beautiful city. Eighteen-year-old me wasn’t misremembering that!

Tübingen is a super walkable city with a fun, young culture — thanks to the students, I’m sure. We were there in the spring, so it was great seeing everyone outside spending time in the parks, and riding bikes, and boating down the Neckar River. More on that in a bit! But we enjoyed just wandering and exploring different quiet corners of the city and the maze-like Altstadt.

How Many Days Do You Need in Tübingen?

Two days should be plenty of time for you to see Tübingen’s highlights.

If you have three days or more, you may want to consider a day trip from Tübingen — though these would be most easily done with a rental car. A few options (many of which I have done in the past):

Tübingen to Ulm, Germany: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Tübingen to Strasbourg, France: 2 hours, 15 minutes
Tübingen to Black Forest (Schwarzwald) towns
- Schiltach: 1 hour, 30 minutes
- Gengenbach: 2 hours
- Freiburg im Breisgau: 2 hours, 15 minutes

Things To Do in Tübingen, Germany

Let’s say that you arrive in Tübingen by train (like we did). The first thing you’ll do after leaving the train station is cross the Eberhard Bridge (Neckarbrücke) over the Neckar River — and you’ll immediately be treated to Tübingen’s most iconic view.

The colorful half-timbered houses on the Neckarfront, adorned by lush weeping willows, are most vibrant in the morning when the eastern sun hits them at just the right angle. But no matter what time you visit, you might be surprised at how quiet it is at this Instagrammable spot on the bridge… probably because there really aren’t that many tourists. Somehow, the beauty of Tübingen is still a well-kept secret.

As you stand on the bridge, you’ll undoubtedly see boats drifting along the river — but these boats are a bit unique. Not only is there someone standing on the back navigating with a long pole, Venetian-gondola style, but each passenger also has a seat back made of a leaning wooden plank. These punt boats (Stocherkähne) are an important part of Tübingen’s culture, highlighting both local tradition and the Tübingers‘ attitude toward enjoying the river whenever possible.

We were treated to a performance by a student band floating around on the Neckar, with (seemingly) their band professor as the captain of the boat, pushing them along with the pole. 🙂 We did not ride a Stocherkähn on this visit, but we immediately started thinking about planning another trip with friends to Tübingen in the near future to experience a punt boat together!

Also from the Neckarbrücke, as you look toward the Neckarfront you’ll notice a set of stairs leading down from the middle of the bridge on your left. Take the stairs down and you’ll find yourself on an island that is actually entirely a park — the Neckarinsel. This man-made island was created in the early 1800s to divert part of the Neckar and help regulate the river’s water level. These days, it’s a green oasis that actually makes you feel more like you’re in the forest than a city. Fun fact: each year in June there’s a Stocherkähne race around the island.

Okay, so back up the bridge and finally time to head into Tübingen’s historic old town, the Altstadt! For the most part, you’ll find cobblestone streets full of pedestrians and typical European-city-center shops and restaurants. You’ll eventually come across the Marktplatz, a triangular plaza that hosts (unsurprisingly) a market four days a week, as well as the Rathaus, old town hall, with its impressive Renaissance architecture that reminds you it was originally constructed in the year 1435. One block north of Marktplatz is a free museum, the Stadtmuseum Tübingen. Almost everything was in German so we didn’t understand much, but it was free so we couldn’t complain.

Tübingen Rathaus

Next, head to Schloss Hohentübingen, Tübingen’s very own castle. It’s a bit of a hike up there, because obviously castles are usually perched up high on the hill! The castle actually has a few museums within — the Museum of the University of Tübingen and the Ancient Culture Museum. These are not free and we didn’t go in, but they could be worth a visit! Otherwise, just wandering around the castle walls and enjoying the views of the surrounding city still warrants a trip up to the castle.

After that hike, you deserve a bier. And while beer is not hard to find basically anywhere in Germany, my recommendation is to go back down to the Neckarfront and head to the northeast bank — to the Neckarmüller Biergarten. I remember coming here with my boyfriend at the time and his family when I was 18, and I think it might have been the first place I ever tried beer. (Yeah, I was a good kid in high school. 😜)

Like Tübingen as a whole, I wasn’t sure if this place was actually cool or if it was just a formative memory, but the Biergarten absolutely did not disappoint! The relaxed atmosphere and Neckar views made it a great place to chill with a drink — though they also have no-frills German fare like sausage, baked potatoes, and pretzels.

We liked the vibes and the experience so much that we came both nights we spent in Tübingen. This is also where we were treated to the punt-boat-traveling band. 🙂

How Expensive is Tübingen?

Tübingen was a bit more expensive than other places I’ve traveled — obviously not on the same scale as London or Dublin, but a bit more expensive than I’m used to in Spain for sure!

We didn’t eat out a lot, but I was surprised that our breakfast at a cafe in Tübingen cost about €15 per entree per person, and that didn’t even include coffee. A cappuccino would set you back about €4.50, which is pretty expensive compared to a lot of places.

Our hotel also wasn’t the cheapest, which I thought was kind of crazy because (again) Tübingen isn’t the most popular tourist destination. But it’s certainly not the most expensive place you can travel, so don’t let the cost scare you off or anything. I’d say it’s a classic mid-range European city, price-wise.

Where To Stay in Tübingen

Most of the time when we travel, we stay in hotels that we book using a combination of points and money, thanks to our Chase Sapphire Preferred and CapitalOne VentureX credit cards.

On this trip, I knew I wanted to be near the city center, and there actually weren’t a ton of hotels in that area that we could book through our credit card booking platforms. So we stayed at the Ibis Styles Tübingen, which was super close to both the train station and the city center.

We did like this hotel — the only downsides were that there was no refrigerator in the room (only important to me because I’m celiac and have to buy groceries a lot) and there wasn’t really any air conditioning in the room, either. It was an unseasonably hot May, with temperatures at nearly 90°F/32°C, and it was pretty warm in the room.

But luckily we were tired enough from our long days that it wasn’t too hard to fall asleep, despite the heat.

Is Tübingen Worth Visiting?

Let me put it this way… I brought my husband to my ex-boyfriend’s hometown, and not only did Matt not find that super weird (okay maybe a little)… I think he actually would say Tübingen was his favorite city on the whole train trip! And I think I can officially answer the question of whether Tübingen is a special city because it’s associated with formative memories, or because it’s special in its own right.

My verdict: Tübingen is special, period.

Tübingen is absolutely worth visiting, and I think we were both surprised just how much we enjoyed it. Between the traditional German half-timbered houses, the Neckar river and all the associated fun (from beer to boats), the young culture and focus on green spaces and public transportation and biking, and the fact that it still seems pretty yet-undiscovered among the general population, Tübingen has it all.

So if you’re looking for a charming German city that’s a bit off the beaten path but with a sparkling personality, Tübingen could be for you!