Kassel

Introduction

Kassel sits on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, in the heart of Germany. Once the capital of the state of Hesse-Kassel, it remains an administrative centre and is home to a large public university and a multicultural population.

You come here for palaces and parks: the city's many green spaces include the Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Kassel is also known for the documenta exhibitions of contemporary art.

Before you go

Kassel's centre was destroyed in the Second World War and rebuilt in a plain 1950s style, so expect bank and mall buildings rather than old-town streets. The city's history runs deep, though: it was a centre and later residence of the Landgraviate of Hesse, and Huguenot settlers left their mark on the centre, where streets are named after them. Kassel was also home to the Brothers Grimm, whose house is now a museum.

Before you arrive, it helps to know that Kassel is usually very safe, and tourists rarely encounter the problem areas in the northern and southern districts (Nord-Holland, Schillerviertel, Brückenhof, Mattenberg). There are tourist information offices in the city centre on Wilhelmsstraße and at the Wilhelmshöhe train station, plus visitor centres at Wilhelmshöhe and Hercules; note that the Hercules centre opens only Tuesday to Sunday outside the mid-March to mid-November period, and the Wilhelmshöhe visitor centre has reduced opening in the colder months. For emergencies, dial 110 for police and 112 for fire or acute illness.

Getting there

Kassel sits on a major rail corridor: it is a hub on the ICE network and one of the cities on Germany's first purpose-built high-speed line, linking Würzburg and Hanover. Most ICE trains and some local services stop at Fernbahnhof Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe, about 4 km west of downtown, which is also served by the private operator Flixtrain. Note that Flixtrain and DB do not accept each other's tickets. The historic Hauptbahnhof, refurbished after Wilhelmshöhe opened, has been rebranded the "Kulturbahnhof" and lies much closer to the centre, though only regional trains call there. A train connects the two stations, and it is worth starting your exploration from the Hauptbahnhof because it is nearer most sights.

By road, the Hannover–Würzburg, Kassel–Dortmund and Kassel–Marburg motorways all lead to the city. Long-distance buses use the Busbahnhof Kassel Wilhelmshöhe, known as the ZOB, adjoining the Wilhelmshöhe station; a second intercity bus station sits at Kaufungen-Papierfabrik, just beyond the city boundary by the motorway, with tramlines 4 and 8 running from Papierfabrik into the centre. Kassel Airport, in Calden about 10 km out of town, handles a handful of flights, including from Sylt, Heringsdorf, Palma de Mallorca and Bolzano, and bus line 100 links the terminal with the centre and both stations. The nearest major airports are Hanover and Frankfurt; both are well connected to the German rail network, and with Kassel a major hub you can reach town in no more than two hours, with combined flight-and-train tickets available.

Getting around

Kassel is compact, and trams and buses cover the city while much of the centre is walkable. Trams connect the main railway stations with the town centre, and from the station area trams leave towards the centre — the Bergpark is visible from where the trams depart, which gives you a useful orientation point on arrival. Buses fill in the routes the trams don't cover, and tram and bus stops are marked with a distinctive sign so they are easy to spot. Local public transport is run by KVG, with the regional transport association NVV coordinating services across north Hesse.

For a longer stay, a public transport Wochenkarte lets you ride the streetcars and buses as much as you like for a full week from the date of issue. For shorter visits, the Kasselcard covers all public transport and gives reduced admission at many museums; it is sold only at the Tourist Information offices, at the youth hostel, and at some hotels. Two railway stations anchor the network: most ICE trains and some local trains serve Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe, while the historic Hauptbahnhof — rebranded the "Kulturbahnhof" after Wilhelmshöhe opened — is much closer to downtown and handles only regional trains. A train runs between the two stations, and it is advisable to begin your exploration from the Hauptbahnhof, since it is much closer to most sights. The Bergpark sits above the city and is reachable on foot from where the trams leave near the station, though it involves climbing, so plan accordingly.

Where to stay

Kassel's accommodation clusters in two main areas: the city centre around the Hauptbahnhof and Königsplatz, and the leafy western district of Bad Wilhelmshöhe along Wilhelmshöher Allee, near the ICE station and the Bergpark. In the centre you'll find the Best Western Plus Hotel Kassel City on Spohrstraße, the Hotel Reiss on Werner-Hilpert-Straße, and the Jugendherberge Kassel on Schenkendorfstraße. The Hotel Albatros, one block southeast of the Königsplatz and an easy walk from the Hauptbahnhof, offers a classic German experience: fifteen rooms on the upper two floors, all with WC, shower and TV, a rate that includes a large breakfast buffet, and a full restaurant and bar on the main level serving reasonably priced, true German cuisine with daily specials. The Pentahotel Kassel sits on Bertha-von-Suttner Straße.

Bad Wilhelmshöhe is the other centre of gravity, with a run of hotels along Wilhelmshöher Allee: the Best Western Hotel Kurfürst Wilhelm I, the Hotel Schweizer Hof, the Kurparkhotel Bad Wilhelmshöhe, the Schlosshotel Bad Wilhelmshöhe on Schlosspark, and the Wilhelmshöher Tor BioHotel Kassel on Heinrich-Schütz-Allee. Further out you'll find the Hotel Neue Drusel in the Druseltal, Zum Steinernen Schweinchen on Konrad-Adenauer-Straße, La Strada on Raiffeisenstraße, and the Hotel Gude on Frankfurter Straße. The Hotel Palmenbad, a boutique hotel in the historic walled city with twelve individually designed rooms each dedicated to a famous artist, is reached from the Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe ICE station by tram 4 towards "Druseltal" to "Brabanter Strasse", a ride of under five minutes. If you're arriving by car, the Ibis Hotel Kassel on Heinrich-Hertz-Straße is a clean budget option in an industrial area a couple of kilometres from downtown, right at the Autobahn exit — an excellent choice by car, but not by train, and its restaurant is best compared to a fast-food joint, though you can drive into the centre for a better meal.

Food & drink

What to see and do

Kassel's headline sight is the Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a mountain park that climbs the slope above the city. At its summit stands the Herkules statue, the city's symbol, looking out over Kassel. Scattered through the park are numerous smaller features, many of them deliberately artificial - fake Greek temples, fake medieval castles and fake quarries among them. Genuine old masters, including Rembrandt and Rubens paintings, hang in Schloss Wilhelmshöhe within the park. In the summer months the Wasserspiele water games run on Wednesdays, Sundays and public holidays: water is released through features such as the Cascades below the Herkules, a waterfall and a Roman Aqueduct, and crowds move downhill from one to the next. The park also holds the Löwenburg, built as a romantic knight's castle but in fact a pleasure palace, one of Germany's early Gothic Revival buildings, where you can see armours, weapons and baroque rooms.

The Karlsaue is a second, French-style park, home to the Siebenbergen flower island, the Orangerie with its Cabinet of Astronomy and Physics and planetarium, and the Marmorbad, Germany's last intact Late Baroque bathhouse, decorated with marble sculptures and wall reliefs after Ovid's Metamorphoses. The Karlsaue is also where the Documenta art exhibition takes place every five years. For museums, head for the Museum Schloss Wilhelmshöhe with its antiquities collection and Gallery of the Old Masters, or the Weißensteinflügel, the palace's south wing, where you can walk through historic state rooms. The Grimmwelt is devoted to the Brothers Grimm, who spent most of their lives in Kassel, and covers their linguistic work and their fairy tales. The Fridericianum, one of Europe's oldest public museums, stands on Friedrichsplatz and serves as the central venue of Documenta; the Neue Galerie holds German Expressionists and Romantic and Impressionist works; the Museum für Sepulkralkultur examines death and remembrance; and the Naturkundemuseum im Ottoneum, in what was Germany's first theatre building, displays natural history.

When to go

Kassel has an oceanic climate with a stronger continental influence than Berlin, which gives the city warm summers and cold winters. Summer is the hottest part of the year, and the continental influence makes this the mildest, most outdoor-friendly weather of the year — the best time to be out and about in the city.

Winters are cold, with the continental influence bringing temperatures that can drop below freezing. Snow and frost are possible, so pack accordingly if you visit in the colder months.

Three days in Kassel

Day one: Start in the city itself, where Kassel's story runs from the Landgraviate through the Second World War to the present. Walk Wilhelmsstraße, the main shopping street, then explore the Schillerviertel, Brückenhof and Mattenberg neighbourhoods to get a feel for how the city is put together. The Brothers Grimm worked here, and the Huguenot presence left its mark on the city's character. If you arrive by train, note that most ICE services stop at Fernbahnhof Kassel rather than the Hauptbahnhof, and the Kulturbahnhof is worth a look in its own right.

Day two: Give the whole day to Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe, a UNESCO World Heritage Site on the hills above the city. The Hercules monument presides over the park, and the water features are the reason many visitors time their trip to a Tuesday or Sunday between March and November. The park is large enough to absorb a full day of walking, so pace yourself and take in the views back over Kassel.

Day three: Use the day for the wider region. Kassel sits in Hesse on the Fulda River, and the ICE network makes Würzburg and Hanover reachable, with Flixtrain and DB services offering options. If you prefer to stay closer, return to Wilhelmshöhe and the city's own districts, or simply wander the streets you missed on day one before your onward journey.